Chapter+Two+-+Literature+Review

=Chapter Two: Literature Review=

The purpose of the literature review is to inform the reader of any prior research that has taken place in relation to the current study. When developing a literature review it is vital to make sure the research question is clearly stated. Make sure the introduction, statement of the problem, and overview of the literature set the basis and that the material is consistent with the research question.The idea of this chapter is to address the various issues related to finding appropriate literature and finding ways to aid in searching for reliable and valid literature. Finally, it is important to think about how to organize and present the literature so that it supports the proposed research study. The following sections should discuss these factors of the literature review.

1.1 Theoretical sources
Theories are created to describe, explain and predict behavior. Through carefully controlled scientific processes, theories also identify and explain how a phenomenon presents itself and why it operates as it does. The part of theory that describes and explains knowledge is the //goal function of theory//. The //tool function of theory// is the part of theory that makes predictions of behavior. Theoretical sources can be excellent references for a research topic. However, one must be cautious of developing a biased approach when evaluating a theory. Asking yourself a few questions might help in evaluating theories and using them as sources. Is the theory biased or lacking in any area? Is this theory relevant to the time period? Were the theorists’ personal values influencing the basis of the theory? Resources used by a theorist to develop his or her theories must also be evaluated for credibility. Also, in order for theories to by useful, they should have some practical value. In looking to theory for research ideas you must ask "so what?" What is the importance of the theory in applying it to problems you wish to solve?

Theoretical sources are begun with a theory in mind and having an understanding of where these sources arise from would give a better understanding of the sources. Usually these sources are planted from four research ideas which consist of everyday life, practical issues, past research and theory. Generally the ideas will guide the beginning stage of a research project and develop questions and thinking about the idea.

Theories are developed about diverse topics. Some of the topics investigated may seem to be somewhat inconsequential at first, however they provide the initial groundwork for research that may follow in a specific field of interest. For example, Professor James Serpell, who is Professor of Humane Ethics and Animal Welfare at the School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania , and also directs the Center for the Interaction of Animals and Society, has developed and researched a theory of human/pet relationships. This research offers explanations and evidence as to why humans are drawn to pets. On //CBS News Sunday Morning//, October 10, 2008, Professor Serpell was interviewed in conjunction with a piece directed by Anthony Laudato and edited by Remington Korper, called //Ugly.// His comments were directed specifically regarding CBS’s coverage of The World’s Ugliest Pet Contest. As to why people could possibly be drawn to a one-eyed, three-legged Chinese crested (a hairless dog) and other ugly dogs, Professor Serpell’s theory proposes that there’s a gene within humans that draws us to want to protect helpless, dependent things such as pets (which connects to our attraction to babies.) More about Professor Serpell can be found at: http://www.apdt.com/conf/archive/2006/speakers/bio_serpell.aspx and his theory at: http://www.psyeta.org/sa/sa10.4/serpell.shtml

1.2 Empirical sources
Empirical research is knowledge gained through actual experience. It is dependent on evidence observable by the senses through experiment or observation. Empirical research studies can be qualitative or quantitative, but this knowledge is always gained by direct personal experience. Primary empirical sources are books and journals, but empirical research can also be found in academic dissertations or technical reports. Books allow a researcher to become more familiar with a topic and provide a bibliography containing other sources which might be useful. Reference books such as dictionaries and encyclopedias might also provide a good overview. Please keep in mind, information obtained from books is often not up-to-date or very comprehensive. It is usually several years old and the summaries of information are not very detail-oriented. Journals also publish empirical research, and the information in an educational journal is much more current than the information obtained from a book. To help narrow the search for relevant information on a particular topic, periodical indexes contain abstracts of these published research articles. Some valuable indexes include the //Current Index to Journals in Education// (CIJE) and //Resources in Education// (RIE). When searching for primary sources, include a search for meta-analyses. There are papers which are based on a number of studies on the same topic. The author summarizes the findings from the studies and looks for connections. The author may be able to make generalizations based on looking at all the studies together that could not be made on the basis of just one of the studies. These generalizations will be based on a statistical analysis of the combined studies.

Teachers collect data through empirical sources. Good teachers constantly collect data about their student’s behaviors through consistent observations, some types of these include: reactions to stimulus such as tests, discussions, classmates, and changes in patterns of behavior. Teachers ask self-probing questions, questions of their team who may also interact with that student, questions of parents, and questions of the student to try to determine the best course of action to maximize a student’s potential. Data is documented to form hypotheses to address the needs. Hypotheses once formed are tried, modified, and reapplied to meet this goal. Sometimes teachers are successful and celebrate their reason for teaching - to make a difference.

Consider this example. Dennis, a 12 year old in a 3-4-5th ESL combination class, kept getting suspended on alternate Fridays. The teacher kept collecting data, in the form of discipline reports, observations, parent input, and student interviews. However the mystery remained unsolved as to why this student was so violent on these particular days. One day, the pattern emerged. Spelling test days matched Dennis’s suspension days. When confronted, Dennis cracked his tough-guy façade and admitted that yes, he was avoiding the spelling tests because he couldn’t spell and didn’t want his peers to see his weakness. As his teacher, I immediately reached a compromise in private with him to reduce his spelling list to only five words instead of twenty. In addition, I initiated the process for Special Education testing, where he qualified in both reading and spelling and received the needed support through those services. Dennis gained knowledge of his learning challenges that helped him direct his energies into learning instead of anger. With his permission, the class was advised of his need for support and gave it willingly. Dennis went on to win a writing contest from a dictated story and read his work at the Menil  Museum . Without empirical research, Dennis’s challenges would have simply been seen as violent episodes of anger. What teachers fail to do is publish their documentation so that it helps other teachers who may have students struggling with similar issues.

2. Steps in the Literature Review
When conducting a literature review, the first step is to analyze a collection of research studies. These may be quantitative and/or qualitative depending on the purpose of your research. __ Literature Review for Quantitative Research Studies __ The examination of quantitative research studies as part of a literature review can be helpful in many ways. It can help identify building blocks that have already been developed by previous researchers as well as any pitfalls to avoid. Quantitative studies are particularly helpful in examining whether a problem has been researched already. If it has been previously researched and replicated, then you should revise your problem or consider another problem altogether. However, you may wish to consider replicating a study to see whether the conclusions can be confirmed. Finally, quantitative studies can assist in determining a research methodology as well as the appropriate methods to use in collecting data. It is important in quantitative research to conduct a vast literature review before conducting your research. It is important to become familiar with the research that has already been completed in the same areas because these studies can help to provide you clues when you are trying to make sense of your effects and data as you are writing your research report. Once you are familiar with previous studies, and are writing your research report it will be easier to state whether your findings support or contradict the prior studies which were conducted. If your study is contradictive of other studies, this will lead you to speculate as to why this happened which then opens the door to other research studies in this area. __ Literature Review for Qualitative Research Studies __ There are generally two schools of thought regarding the use of qualitative research as part of the literature review. 1. //Before you research//- The studies can be used to build background knowledge of the possible issues surrounding the research question. These can be used preventively in the construction of the research design. However, in researching the literature you must use caution that your research does not bias your thinking in your exploratory study. You need to do enough research to be aware of design issues or data collection concerns, but not so much that you become invested in a particular expected outcome. 2. //After you research//- The studies can be used to explain possible outcomes and influences to the study. Looking at more literature after your own research can enrich your understanding of your own data. It is a good idea to organize your literature by constructs. Organization of literature is key in presenting a clear case to your audience. Literature should be organized in a way that will support your hypothesis. __ Feasibility __ After conducting the literature review, the research topic must be revisited to determine whether it is feasible for effective study. Given the information derived from the quantitative and qualitative studies, the researcher must decide if the topic or methodology in pursuing the topic must be revised. Feasibility involves who is easily available to participate in your study, the cost of the study, and the time you have available for your study. You must also consider ethical issues. Your study must not harm any participants and you will need to allow time to submit a research protocol to your university Institutional Research Board.

2.1 Using databases
One of the most effective ways to use the Internet for a literature review is to access the different databases available through public libraries. ERIC is a federally funded database that is accessible on a national scale. Through this network, one can obtain journal articles and research reports in education and related fields. Johnson and Christensen suggest accessing it through a university or college retrieval system, instead of the public internet, to be able to get a full version of the desired literature. Some steps are recommended by Johnson and Christensen in order to retrieve the most valuable information concerning one’s research topic. First, connect to the ERIC website through your library home page or using the internet. Second, identify descriptors or key words that are related to your research topic. Enter your "descriptors" or "search terms" in the "search term" box on the left. The use of the Thesaurus link can be helpful in identifying other related descriptors. Also, employ different filters to narrow down the search by date, peer reviewed, publication type, educational level, among others. Finally after clicking the "search" button, read carefully and examine the titles and abstracts in order to select the most relevant ones to your research topic. Johnson and Christensen strongly suggest that you do not limit your searches to articles for which a full text version is available. You will be missing out on some quality research if you limit yourself this way. If you find an article you want to use in your literature review and it is not available on the web in full text version, you can order a copy of the article through your university's interlibrary loan process. It usually takes a few days to two weeks to arrive.

Here is a hint for finding articles on your chosen topic. Start with keywords that relate to your topic. If you find at least one useful article, look at the keywords or “subjects” associated with that article. Use those for further searches and you will be likely to find more on the same topic. For example, if you search for articles on “self-assessment” it can lead you to articles with keywords “self regulated learning” and “learning environment” which can be used to find more studies.

2.2 Using the World Wide Web
Although vast, the Internet can also be unwieldy and/or unreliable when it comes to using it as a tool for research. The information available at your fingertips on the World Wide Web spans the global knowledge on that topic. This is good as it provides a diversity of opinions and input. However sifting through this buffet of data can be overwhelming and inefficient as it varies depending on the search engine used, how the topic is entered, and the source of the information. To narrow a search, the user needs to develop precision in wording the query. To be thorough, several databases should be searched for a variety of sources on a topic. Johnson and Christensen recommend that all searches include ERIC, PsychoINFO, and SocINDEX at a minimum (2008). The federally funded ERIC database provides access to educational literature and if accessed through a university retrieval system can provide the full text version of some of the articles.

Using either [|www.notes.com] or [|www.searchenginewatch.com] can provide information to analyze search services (Johnson and Christensen, 2008). To make a more thorough search of what’s available on one’s topic, metasearch engines, such as Metacrawler and others listed on page 72 of //Educational Research// by Johnson and Christensen, can be used that simultaneously access several databases. However, careful review of the sources of information for reliability and bias should be undertaken as data can be posted to the world wide web by anyone. When searching on the Internet, you can find scholarly articles by using Google Scholar at http://scholar.google.com/. Google Scholar has an advanced search feature which allows you to narrow down your search by adding parameters for author, publication, etc. Even if this search does not provide the articles you will eventually include in your literature review, the articles may give you insights into issues you would like to explore further.

2.3 Determining the validity of sources
Validation refers to an inquiry process of gathering validity evidence that supports information gathered from various sources. One who is trying to determine if a source is valid or not should look at the soundness and relevance of said data while also inspecting the interpretations or inferences drawn by that source. Evidence can be empirical or theoretical in nature and generally supports the rationale of the actions we take based on the information gathered. The main problem with conducting literature research on the Internet is determining if the information found is reliable. There are several points to look at here. 1. __Authority__ - Does the web page list the author and his/her credits? Does the URL end in a .gov, an .org, or .edu? One of my second grade students was researching information about the history of the White House one time, and instead of putting in [|www.whitehouse.gov], he put in [|www.whitehouse.com]. For those unaware, this is an adult pornographic website. When looking for a reliable source check the ending of URL and the qualifications of the publisher of the web document.

Even when the web page lists the author’s credit, as educators, we have to test web pages (with all possible URL endings) ourselves in order to provide students with accurate information. We know that many school districts have filters but sometimes an .org URL can be attached to an unwanted site. As educators, it's also important to scan the advertisements/adversitement policies on web sites that we are allowing students to use. Sometimes seemingly harmless web sites can inundate students with unwanted or unneeded media messages. While it is best to preview sites that students may be using, students who are working alone might use search engines provided at [|http://searchenginewatch.com]. These search engines provide additional filters in addition to whatever your district may offer to protect students from the potential exposure to adult sites and advertising.

It is common for school districts to provide safe searching websites for students to use such as [|www.nettrekker.com]. These sites provide prescreened, safe searches for students which can even be aligned to state standards. Another route districts are taking to keep students research safe online is by subscribng to online encyclopdia's such as [|www.britannica.com]. 2. __Accuracy__ - This is the highest when the page lists the author and publisher of the material and provides a way of contacting him or her. Some helpful tips are to look at the credentials and review the information. It is easy and cheap to put up a webpage and use it to promote anything you wish. Especially in an election year, it is easy for a propaganda website to pass off un-tested information as being factual.

Accuracy has to be researched in many different forms. I have experiences that Newsweek online publishes articles that are similar to those in the New York Times and Vanity Fair; yet, the authors and publishers are different. The question then is, “Where and how do these authors and publishers get similar sources?” Searching articles by specific topics may be useful to compare articles and find if authors collaborate with other publishers and writers.

3. __Objectivity__ - Check for advertising. The less amount of ads, most likely, the more reliable the information. Check the website for data that proves their facts. Also be wary of authors who express their opinion. Wikipedia, since it is so easily edited, is not a reliable source. Wikipeia even openly states in a disclaimer on the site that they cannot gurantee the validity of the information on their site.

4. __Currency__ - How often is the web page updated? A web page which hasn't been changed since 1999 may not be the most reliable or up to date information available.

5. __Coverage__ - Do you have to pay to get the information from the website? Do you have to download specific software to view the information? Although sometimes the information on these websites is reliable, there is a lot of free, reliable information on the web. (Johnson and Christensen 2008 pg. 73)

It is imporant to teach students all of these steps and factors that they need to take into account before and during their research. Students are often under the mistaken impression that because it is on the Internet that it is true. As you can see from the above examples, this is not always the case. Everyone needs to know and understand that anyone can post anything on the Internet and it is up to us to determine what is usable and factual for our research.

3. Purpose of the Literature Review
The purpose of a literature review is to gain an understanding of the current state of thought about a particular topic or theory. The literature review can be essential in forming research questions, providing ideas on study design and procedures, pointing out problems with certain research methodology, and identifying proper data-collection instruments.

Before starting a literature review, the researcher must have a topic/problem and a purpose for the study. A research question must be present whether it is quantitative or qualitative research, and a hypothesis about the investigation must be stated. However, you must be flexible about your intended research because you may find, while investigating the literature, that you need to change your plan. Someone may have already done the research you intend to do. In such a case, you might like to use the same topic but investigate a different question or you may decide that it is appropriate to replicate a study to see if another researcher's conclusions can be confirmed with a different set of participants.

After finding and analyzing literature relevant to the topic, a researcher can then present the literature. A literature review consists of a general introduction, a paragraph which informs the reader about of the nature of the paper, a presentation and explanation of the findings, a section which critiques the research studies and identifies gaps in knowledge, and a section with recommendations for future studies.

3.1 Integrating the Literature
When you write a literature review, you read research articles and use the articles to explain what studies have been done and what has been learned from them. However, you do not just summarize a series of articles one after the other. You should look for key concepts about the topic and discuss how those concepts have been addressed across the different pieces of literature. You look for the big picture of what the articles are telling you and integrate those findings in your review. Your literature review will compare the studies on significant points such as participants, data collection methods, or data analysis. Integrating the literature into your own research study is important. In your literature review you must explain how that review leads to your own research questions. For example, you might need to point out studies that have seemingly opposing results and tell how your study intends to reconcile those differing findings. Or you might show how your research will fill a gap in the knowledge about your chosen topic. For example, you may find research determining how students fair on taking standardized tests, however the testing group was made of primarily Caucasian students. You may wish to do research on how African-American students or Hispanic American students fare on the same tests comparing and contrasting your research to prior studies.

3.2 Constructing the argument
Before constructing an argument, it is imperative that the topic you select is something you strongly feel or want to learn about. If conducting an experiment, let it be one about which you have read articles (empirical, scientific, methodological, etc.) to support your research. Otherwise you may find yourself overwhelmed because you know very little about your topic. When you construct an argument: 1) keep in mind who the audience will be (peers, administrator, government official), 2) what information are you trying to relay (are you informing, suggesting a change, implementing a strategy), 3) is the topic of high importance that others would want to replicate your research, use the information, suggestions or strategies, and 4) is your research clear to your intended audience or maybe those who you intended to buy into your topic?

Throughout your literature review, you should have been building a case for your research. You should have delineated the population that will be affected by your study. You should have discussed the benefits to that population and given reasons why the cost is justified. At this point you will state in specific terms what you intend to study, what you intend to learn from your research, and who will benefit. Remember that the beneficiaries could be both students and educators as your study will increase knowledge about your topic.