Knowing the known to understand the unknown- A systematic approach to reviewing the scientific literature

Abstract

Every work must have a starting point, and scientifi c research is no exception. Reviewing literature is an initial step in undertaking scientifi c research. Reviewing literature, as an ongoing process, provides a critical overview on the topic of interest and keeps the researcher up-to-date to pursue novel research plans. While reviewing literature helps early career investigators identify their research niche, established researchers review the literature to propagate the state of the art progress/opinions in their fi eld of expertise. Most of these reviews often guide the general research community. Various formats are often adopted in writing a review depending on the context, audience, depth/complexity of subject and extent of commercial value. The primary goal is to provide a critical and simplifi ed analysis of the facts. Essentially, every researcher should adapt to these formats in a unique way and should try to develop their own style of reviewing the literature. In this review, we will describe some of the essential steps to approaching various formats of reviewing the literature.