Introduction > Reviewing Literature > Starting Your Literature Review > Reading Techniques

Reading Techniques

So, you've searched databases for relevant research papers and have come up with 593 'hits'. What do you do? You obviously don't have time to read them all, but there will be some highly relevant information somewhere in these 593 papers. There are various reading techniques you can adopt to help you filter out the unwanted; one such method is detailed below. However, first ask yourself if you can be more specific in your key word search perhaps by applying a geographic focus, or by limiting the time frame.

If you're reading a paper, the first reading tip is simply to scan the title of the paper - does it sound relevant to what you're trying to find out? If not, move on to the next title.

If the title did sound relevant, read the abstract - this will give you a brief summary of the work. If, however, the abstract appears to be irrelevant, move on to the next title.

After identifying that the abstract is relevant, read the discussion and conclusion. If the paper still seems to be relevant, go on to read the introduction, materials and methods then results.

Don't forget to scan the reference list and make a list of other sources that may be of use to you.

Books are a bit more difficult - the title may not be as indicative as the contents. Scanning the contents page or the index at the back of the book will give you a better idea if it's relevant, then simply read the first few lines of the relevant pages. If the information you're after isn't immediately apparent, scan the headings within each chapter.

A good tip is to remember why you're reading and what information you're trying to find. This should help you stay focused on your are of study/research question and should help prevent you wandering off-course and wasting time.

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