POLS 297: Qualitative Methods : Literature Reviews

The purpose of a literature review is to:

• Provide foundation of knowledge on topic
• Identify areas of prior scholarship to prevent duplication and give credit to other researchers
• Identify inconstancies: gaps in research, conflicts in previous studies, open questions left from other research
• Identify need for additional research (justifying your research)
• Identify the relationship of works in context of its contribution to the topic and to other works
• Place your own research within the context of existing literature making a case for why further study is needed. 
• Source: University of South Carolina Upstate Library