A systematic literature review (SLR) is a research process that entails discovering, assessing, and synthesizing existing literature on a specific research issue or topic. An SLR is intended to give an impartial, thorough, and up-to-date summary of the evidence about the research question or issue. SLR, like any other research approach, has pros and downsides. We will discuss the ten pros and cons of a Systematic Literature Review and help you with some practical tips for writing a perfect one.
Pros of Systematic Literature Review
- Provides a comprehensive overview of the literature:
A systematic review of literature is a systematic approach to reviewing the literature, providing a comprehensive overview of the literature on a particular research question or topic.
- Helps to identify gaps in the literature:
By conducting an SLR, researchers can identify gaps in the existing literature and highlight areas where one needs further research.
- Helps to avoid bias:
An SLR is a systematic and transparent approach to reviewing the literature. It helps to avoid bias by ensuring the inclusion of all relevant studies and their objective evaluation.
- Facilitates replication:
An SLR provides a transparent and replicable method for reviewing the literature, enabling researchers to replicate the review process in future studies.
- Facilitates evidence-based decision-making:
A systematic literature review provides a robust and reliable evidence base for evidence-based policy and practice decision-making.
- Saves time and resources:
Conducting an SLR can save time and resources by ensuring that researchers save time duplicating already conducted research.
- Enhances the credibility of research:
An SLR is a rigorous and systematic approach to reviewing the literature, and it enhances the credibility of research by providing a robust evidence base.
- Helps to identify research priorities:
By highlighting gaps in the literature and areas where further research is needed, an SLR can help to identify research priorities.
- A basis for meta-analysis:
An SLR provides a basis for conducting a meta-analysis, a statistical method for combining the results of multiple studies.
- Enables interdisciplinary research:
An SLR enables researchers from different disciplines to collaborate and contribute their expertise to the review process. Students often need guided help in writing a systematic literature review. Getting assignment help online from an online expert can be a great way to get the desired assistance and do your SLR effectively.
Cons of Systematic Literature Review:
Besides the benefits of a systematic literature review, there are also specific cons. We have discussed below:
- Time-consuming:
Systematic literature reviews take time for a variety of reasons, including:
A thorough search of numerous databases and additional sources is required for a systematic literature review to discover all relevant research.
This search method can be time-consuming, including selecting relevant search keywords, examining numerous results, and determining whether studies fulfill the inclusion requirements.
Screening procedure:
Following the search, one must review the found studies to exclude those not fulfilling the inclusion criteria. This approach can be time-consuming because it entails reviewing the abstracts and sometimes completing hundreds or thousands of research texts.
Data extraction:
After identifying the research, one must examine the data.
- The data may only be adequate.
Data availability in an SLR can be limited, especially if the research question or topic is narrow or niche. It can be challenging to add essential information to your paper. Hence, getting assistance from a credible source can be valuable in completing the paper perfectly. Every student, regardless of their expertise, suffers while doing an SLR. Those who are entirely new to such forms of writing can get help from samples of an SLR or a Research proposal sample. These papers can help do an SLR.
- May be subject to publication bias:
An SLR may be subject to publication bias, as there may be delay or absence of publication of studies.
- May require technical expertise:
An SLR requires technical expertise in research methods, statistics, and data analysis.
- The language barriers can also be a cause:
The language barrier may be a limiting factor in conducting an SLR, primarily if the relevant literature is published in languages other than English.
- Limitations due to geographical barriers:
The geographical barrier may be limiting in conducting an SLR, primarily if the relevant literature is published in specific regions or countries.
- The quality of studies may affect it.
The quality of studies in an SLR may affect the reliability and validity of the review.
- May require subjective judgment:
The process of screening and selecting studies for inclusion in an SLR may require subjective judgment, which may introduce bias.
- There may be a limitation in access to resources:
Access to resources, such as databases, software, and expertise, may be a limiting factor in conducting a Systematic literature review.
To read more blogs please click on agapomedia
