The information on this page formatted as a handout that can be printed for convenient reference as you write.
accentuated | held the view that |
accepted | hypothesized |
accessed | identified |
acknowledged | illustrated |
added | implemented |
administered | implied |
advised | indicated |
affected | inferred |
agreed | interpreted |
analyzed | investigated |
appraised | justified |
approached | knew |
articulated | linked |
assessed | listed |
assumed | maintained |
assured | mentioned |
attributed | noted |
believed | observed |
categorized | outlined |
characterized | pointed out |
charted | posited |
claimed | presented |
clarified | professed |
classified | proposed |
concluded | realized |
concurred | reasoned that |
confirmed | recognized |
commented | refined |
compared | reflected |
considered | regarded |
contrasted | regulated |
created | relied on |
debated | reported |
declared | represented |
deduced | requested |
defined | responded |
demonstrated | revealed |
derived | questioned |
described | showed |
detected | sought to |
documented | specified |
differentiated | stated |
disagreed | studied |
discovered | submitted |
discussed | subscribed to |
encouraged | suggested |
estimated | surveyed |
evaluated | theorized |
examined | thought |
excluded | took into consideration |
explained | uncovered |
explored | understood |
expressed | used |
felt | utilized |
focused on | viewed |
found | wondered |
generated |
accused | guaranteed |
achieved | highlighted |
acknowledged | ignored |
advocated | inferred |
affirmed | insisted |
announced | intervened |
argued | justified |
asserted | maintained |
assumed | misinterpreted |
believed | monitored |
blamed | negated |
challenged | objected to |
claimed | opposed |
complained | persuaded |
conceded | presumed |
concluded | promised |
condoned | prioritized |
confirmed | proved |
contended | recognized |
contradicted | refuted |
criticized | reinforced |
declared | rejected |
denied | required |
determined | restricted |
deviated | revealed |
discounted | stressed |
dismissed | substantiated |
disputed | supported the view that |
disregarded | threatened |
doubted | underscored |
emphasized | upheld |
endorsed | urged |
established | validated |
exhorted | warned |
extolled | |
Adapted from American Psychological Association publication manual (7th ed.).
A literature review may form an assignment by itself, in which case the aim is to summarise the key research relating to your topic. Alternatively, it may form part of a larger paper, such as a thesis or a research report, in which case the aim is to explain why more research needs to be done on your chosen topic.
click on each process for more information
Whether you’ve been given a topic by your teacher, or you’ve been asked to decide upon your own topic or research question, it’s best to rephrase the topic as a specific question that you’re attempting to answer.
If your purpose is to summarise the existing research on the topic, it may be quite appropriate to have a very broad question, such as the example below.
If your purpose is to justify the need to conduct further primary research, you will need a more specific research question which takes into account how the existing research has failed to adequately answer the question you’re planning to address.
This question allows the writer to narrow the focus of their literature review and, hopefully, find gaps in the amount or type of research conducted into this very specific topic. Sometimes you may start with a broader topic or question, then conduct some initial research into the existing literature, and then narrow the focus of your research question based on what you find.
When searching for relevant sources, it’s important to first decide the criteria you will use when trying to find existing research. This includes setting the scope of your research to decide what is important and why.
What notes you take depends on your research question. Knowing what you’re trying to achieve or what question you’re trying to answer will help you choose what to focus on when reading the literature. Common aspects to look out for when reading include:
Remember to also take notes about your own response to the literature. If you see weaknesses in a particular study, or assumptions being made when interpreting the findings of a study, make a note of it, as your critical analysis of the literature is a key aspect of a literature review.
Before drafting your literature review, it’s useful to group together your sources according to theme. A good literature review is not structured based on having one paragraph for each paper that you review. Instead, paragraphs are based on topics or themes that have been identified when conducting your research, with various sources synthesised within each paragraph.
How you decide on your groupings will depend on the purpose of your literature review. You may be clear on this before you begin researching, or your themes may emerge during the research process. Examples can include:
Your literature review should tell some sort of story. After reading the various studies published on your topic, are you able to clearly answer your initial research question? If so, was it an answer you were expecting, and what evidence was most useful in helping you answer the question. If there is no clear answer to your question, is that because:
Whatever you decide, you need to explain this clearly to your reader, guiding them through how you got to your answer by explaining what you were looking for and what connections you found when looking through the existing literature.
The introduction is usually one paragraph in a short literature review, or series of paragraphs in a longer review, outlining:
The conclusion summarises the main themes that were identified when reviewing the literature.
Click on each component for more information and some examples
Example introduction to a literature review
[1] Education is one aspect of society that everyone has experienced, and that everyone therefore has an opinion about. However, despite decades of research into pedagogical approaches to education, there is still surprisingly little consensus regarding how learning and teaching should be conducted in order to be most effective. This is especially true with regards to critical pedagogy, which can be defined as the theory and practice of helping students achieve critical consciousness about what they are learning, how they are learning it, and the context which shapes both of these aspects (Windsor, 2018). [2] The purpose of this literature review is to demonstrate the lack of analytical approaches to teaching in the higher education sphere, and the importance of critical pedagogy in enhancing curriculum development, teacher training and classroom practice. When reviewing the literature, it soon becomes clear that research studies in the ESL field are dominated by language instruction techniques, with less attention given to ways teachers can adopt a more critical stance with their learners (Pennycook 1999; Saroub & Quadros 2015). [3] For the purposes of this review , respected ESL and Adult Education journals, online publications, unpublished theses and academic books from the late 1980s to 2016 will be examined, with a coverage of sources from Australia, the US, Asia, the Middle East and South America. Pennycook (1994, 1999), Giroux (1988) and Freire (1970) are commonly cited in these research studies. It is rare to find authors or research questioning the value of critical pedagogy; Ellsworth (1989) and Johnson (1999) are notable exceptions. [4] This literature review covers two main areas. Firstly, research into what pre-service and existing teachers know and think about critical pedagogy is examined. The second area investigates teacher and student resistance to some critical teaching practices.
Introduces the overall topic being discussed, and gives some background information, including definitions of key terms. | |
Explains the main purpose of this review, and summarises the context of the existing literature. | |
Explains how the literature review will be conducted. | |
Explains the main themes (or sub-topics) that will be examined in this review. |
Rather than writing one paragraph for each piece of research being discussed, literature reviews are usually organised so that each paragraph (or section) covers one theme or sub-topic. These themes will differ depending on your topic and your purpose, but may relate to:
Each section ends with a brief summary which relates this theme to the main focus of the research area. It may do this by focusing on parts of the topic where the literature agrees or disagrees. The body paragraphs should be well organised and structured. See our resources on effective paragraph writing .
Example body paragraph from a literature review
[1] Resistance to change is another area that was found to restrict the adoption of critical teaching practices in the ESL area. [2] Canh and Barnard’s small case study (2009) of Vietnamese teachers’ capacity to take on a national curriculum change directed by the Vietnamese government found implementation was different from the ‘idealised world of innovation designers’ (p. 30). While also recommending better teacher training, they cited the need for an adjustment of teachers’ belief systems to make change happen, since an individual’s practice ‘behind the closed doors of their classroom’ (p. 21) is a largely unobserved space, despite mandated curriculum changes. [3] Similarly, resistance and avoidance among EFL teachers was noted by Cox & De Assis–Peterson’s Brazilian study (1999). They found that teachers often avoided political language questions from students, for example, ‘Why should we learn English if we’re Brazilian?’ [4] This suggests that any uptake of critical practices may be more dependent on teacher attitudes, reflecting their internal reality, than on external factors.
The topic sentence makes it clear that this paragraph is focused on a sub-topic within the broader area being discussed, in this case, “resistance to change”. | |
Two different studies that relate to this sub-topic are then briefly summarised. | |
The writer has grouped together studies that presented similar perspectives. If several studies had an opposing perspective, these studies should be grouped in a separate paragraph, with an analysis of the reasons behind their opposing opinions, along with the writer’s perspective on the strength of their arguments or the evidence used to justify those arguments. | |
This paragraph concludes with the writer discussing the implications of what has been discussed when summarising the literature on this topic. |
Example conclusion from a literature review
[1] This review of relevant literature has quite clearly shown a lack of understanding of critical pedagogy among a range of teachers, despite the strong likelihood of it being included in their training. [2] It also demonstrated that many teachers used avoidance when faced with difficult topics or situations related to critical language education. [3] Calls for curriculum changes, better training and more teaching materials were common in research recommendations, and it may be that teachers’ personal attitudes also play an important role in changing classroom practice.
Summary of the main argument being made by the writer. | |
Summary of the second main conclusion reached by the writer based on the available evidence. | |
Summary of some of the recommendations made throughout the literature on how to address the problems that were discussed. Sometimes the writer might also include their own recommendations, especially regarding areas where further research needs to be conducted to help us have a better understanding of this topic. |
If the literature review is part of a larger research project, the conclusion should also summarise any gaps in the existing literature, and use this to justify the need for your own proposed research project. The types of gaps in the existing literature may relate to:
If the purpose of your literature review is to summarise the existing literature on a topic, you will be expected to:
If your literature review is part of a thesis or research report, as well as doing everything listed above, you will also need to:
Always consider the verb tense when presenting a review of previously published work. There are three main verb tenses used in literature reviews. Please click on each occasion to check which verb tense is appropriate.
When describing a particular study or piece of research (or the researchers who conducted it), it is common to use past tense .
For example:
After conducting a meta-review of studies on effective exam preparation techniques, Wang & Li (2016) concluded that ….
If you are sharing your own views about a previous study, or conveying the views of other experts, then present tense is more common.
Although the research conducted by Lopez et al. (2017) was an important contribution to the field, their claims are too strong given the lack of supporting evidence.
If you are making generalisations about past research, present perfect tense is used.
Several researchers have studied the effects of stress on very young children (Baggio, 2014; Suarez, 2017; Van Djik et al., 2020).
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I am currently writing my bachelor thesis and have to do a small literature review for it. Unfortunately, I don't know which tense I should use. Do you write ?
I am quite confused about what tense to use.
I don't think there are any general standards. It depends on your field and, potentially, your adviser's preferences. I tend to prefer the active tense (since I think that any sentence that mentions a work kind of presents said work), but pick whatever you like as long as you are consistent about it.
(My field is maths/computer science; other domains might have common standards)
Generally speaking any are acceptable. If you focus on the authors then "did show" or "have shown" feels about right. But if you take the citation to mean the paper itself, then the present tense is fine since the paper still exists and does still show...
However, advisors can be a bit picky on some such things, so it would be good to ask whether they think it makes a difference.
In a few rare circumstances, future might even work if a paper hasn't yet appeared, as in one of your own. But, as Gnosophilon says, consistency is probably a good choice.
In almost all cases people will understand you no matter how you write it. But there are exceptions, such as when some things need to be put in historical context, perhaps with older results being replace by new research. That doesn't seem to be your concern here, though.
My preference would be option 2, the simple past. There is IMO a good reason to prefer it. Quite often it is natural to say something like "Hager et al. showed [statement]. Subsequently, Smith et al. showed [stronger statement]." This (or anything else that indicates the papers were written at different past times) doesn't really work with either of the other options.
The already-given advice to ask your advisor is good general advice for academia. It doesn't always work; some advisors are less helpful than they should be. But if they will be grading your work, they can be the most reliable about how they want it to look.
Another piece of general writing advice is to look for already-published examples in your field. A lot of papers have a section that is a small literature review - how do they do it? This is nice because you can learn more than just what tense to use.
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Methodology
Published on January 2, 2023 by Shona McCombes . Revised on September 11, 2023.
What is a literature review? A literature review is a survey of scholarly sources on a specific topic. It provides an overview of current knowledge, allowing you to identify relevant theories, methods, and gaps in the existing research that you can later apply to your paper, thesis, or dissertation topic .
There are five key steps to writing a literature review:
A good literature review doesn’t just summarize sources—it analyzes, synthesizes , and critically evaluates to give a clear picture of the state of knowledge on the subject.
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What is the purpose of a literature review, examples of literature reviews, step 1 – search for relevant literature, step 2 – evaluate and select sources, step 3 – identify themes, debates, and gaps, step 4 – outline your literature review’s structure, step 5 – write your literature review, free lecture slides, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions, introduction.
When you write a thesis , dissertation , or research paper , you will likely have to conduct a literature review to situate your research within existing knowledge. The literature review gives you a chance to:
Writing literature reviews is a particularly important skill if you want to apply for graduate school or pursue a career in research. We’ve written a step-by-step guide that you can follow below.
Professional editors proofread and edit your paper by focusing on:
See an example
Writing literature reviews can be quite challenging! A good starting point could be to look at some examples, depending on what kind of literature review you’d like to write.
You can also check out our templates with literature review examples and sample outlines at the links below.
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Before you begin searching for literature, you need a clearly defined topic .
If you are writing the literature review section of a dissertation or research paper, you will search for literature related to your research problem and questions .
Start by creating a list of keywords related to your research question. Include each of the key concepts or variables you’re interested in, and list any synonyms and related terms. You can add to this list as you discover new keywords in the process of your literature search.
Use your keywords to begin searching for sources. Some useful databases to search for journals and articles include:
You can also use boolean operators to help narrow down your search.
Make sure to read the abstract to find out whether an article is relevant to your question. When you find a useful book or article, you can check the bibliography to find other relevant sources.
You likely won’t be able to read absolutely everything that has been written on your topic, so it will be necessary to evaluate which sources are most relevant to your research question.
For each publication, ask yourself:
Make sure the sources you use are credible , and make sure you read any landmark studies and major theories in your field of research.
You can use our template to summarize and evaluate sources you’re thinking about using. Click on either button below to download.
As you read, you should also begin the writing process. Take notes that you can later incorporate into the text of your literature review.
It is important to keep track of your sources with citations to avoid plagiarism . It can be helpful to make an annotated bibliography , where you compile full citation information and write a paragraph of summary and analysis for each source. This helps you remember what you read and saves time later in the process.
To begin organizing your literature review’s argument and structure, be sure you understand the connections and relationships between the sources you’ve read. Based on your reading and notes, you can look for:
This step will help you work out the structure of your literature review and (if applicable) show how your own research will contribute to existing knowledge.
There are various approaches to organizing the body of a literature review. Depending on the length of your literature review, you can combine several of these strategies (for example, your overall structure might be thematic, but each theme is discussed chronologically).
The simplest approach is to trace the development of the topic over time. However, if you choose this strategy, be careful to avoid simply listing and summarizing sources in order.
Try to analyze patterns, turning points and key debates that have shaped the direction of the field. Give your interpretation of how and why certain developments occurred.
If you have found some recurring central themes, you can organize your literature review into subsections that address different aspects of the topic.
For example, if you are reviewing literature about inequalities in migrant health outcomes, key themes might include healthcare policy, language barriers, cultural attitudes, legal status, and economic access.
If you draw your sources from different disciplines or fields that use a variety of research methods , you might want to compare the results and conclusions that emerge from different approaches. For example:
A literature review is often the foundation for a theoretical framework . You can use it to discuss various theories, models, and definitions of key concepts.
You might argue for the relevance of a specific theoretical approach, or combine various theoretical concepts to create a framework for your research.
Like any other academic text , your literature review should have an introduction , a main body, and a conclusion . What you include in each depends on the objective of your literature review.
The introduction should clearly establish the focus and purpose of the literature review.
Depending on the length of your literature review, you might want to divide the body into subsections. You can use a subheading for each theme, time period, or methodological approach.
As you write, you can follow these tips:
In the conclusion, you should summarize the key findings you have taken from the literature and emphasize their significance.
When you’ve finished writing and revising your literature review, don’t forget to proofread thoroughly before submitting. Not a language expert? Check out Scribbr’s professional proofreading services !
This article has been adapted into lecture slides that you can use to teach your students about writing a literature review.
Scribbr slides are free to use, customize, and distribute for educational purposes.
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If you want to know more about the research process , methodology , research bias , or statistics , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.
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Research bias
A literature review is a survey of scholarly sources (such as books, journal articles, and theses) related to a specific topic or research question .
It is often written as part of a thesis, dissertation , or research paper , in order to situate your work in relation to existing knowledge.
There are several reasons to conduct a literature review at the beginning of a research project:
Writing the literature review shows your reader how your work relates to existing research and what new insights it will contribute.
The literature review usually comes near the beginning of your thesis or dissertation . After the introduction , it grounds your research in a scholarly field and leads directly to your theoretical framework or methodology .
A literature review is a survey of credible sources on a topic, often used in dissertations , theses, and research papers . Literature reviews give an overview of knowledge on a subject, helping you identify relevant theories and methods, as well as gaps in existing research. Literature reviews are set up similarly to other academic texts , with an introduction , a main body, and a conclusion .
An annotated bibliography is a list of source references that has a short description (called an annotation ) for each of the sources. It is often assigned as part of the research process for a paper .
If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator.
McCombes, S. (2023, September 11). How to Write a Literature Review | Guide, Examples, & Templates. Scribbr. Retrieved August 26, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/dissertation/literature-review/
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Q. Dear Chicago, what verb tense do you recommend for the literature review section of a scholarly article? APA insists on the past tense, arguing that any work included in a literature review was obviously published in the past. People writing about English literature, on the other hand, discuss works in the present tense because readers always experience the book in the present. I’m editing a Canadian public policy journal, and the author uses the present tense to discuss works published ten or fifteen years ago. Should I change these tenses to the present perfect? The journal has no in-house rule on this.
A. Since the use of the present tense in literature reviews is widely accepted, and since any decision about where to cut off “past” from “present” literature would have to be arbitrary, using the present tense for everything is a fine option. You shouldn’t worry about using it if a journal doesn’t express a preference.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
When writing an academic paper, writers should follow the accepted grammar and style conventions: not only to abide by the institutional and domain standards, but to communicate clearly to readers what was studied, when it took place, and from what perspective you are discussing your research (and that of others) in your paper. One crucial writing element that you must consider when composing your paper is verb tense . Which tense you use will determine the flow and coherency of your paper.
You might have found yourself thinking along these lines: “Everything in this study has already been completed, so shouldn’t I simply write everything in the simple past tense?”
The answer is no–at least not in a strict sense. The verb tense you use for a given sentence or phrase depends on your position as the author to the material you are discussing. As the author, you look at each element mentioned in your text from a distance in terms of your role: as a participant, critic, or messenger, among others. You must also take into account the chronological reasons for choosing between present and past tenses in a given instance.
Knowing which tense to use requires both knowledge of the exact guidelines set out for you in whichever formatting style you are following ( APA , AMA , etc.), as well as some discretion and savvy in choosing the tense that makes the most sense for a given statement in the paper.
While new authors should certainly familiarize themselves with the specific guidelines of the formatting style they are applying, this article will focus on the most common rules of verb tense applied to research papers in journals and at academic institutions, reflecting basic verb usage rules in academic English and encompassing all formatting styles.
Bear in mind that these grammar and verb-tense issues will largely be corrected by any competent proofreading service or research paper editing service , and thus professional revision of all academic documents is recommended before submission to journals or conferences.
First, there are three basic verb tenses used in research papers: present (simple present), simple past , and present perfect . We will talk about how research paper sections determine verb tense in a minute, but first, let’s review when each tense should be used in general throughout the paper.
The present tense is used to talk about general facts, discuss current meanings and implications, and suggest future applications .
General facts are constant and do not change throughout time (the ultimate evolution of scientific progress notwithstanding). Always use the present when discussing general scientific facts.
Example: “Insulin and glucagon regulates blood glucose levels.”
Implications are closely related to general facts and thus the same rule is applied.
Example: “An elevated glucose level indicates a lack of glucagon hormones in the pancreas.”
Further research is called for or stressed as important through a phrase in the present tense.
Example: “Further studies about glucagon receptors are needed.”
The simple past is generally used to discuss events that have been c ompleted in the past at some distinct time and/or place . It is most often applied to discrete events such as studies, experiments, or observed phenomena.
Example: “Scientists in Wales discovered a new enzyme in the liver.” Example: “Protocol X was used to analyze the data.”
The present perfect tense (or simply “perfect tense”) is used in research papers to refer to events or actions that have taken place at some unidentified time in the past or have started but are still ongoing or only recently completed . It often establishes a general background in the Introduction section , adding a backdrop on which you can explain the motivations for and purpose of your study.
Note that it is the least frequently used tense in most research papers and should not be over-employed–focus more on detailed actions by using the simple past.
Example: “Many studies have focused on glucagon as an important regulating hormone.” Example: “Until recently, researchers have analyzed this kind of data using Chi-Square Statistics.” Example: “Efforts have been made to understand more about this process.” (passive)
It bears repeating that the “best” tense to use is the one that is recommended (or demanded) by whichever formatting manual you are using. However, there is a high degree of continuity between the common styles, and the following rules for usage in each section will likely apply to your research paper no matter where it will be published.
In general, use the simple past for the abstract of your manuscript; for a concise introductory sentence, use the present perfect. To establish a need for your study—–for instance, by explaining the current circumstances of the world or the specific area in which you are working—–you can also use the present tense.
Example of introductory sentence (present perfect): “Recent studies of glucagon and insulin production have led to breakthroughs in medicine.” Example of establishing background/circumstances/purpose (present): “Diabetes accounts for a higher number of deaths in the US than previously calculated.”
For general statements and facts, the paper itself, or analysis of findings, use the present tense.
Example of a statement of fact: “In the US, diabetes is the most common endocrine disease.”
If you are stating a fact or finding from an earlier specified time or place, use the simple past:
Example: “In 2016, diabetes was the most common endocrine disease.” Have a look at our more in-depth instruction to writing an abstract for a research paper or at these do’s and don’ts of abstract writing if you need additional input.
Use a mixture of present and past tense in the introduction section .
The present tense is applied when discussing something that is always true; the simple past tense is used for earlier research efforts, either your own or those reported by another group.
Example of earlier research efforts (simple past): “This same research team discovered a similar enzyme in their 2012 study.”
If the time or location of the demonstration is unknown or not important, use the present perfect.
Example: “Prior research has indicated a correlation between X and Y.”
For the concluding statements of your introduction, use the simple past or present perfect.
Example of concluding statement (simple past): “The CalTech glucagon studies were inconclusive.” Example of concluding statement (present perfect): “Prior research in this area has been inconclusive.”
Use the past perfect when you talk about something that happened or was found to be the case in the past, but which has since been revised. Example of revised information (past perfect): “The Dublonsky study had determined that X was Y, but a 2012 study found this to be incorrect.”
Knowing which tenses to use for a literature review (either as part of a research paper or as a stand-alone article) can be a bit tricky, as your usage depends both on which style manual you are using (APA, AMA, MLA , or others) and on how you are discussing the literature.
The simple past is usually applied when using the researcher’s name as the subject of the sentence and discussing the methods or results of that study itself
Example of describing researcher’s actions: “Pearson (1997) discovered a new enzyme using similar methods.”
Other verbs commonly found in this usage context: investigated, compared, studied, analyzed, investigated, found, confirmed, performed, etc.
When giving your opinion on another researcher’s work or bringing up the results, discussion, and conclusions they make in their work, use the present tense.
Example of discussing another’s work: “Ryuku (2005) concludes that there are no additional enzymes present in the liver, a finding this current study directly refutes.” Other verbs commonly found in this usage context: stresses, advocates, remarks, argues, claims, posits. etc.
The Methods section fairly clearly delineates between sections written in past and those written in present tense.
Use the simple past tense to talk about what you did. (Note that you will generally find the passive voice used when describing the actions of the researchers. This puts more focus on the actions being completed and less on the agents completing the action. Passive voice has become the general standard for research papers in recent decades, but it is okay to mix passive and active voice in order to make your paper clearer and more readable.)
Example of methods of study: “A glucose molecule was added to the mixture to see how the peptide would respond.” Example of methods of analysis: “The results were analyzed using Bayesian inference.”
Use the present tense to refer to or explain diagrams, figures, tables, and charts.
Example: “Table 5 shows the results of this first isolated test.” Example: “The results of this first isolated test are displayed in Table 5.”
The verb tense rules for the Results section are quite similar to those applied to the Methods section.
Use the past tense to discuss actual results.
Example: “The addition of 0.02 μg of glycogen activated receptor cells.” Example: “Receptor cells were activated by the addition of 0.02 μg of glycogen.”
Use the simple present tense to explain diagrams/figures/tables. Again, sentences may use both the active and passive voice.
The Discussion section consists of an analysis of the findings and a kind of translation of the meanings and implications of these findings.
Use the simple past to summarize your own findings.
Example of summarizing own findings: “The experiment yielded a number of results associated with the processing of glucose.”
Use the present tense to interpret and discuss the significance of your findings.
Example: “[This study confirms that] synthetic glucagon is two-thirds as effective at decreasing fatty acid synthesis.”
The conclusion and call for further work to be done are either provided in the last sentence or two of your paper or in a separate (but short) section at the end of the main text (check the target journal’s author instructions to be sure you follow the journal style) and summarize or emphasize the new insights your work offers.
Use the present perfect tense to clarify that your statements still hold true at the time of reading.
Example: “Results from this study have led to a deeper understanding about how different peptides interact in this enzyme.”
Use the present tense to apply findings, state implications, and suggest further research.
Example of wider implications: “This study confirms that endogenous glucagon is even more essential in metabolism than previously thought.”
When discussing further research that is either needed or intended to be carried out, the future or present tense (or subjunctive mood) can also be used, in addition to the present tense passive voice.
Example of call for future research: “Further clinical studies are needed/will be needed/must be carried out/should be carried out to isolate the cause of this reaction.”
Follow these general rules about tenses and your paper will be clearer, more chronologically correct, and generally easier to read—meaning the important implications of your study will be more easily understood. You can always go back and edit verb tenses—the more you practice, and the more papers you read, the easier it will be to identify which tense should be used for which kind of information.
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Rabiu Aminu, PhD, FCNA, FMNES
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understanding the use of tenses in a literature review.
By Rabiu Aminu, PhD, FCNA, FMNES
Writing a literature review involves understanding the meanings of different verb tenses and using them accurately and appropriately. This guide looks at the use of tenses in literary reviews so that you can be sure to sound professional in your academic paper.
In a literature review, the tenses used will depend on the type of information being presented. Generally, the following tenses are used in a literature review:
Past tense: The majority of the literature review will be written in the past tense, as you are discussing studies, theories, and research that have already been conducted. For example, "Shehu (2010) found that...," "Jibrin (2005) proposed that..."
Present tense: The present tense is used when discussing a general understanding that is still true or when discussing a theory that still holds. For example, "It is widely accepted that...," "The theory of X states that..."
Future tense: The future tense is used when discussing directions for future research or when making recommendations for future studies. For example, "Future research should focus on...," "It is recommended that future studies investigate..."
It is important to maintain consistency in the tense throughout the literature review. If you are discussing a specific study or theory, it should be written in the past tense, even if you are discussing the implications of the findings in the present or future tense.
Finanlly, it is important to cite the sources correctly and follow the citation style that is recommended by your institution or the journal you are submitting your work to.
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Use past tense when reporting research (e.g. writing a literature review). One way to think about this is that the research reports about which you are writing have been written in the past: the research is finished and reported. If you are writing a research proposal, the tense you use will help distinguish between your proposed study and the research literature you draw upon. The APA Manual advises that "the past tense is appropriate when expressing an action or a condition that occurred at a specific, definite time in the past, such as when discussing another researcher's work" (APA, 2020, pp. 117-118).
Examples of verb tense: https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/grammar/verb-tense
American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.).
American Psychological Association. (2020). Verb tense. Retrieved 26 May, 2020, from https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/grammar/verb-tense
The 7th edition style manual of the American Psychological Association (APA) provides suggestions on which verb tense is appropriate for various sections of a thesis, major project or journal article:
As much as possible, try to be consistent with your chosen verb tense within a section "to ensure smooth expression" (APA, 2020, p. 118). If the verb tenses suggested above don't make sense for the purposes of your document, please check with your instructor or academic supervisor to get their recommendation on the best approach for your document.
American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.). https://doi.org/10.1037/0000165-000
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Verb tenses — literature.
Use of the correct verb tense allows you to express clearly the time relationships among your ideas. When deciding which verb tense to use, aim for consistency, simplicity and clarity.
Whenever possible, keep verbs in the same tense (consistency), and use either the simple present or the past tense (simplicity). Above all, choose the verb tense that most clearly expresses the idea you want to convey (clarity). In general, use the present tense to describe actions and states of being that are still true in the present; use the past tense to describe actions or states of being that occurred exclusively in the past.
Use the present tense to describe fictional events that occur in the text (this use of present tense is referred to as "the historical present"):
Also use the present tense to report your interpretations and the interpretations of other sources:
Use the past tense to explain historical context or elements of the author's life that occurred exclusively in the past:
When writing about literature, use both present and past tense when combining observations about fictional events from the text (present tense) with factual information (past tense):
Use the present perfect tense to describe an event that occurs in the text previous to the principal event:
Use the past tense when referring to an event occurring before the story begins:
In the opening scenes of Hamlet, the men are visited by the ghost of Hamlet's father, whom Claudius murdered.
Adapted From: “Verb Tense,” Hamilton University Writing Center. 16 October 2017,
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Mastering Verb Tenses in Literature Reviews. Deciding on which verb tense to use when writing the literature review sec tion ofa manuscript is challenging. Edi tors find that verb tense problems are common in literature report sections of manuscripts. Authors, reviewers, and ed itors need to be able to spot incorrect verb tenses in literature ...
Verbs are direct, vigorous communicators. Use a chosen verb tense consistently throughout the same and adjacent paragraphs of a paper to ensure smooth expression.
The present tense is generally used in statements to introduce the literature review, and the past tense is typically used when you are talking about specific papers. The following table summarizes different types of statements you might typically include in your literature review and the corresponding tenses you should use.
Referring to the ideas of other researchers (e.g. in a literature review) No matter how long ago the work was published, the present tense is used, and even a deceased author 'argues' or 'claims'. Simple present tense Vasquez and Lopez argue that… Present perfect tense Bailey has outlined … Discussing the actions of characters in ...
Deciding on which verb tense to use when writing the literature review section of a manuscript is challenging. Editors find that verb tense problems are common in literature report sections of manuscripts. Authors, reviewers, and editors need to be able to spot incorrect verb tenses in literature reviews. Try editing verb tenses in the sample enclosed in this article and compare your work with ...
Most Common Verb Tenses in Academic Writing. According to corpus research, in academic writing, the three tenses used the most often are the simple present, the simple past, and the present perfect (Biber et al., 1999; Caplan, 2012). The next most common tense for capstone writers is the future; the doctoral study/dissertation proposal at ...
Abstract Deciding on which verb tense to use when writing the literature review section of a manuscript is challenging. Editors find that verb tense problems are common in literature report sections of manuscripts. Authors, reviewers, and editors need to be able to spot incorrect verb tenses in literature reviews.
APA 7: Verb Tense and Reporting Verbs Verb Tense The past tense or present perfect tense are appropriate when discussing a researcher's work. Use the past or present perfect tenses in your in-text citations. Past
Uncover the secrets of using different verb tenses in the literature review of your research paper. Discover when to use the present and past tense to intro...
Verb tense in literature Reviews Always consider the verb tense when presenting a review of previously published work. There are three main verb tenses used in literature reviews. Please click on each occasion to check which verb tense is appropriate. 1. Describing a particular study 2. Giving opinions about a study 3. Making generalisations
Generally speaking any are acceptable. If you focus on the authors then "did show" or "have shown" feels about right. But if you take the citation to mean the paper itself, then the present tense is fine since the paper still exists and does still show... However, advisors can be a bit picky on some such things, so it would be good to ask ...
By 'literature write-up,' we understand you mean 'literature review.' Now, do you mean an entire paper that is a literature review or only the literature review section of the paper that typically comes in the Introduction? Anyway, the answer is: it depends, and it's quite possible to have multiple tenses in the literature review.
A literature review is a survey of scholarly knowledge on a topic. Our guide with examples, video, and templates can help you write yours.
Citation, Documentation of Sources Q. Dear Chicago, what verb tense do you recommend for the literature review section of a scholarly article? APA insists on the past tense, arguing that any work included in a literature review was obviously published in the past. People writing about English literature, on the other hand, discuss works in the present tense because readers always experience ...
Literature review verb tenses Knowing which tenses to use for a literature review (either as part of a research paper or as a stand-alone article) can be a bit tricky, as your usage depends both on which style manual you are using (APA, AMA, MLA, or others) and on how you are discussing the literature.
Writing a literature review involves understanding the meanings of different verb tenses and using them accurately and appropriately. This guide looks at the use of tenses in literary reviews so that you can be sure to sound professional in your academic paper.
Verb Tense Use past tense when reporting research (e.g. writing a literature review). One way to think about this is that the research reports about which you are writing have been written in the past: the research is finished and reported.
Verb Tenses - Literature This handout is available for download in DOCX format and PDF format. Use of the correct verb tense allows you to express clearly the time relationships among your ideas. When deciding which verb tense to use, aim for consistency, simplicity, and clarity.
The 7th edition style manual of the American Psychological Association (APA) provides suggestions on which verb tense is appropriate for various sections of a thesis, major project or journal article:
What tense should I use? - Literature Review Guide - Subject & Study Guides at TUS Library Midlands. TUS Midlands: Library.
The Use of Tense in Literature Review. A recent flurry of tweets, seemingly initiated by @thesiswhisperer, discussed the use of tense in literature review. There doesn't seem to be a definitive rule to using either present or past tense (i.e. Smith (1989) argues… vs. Smith (1989) argued… etc.), though switching from one to the other can ...
Verb Tenses — Literature Use of the correct verb tense allows you to express clearly the time relationships among your ideas. When deciding which verb tense to use, aim for consistency, simplicity and clarity. Whenever possible, keep verbs in the same tense (consistency), and use either the simple present or the past tense (simplicity).
Wuhan Institute of Technology ABSTRACT: The tense realization of reporting verbs in each literature review (LR)1 is, in a sense, individualistic and particular to each situation. In spite of this, LRs follow certain patterns shared by the peers and the audiences of the writer, since one of the writer's primary goals in writing a dissertation LR is to convey his mental imagery to his peers ...