Searching the literature is a key part of the research process. This is how scholars—and students—find out more about a topic.
A literature search is the first step in sharing an overview on a topic. Common types of overviews include: annotated bibliography, systematic review, and literature review.
You should review your assignment requirements to determine if you need to create a specific type of literature review.
When you do a literature search, you may look at sources such as:
You will probably have to do literature searches throughout your coursework.
Interested in reading more about literature searches?
Review these readings from Sage Research Methods to learn more: