The purpose of a literature review is to know what others have discovered about your topic before you begin your own investigation. A literature review grounds your
study in what is known about a topic and establishes a foundation for the research question(s) you will answer. Relevant, peer-reviewed articles will help you better
understand the problem (issue, concern, problem, need) and may introduce either data collection techniques you may want to use or intervention ideas you may want to
incorporate into an action plan. You will discover information that will help you compile a promising action research project.
In Module 1, you included one peer-reviewed article in your literature review. In this module, continue working on your literature review by adding two additional,
peer-reviewed articles.
In your literature search, place a check in the box for “peer reviewed,” so you are sure to use only peer-reviewed studies.
Describe each article or study using at least two well-developed paragraphs, and include information about the purpose, problem statement, research questions, theory,
methodology, results, and conclusions.
Using the three articles from Modules 1-2, organize and integrate the information as appropriate based on common themes. A good literature review compares and
contrasts as well describes. It may be good to mention more than one source or set of findings in a paragraph if they are related. Articles that report on one or more
empirical studies will likely be the most useful, but theoretical articles and articles describing programs, interventions, and methodologies may help you decide on
the appropriate action to take or propose.
Follow your literature review with an explanation of how your action research relates to the studies you reviewed. Pull together ideas about what is known and what you
still need to find out. This literature review should set you up for your subsequent planning for data collection and action.
How did you analyze the data you collected?
How does the data help you answer the research question(s)?
In an actual research project (one in which you would have Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval, what new data would be helpful to collect?