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"a narrative summary and evaluation of the findings or theories within a literature base.  Also known as 'narrative literature review'. "

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Examples of Literature Reviews

  • Financial socialization: A decade in review (2021)
  • The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the development of anxiety disorders - a literature review (2021)
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  • Steps in Conducting a Literature Review

What is a literature review?

A literature review is an integrated analysis -- not just a summary-- of scholarly writings and other relevant evidence related directly to your research question.  That is, it represents a synthesis of the evidence that provides background information on your topic and shows a association between the evidence and your research question.

A literature review may be a stand alone work or the introduction to a larger research paper, depending on the assignment.  Rely heavily on the guidelines your instructor has given you.

Why is it important?

A literature review is important because it:

  • Explains the background of research on a topic.
  • Demonstrates why a topic is significant to a subject area.
  • Discovers relationships between research studies/ideas.
  • Identifies major themes, concepts, and researchers on a topic.
  • Identifies critical gaps and points of disagreement.
  • Discusses further research questions that logically come out of the previous studies.

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1. Choose a topic. Define your research question.

Your literature review should be guided by your central research question.  The literature represents background and research developments related to a specific research question, interpreted and analyzed by you in a synthesized way.

  • Make sure your research question is not too broad or too narrow.  Is it manageable?
  • Begin writing down terms that are related to your question. These will be useful for searches later.
  • If you have the opportunity, discuss your topic with your professor and your class mates.

2. Decide on the scope of your review

How many studies do you need to look at? How comprehensive should it be? How many years should it cover? 

  • This may depend on your assignment.  How many sources does the assignment require?

3. Select the databases you will use to conduct your searches.

Make a list of the databases you will search. 

Where to find databases:

  • use the tabs on this guide
  • Find other databases in the Nursing Information Resources web page
  • More on the Medical Library web page
  • ... and more on the Yale University Library web page

4. Conduct your searches to find the evidence. Keep track of your searches.

  • Use the key words in your question, as well as synonyms for those words, as terms in your search. Use the database tutorials for help.
  • Save the searches in the databases. This saves time when you want to redo, or modify, the searches. It is also helpful to use as a guide is the searches are not finding any useful results.
  • Review the abstracts of research studies carefully. This will save you time.
  • Use the bibliographies and references of research studies you find to locate others.
  • Check with your professor, or a subject expert in the field, if you are missing any key works in the field.
  • Ask your librarian for help at any time.
  • Use a citation manager, such as EndNote as the repository for your citations. See the EndNote tutorials for help.

Review the literature

Some questions to help you analyze the research:

  • What was the research question of the study you are reviewing? What were the authors trying to discover?
  • Was the research funded by a source that could influence the findings?
  • What were the research methodologies? Analyze its literature review, the samples and variables used, the results, and the conclusions.
  • Does the research seem to be complete? Could it have been conducted more soundly? What further questions does it raise?
  • If there are conflicting studies, why do you think that is?
  • How are the authors viewed in the field? Has this study been cited? If so, how has it been analyzed?

Tips: 

  • Review the abstracts carefully.  
  • Keep careful notes so that you may track your thought processes during the research process.
  • Create a matrix of the studies for easy analysis, and synthesis, across all of the studies.
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Literature Review: Conducting & Writing

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Sample Lit Reviews from Communication Arts

Have an exemplary literature review.

  • Literature Review Sample 1
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Have you written a stellar literature review you care to share for teaching purposes?

Are you an instructor who has received an exemplary literature review and have permission from the student to post?

Please contact Britt McGowan at [email protected] for inclusion in this guide. All disciplines welcome and encouraged.

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How to Write a Literature Review: Writing a Literature Review in APA Format

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Writing a Literature Review in APA

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There are different methods to organize and present the materials collected for the literature review.

The list below goes over different organizational frameworks that can be used to present the research conducted. If you are not sure what method to use, check with your professor.​

  • Chronological:  The chronological framework organizes the literature in the order in which they are published. For example, if you were writing about a specific teaching method, you would begin with the materials that first introduced the method. You would then follow with case studies applying that method. You would conclude your review with contemporary papers that may even give a historical perspective on the method from when it was first conceived and how it is applied today.
  • by publication:  This framework is useful if you notice a series of articles that are written in response to one another that are all within one publication. You still follow chronological order, but you break it so that the articles responding to one another are grouped together.
  • by trend:  This framework looks at specific trends and organizes them chronologically. For example, if you were looking at the history of assistive technology in helping students with disabilities, you may organize the reviews by what disability was being treated, and then present the history of using assistive technology to treat that particular disability in chronological order.
  • Thematic:  The thematic framework is similar to organizing by trend, except that you are not organizing the reviews in the order that they were published. This does not mean that you do not consider the timeline for how a topic or issue developed, but that you will not focus on organizing your reviews chronologically. Rather, the emphasis will be on the themes you find within the topic or issue — such as commonalities — and from there you fit your reviews into the separate ideas in which they fit. For example, if the review topic was arts-based research, your review may focus on different ways artistic inquiry was used to understand the creative process, focusing then on the concepts rather than the development.
  • Methodological:  The method or practice applied in a case study can be the basis for organizing a literature review. This framework focuses on how the author(s) or the person(s) administering a study applied similar methods as another study. As a result, the types of literature in a literature review that applies the methodological framework tends to review similar materials. For example, if you reviewed methods used to treat post traumatic stress syndrome, the review would organize the studies by the methods used to treat the patients and not the order that the studies were published.

Note: After choosing the organizational framework for the literature review, it should be easier to write because you should have a clear idea of what sections you need to include in the paper. For example, a chronological review will have subsections for each vital time period. A thematic review will have subtopics based upon factors that relate to the theme or issue.

In some cases the literature does not quite fit the framework you have chosen. In this case, you should determine where it makes sense to place the literature and confirm this choice with your professor.

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How to Write a Literature Review in APA Format

To complete a literature review, you must decide on your topic, research academic databases, organize your findings and write your review. The American Psychological Association provides specific guidelines for writing your review, from overall organization to minute details in formatting. Once you have organized and analyzed your findings, use APA style to write your review.

Format Your Document

Before you begin writing, ensure that your document is formatted properly. Set your page margins to 1 inch and double your spacing unless otherwise specified. Your font should be 12 point Times New Roman. Your header will contain a running heading and the page number on every page, including the title page. The page number should always be at the top right corner.

The title page will first introduce the running heading with the tag: "Running Heading: AND THE HEADING IN ALL CAPS." The title page should contain the title, the author, your name and your institution, all doubled-spaced and centered in the middle of the page.

Organize Your Sections

The essential sections for a literature review are the:

  • introduction
  • body -- organized by main points

An abstract may be included, though it is not required. In your introduction , include a summary of the focus of your review and why it is important. For example, if you are reviewing studies about student motivation, explain that it is important for teachers and parents to be aware of what motivates students to learn, and include if there has been little or a lot of research on the subject.

Organize your body using your main points , with bold, centered headings. For example, after you have researched different studies examining student motivation, organize the body of your review based on motivating factors. In the section about parental approval, discuss studies that measured the effects parental approval had on student motivation. Your final section will be references.

Cite Your Sources

APA style includes specific, detailed instructions for in-text citations . Each time you refer to a study by restating information or findings, include a citation in parentheses. The general format is to list the last name of the author, followed by a comma and the publication year, all enclosed in parentheses. For example:

Fear of failing has been found to motivate some students (Jones, 2010).

If there are two or more authors , list the last names, separated by commas. Include the "&" symbol before the last name. For example, some students reported being afraid of failure (Jones, Smith, & Williams, 2010). If you cite the author in the reference, include only the year. For example: Jones found that some students are motivated by fear of failing (2010). If you are citing multiple studies, list them alphabetically by the first listed author.

Include Your References

Your references should begin on a new piece of paper with a bold, centered heading: References. Organize your studies alphabetically by the last name of the first author. A study by A. Brown and T. Roberts would come before a study by R. Clark and M. Adams, because Brown is alphabetically before Clark. All references are only single-spaced after periods.

The general format is the same for scholarly journals. List the last name, comma and first initial of every author. Put the date the article was published in parentheses. Write the title of the article with only the first word capitalized, followed by a period. Write the publication name in italics, followed by volume number if applicable. Finally, list the page numbers, for example:

Brown, A., & Roberts, T. (2010). Effects of fear of failure on student success in the classroom. Journal of Research, 23, 34-48.

The difference for books is that the title of the book is italicized, and location of the publisher is listed, for example:

Clark, R., & Adams, M.N. (2011). Why children succeed in the classroom. New York: Education Press.

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Hannah Richardson has a Master's degree in Special Education from Vanderbilt University and a Bacheor of Arts in English. She has been a writer since 2004 and wrote regularly for the sports and features sections of "The Technician" newspaper, as well as "Coastwach" magazine. Richardson also served as the co-editor-in-chief of "Windhover," an award-winning literary and arts magazine. She is currently teaching at a middle school.

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APA Headings and Subheadings | With Sample Paper

Published on November 7, 2020 by Raimo Streefkerk . Revised on October 24, 2022.

Headings and subheadings provide structure to a document. They signal what each section is about and allow for easy navigation of the document.

APA headings have five possible levels. Each heading level is formatted differently.

APA headings (7th edition)

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Table of contents

Additional guidelines for apa headings, how many heading levels should you use, when to use which apa heading level, section labels vs headings, sample paper with apa headings, using heading styles in word or google docs.

As well as the heading styles, there are some other guidelines to keep in mind:

  • Double-space all text, including the headings.
  • Use the same font for headings and body text (e.g., Times New Roman 12pt.).
  • Don’t label headings with numbers or letters.
  • Don’t add extra “enters” above or below headings.

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how to format apa literature review

Depending on the length and complexity of your paper, you may not use all five heading levels. In fact, shorter student papers may have no headings at all.

It’s also perfectly fine for some sections in your paper to go as deep as five levels, where others use only heading level 1.

Heading level 1 is used for main sections like “ Methods ”, “ Results ”, and “ Discussion ”. There is no “ Introduction ” heading at the beginning of your paper because the first paragraphs are understood to be introductory.

Heading level 2 is used for subsections under level 1. For example, under “Methods” (level 1) you may have subsections for “Sampling Method” and “Data Analysis” (level 2). This continues all the way down to heading level 5.

Always use at least two subheadings or none at all. If there is just one subheading, the top-level heading is sufficient.

In addition to regular headings, APA works with “section labels” for specific parts of the paper. They’re similar to headings but are formatted differently. Section labels are placed on a separate line at the top of a new page in bold and centered.

Use section labels for the following sections in an APA formatted paper :

  • Author note
  • Paper title
  • Reference page

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The AI-powered Citation Checker helps you avoid common mistakes such as:

  • Missing commas and periods
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APA heading example (7th edition)

Instead of formatting every heading individually, you can use the “Styles” feature in Word or Google Docs. This allows you to save the styling and apply it with just a click.

The first time you use APA Style, you need to update the default heading styles to reflect the APA heading guidelines. Click here for the instructions for Microsoft Word and Google Docs .

An added benefit of using the “Styles” feature is that you can automatically generate a table of contents .

Cite this Scribbr article

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.

Streefkerk, R. (2022, October 24). APA Headings and Subheadings | With Sample Paper. Scribbr. Retrieved March 12, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/apa-style/apa-headings/

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  • Specific Examples/Applications of APA Style, 7th edition

Sample APA-Style Papers (7th edition)

The following links provide samples of student-paper formatting in APA's 7th edition style.  The first is from APA's web site; the second is from Purdue OWL's web site.

  • Sample APA Student Paper This document from the APA web site illustrates the 7th edition formatting of a student paper. This format is a simplified version of the professional paper format (excluding things like running heads, etc.).
  • Purdue OWL Sample Student Paper This sample student paper in APA 7th edition comes from PurdueOWL. It can be used to supplement the example from the APA web site, or stand on its own.

The following links provide samples of professional-paper formatting in APA's 7th edition style.  The first is from APA's web site; the second is from Purdue OWL's web site.  The formatting of these professional papers is a bit more involved than that of the student sample papers.

  • Sample APA Professional Paper This sample professional paper from the APA web site illustrates the 7th edition formatting for a paper submitted for publication to a professional journal.
  • Purdue OWL Sample Professional Paper This sample paper from Purdue OWL illustrates in 7th edition formatting a professional paper. It can be used to supplement the APA sample paper or it can stand alone.

Quotations and Paraphrases in APA Style (7th edition)

  • Quotations (APA 7th Edition) This link takes you to a page on the official APAstyle.org web site with information that includes how to cite both direct and indirect quotations (short and long), how to cite material for direct quotations that do not contain page numbers, and more.
  • Quotations--PurdueOWL (APA 7th edition) On this "Basics: In-Text Citations" page from PurdueOWL, scroll down to see explanations and example for quotations both short (under 40 words) and long (40+ words). In addition, it gives guidance about paraphrases/summaries and how to use in-text citations to document their original source(s).

Formatting an Annotated Bibliography in APA Style (7th edition)

  • Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL): Annotated Bibliographies This helpful page from PurdueOWL explains the purpose of annotated bibliographies, what they often contain, and why they're helpful.
  • Guidelines for Formatting Annotated Bibliographies (APA, 7th ed.) This document provides guidance for formatting annotated bibliographies, including a sample annotated bib.

Formatting a Literature Review in APA Style (7th edition)

While APA doesn't itself provide an example of how to format a literature review, it does provide some guidance in its Publication Manual * about the content of a lit review:

Literature Reviews:

  • provide summaries and evaluations of findings/theories in the research literature of a particular discipline or field;
  • may include qualitative, quantitative, or a variety of other types of research;
  • should define and clarify the problem being reviewed;
  • summarize previous research to inform readers of where research stands currently in regard to the problem;
  • identify relationships, contradictions, gaps, and inconsistencies in the current literature;
  • suggest next steps or further research needed to move toward solving the problem.  (APA, 2020, Section 1.6, p. 8)

* American Psychological Association. (2020).  Publication manual of the American Psychological Association: The official guide to APA style (7th ed.). American Psychological Association.

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Note:  This page reflects the latest version of the APA Publication Manual (i.e., APA 7), which released in October 2019. The equivalent resource for the older APA 6 style  can be found here .

Media Files: APA Sample Student Paper  ,  APA Sample Professional Paper

This resource is enhanced by Acrobat PDF files. Download the free Acrobat Reader

Note: The APA Publication Manual, 7 th Edition specifies different formatting conventions for student  and  professional  papers (i.e., papers written for credit in a course and papers intended for scholarly publication). These differences mostly extend to the title page and running head. Crucially, citation practices do not differ between the two styles of paper.

However, for your convenience, we have provided two versions of our APA 7 sample paper below: one in  student style and one in  professional  style.

Note: For accessibility purposes, we have used "Track Changes" to make comments along the margins of these samples. Those authored by [AF] denote explanations of formatting and [AWC] denote directions for writing and citing in APA 7. 

APA 7 Student Paper:

Apa 7 professional paper:.

Research Guides

Literature reviews for medical sciences.

  • Introduction
  • Headings and subheadings

Headings Levels

Level 1 Heading: Centered, Bolded, No Period

          Paragraph will begin on the next line, indented. 

Level 2 Heading: Left-flush, No Indent, Bolded, No Period

           Paragraph will begin on the next line, indented.

Level 3 Heading: Left-Flush, No Indent, Bolded, Italicized, No Period

           Level 4 Heading: Left-Flush, Indented, Bolded, With a Period at the End.  Paragraph will begin on the same line without indentation.

           Level 5 Heading: Left-Flush, Indented, Bolded, Italicized, With a Period at the End.  Paragraph will begin on the same line without indentation.

how to format apa literature review

How to use headings and subheadings

Always begin with Level 1 Headings for a new section. This is the most important heading, and is used to introduce a new section of your paper, like the introduction, body, and conclusion. Levels 2-5 are considered to be subheadings. You must go in order of the Levels when using headings (start with Level 1 and work your way to Level 5).

Most assignments will only use Levels 1-3 for headings. Levels 4-5 are reserved for complex topics or upper-level research. 

There is no rigid formatting for a body paragraph that uses headings and subheadings. Depending on the complexity of your paper, you may use as many levels of headings as you feel is natural in your paper. As long as your headings are properly formatted in the way listed above, then your paper can be structured with as many/few headings as you like. 

To see a sample paper where these headings are used in proper format, please click on this link here . 

Special Headings

Section labels are considered to be special headings. They will always begin on a new page of their own, be bolded, and centered. The following sections of a literature review are considered to be section labels:

  • Paper Title
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COMMENTS

  1. Writing a Literature Review

    The lit review is an important genre in many disciplines, not just literature (i.e., the study of works of literature such as novels and plays). When we say "literature review" or refer to "the literature," we are talking about the research (scholarship) in a given field. You will often see the terms "the research," "the ...

  2. How to Write 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.

  3. Literature Review

    Reference Page Format ; Abstract and Keywords ; Annotated Bibliography ; Style and Grammar Guidlines ; APA 7th Tips, DOIs, URLs & More ... Also known as 'narrative literature review'. " Key takeaways from the Psi Chi webinar So You Need to Write a Literature Review via APA Style.org. Examples of Literature Reviews. Financial socialization: A ...

  4. Steps in Conducting a Literature Review

    A literature review may be a stand alone work or the introduction to a larger research paper, depending on the assignment. Rely heavily on the guidelines your instructor has given you. ... Seventh Edition is the official source for APA Style. APA Style Blog - for those harder to find answers . 1. Choose a topic. Define your research question.

  5. Literature Review

    The goal in your literature review is to synthesize and draw connections between the key points in the conversation. To find these key points, you will primarily refer to the following types of publications: Scholarly journals (a.k.a. "peer-reviewed" & "academic") Professional journals. Academic books & e-books. Research reports.

  6. Literature Review: Conducting & Writing

    Steps for Conducting a Lit Review; Finding "The Literature" Organizing/Writing; APA Style This link opens in a new window; Chicago: Notes Bibliography This link opens in a new window; MLA Style This link opens in a new window; Sample Literature Reviews. Sample Lit Reviews from Communication Arts; Have an exemplary literature review? Get Help!

  7. Sample papers

    These sample papers demonstrate APA Style formatting standards for different student paper types. Students may write the same types of papers as professional authors (e.g., quantitative studies, literature reviews) or other types of papers for course assignments (e.g., reaction or response papers, discussion posts), dissertations, and theses.

  8. Writing a Literature Review in APA Format

    This page is designed to assist you in writing an annotated bibliography

  9. Understanding APA Literature Reviews

    Organizing Your Literature Review. An APA style paper is organized in the author-date style. This means you cite the author's name and year of publication within the text with an in-text citation. You also include the page number, if appropriate. You then include the full information of that source in a reference list at the end of your paper.

  10. PDF Conducting Your Literature Review

    Conducting Your Literature Review. 3. A. literature reviewis an overview of the available research for a specific scientific topic. Literature reviews summarize existing research to answer a review question, provide the context for new research, or identify important gaps in the existing body of literature. We now have access to lots of ...

  11. Organizing Your Literature Review

    For example, if the review topic was arts-based research, your review may focus on different ways artistic inquiry was used to understand the creative process, focusing then on the concepts rather than the development. Methodological: The method or practice applied in a case study can be the basis for organizing a literature review. This ...

  12. PDF Ordering the Sections of an APA Literature Review -- and when to start

    indent DISORDERED EATING: A REVIEW 2 Abstract Literature review abstracts and research article abstracts share the same basic format but differ in content. Abstracts of literature review articles should include the topic, the purpose of the article, and how the information sources were chosen. Describe the summaries or conclusions that were ...

  13. Writing a Literature Review for a College Research Paper

    An APA format literature review is an important part of a research paper as it guides the reader through your research process. It also helps you, as a writer, to develop critical reading and writing skills as you evaluate and present your sources. Related Articles:

  14. PDF APA Literature Review

    A literature review is a typical type of assignment given to students in courses that fall under APA guidelines (usually the sciences or social sciences) because it shows you have familiarized yourself with current research on a topic you are exploring. Beyond simply reporting the findings of others, the literature review requires you to make ...

  15. How to Write a Literature Review in APA Format

    The general format is the same for scholarly journals. List the last name, comma and first initial of every author. Put the date the article was published in parentheses. Write the title of the article with only the first word capitalized, followed by a period. Write the publication name in italics, followed by volume number if applicable.

  16. Literature review guidelines

    General considerations. A good review should summarize the state of knowledge on a well-defined topic in the psychology of men and masculinity in concise and clear ways. This means that the review is written with exceptional clarity, cohesiveness, conciseness, and comprehensiveness. A good review should describe in detail the systematic process ...

  17. How to Write Your Perfect Literature Review APA Style

    Page Formatting. In APA Style format, a normal literature review should be composed of a Body where the main subject is developed, the References at the end with each one of the sources previously ...

  18. APA Styling

    A literature review paper critically summarizes previous empirical literature on a specific topic/question. Writing a literature review paper demonstrates strong familiarity with work in the field surrounding research interest. A literature review paper normally contains the following: Title page Introduction Main body List of references Some important tips to consider when writing a ...

  19. Types of APA Papers

    Here is a link to our APA 7 "General Format" page. There are two common types of papers written in fields using APA Style: the literature review and the experimental report (also known as a "research report"). Each has unique requirements concerning the sections that must be included in the paper. Literature review

  20. APA Headings and Subheadings

    Headings and subheadings provide structure to a document. They signal what each section. is about and allow for easy navigation of the document. APA headings have five possible levels. Each heading level is formatted differently. Note: Title case simply means that you should capitalize the first word, words with four or more letters, and all ...

  21. Specific Examples/Applications of APA Style, 7th edition

    While APA doesn't itself provide an example of how to format a literature review, it does provide some guidance in its Publication Manual * about the content of a lit review:. Literature Reviews: provide summaries and evaluations of findings/theories in the research literature of a particular discipline or field;

  22. APA Sample Paper

    Note: The APA Publication Manual, 7 th Edition specifies different formatting conventions for student and professional papers (i.e., papers written for credit in a course and papers intended for scholarly publication). These differences mostly extend to the title page and running head.

  23. Headings and subheadings

    Most assignments will only use Levels 1-3 for headings. Levels 4-5 are reserved for complex topics or upper-level research. There is no rigid formatting for a body paragraph that uses headings and subheadings. Depending on the complexity of your paper, you may use as many levels of headings as you feel is natural in your paper.

  24. PDF Literature Review APA 7th Edition

    Commented [A7]: A literature review includes a References page in APA format that includes a reference for every source cited in the literature review. preventing readmissions. Journal of Healthcare Financial Management, 65(12), 1-6.