FREEPRINTABLE CHECKLIST
Literature review checklist
Work through this list as you go rather than at the end. It suits a narrative review for coursework or a thesis chapter; for a systematic review, also follow your protocol and the reporting standard your field uses (such as PRISMA 2020).
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1. Plan
- My review question is written down in one sentence
- I know which type of review is expected (narrative, systematic, scoping or other)
- Inclusion and exclusion criteria are written down: population or setting, topic, study types, date range, languages
- I have checked the word limit, the required citation style and the deadline
- My supervisor or instructor has agreed the scope, if that is expected
2. Search
- I have chosen two to four databases suited to my field
- I have listed synonyms for each key concept and combined them with OR (within a concept) and AND (between concepts)
- I have used the databases' controlled vocabulary where available (for example, MeSH in PubMed)
- For each search I recorded the date, database, exact search string, filters and number of results
- I checked the reference lists of key papers and searched for papers that cite them
3. Screen and verify sources
- Duplicates are removed
- I screened titles and abstracts, then full texts, against my criteria
- I noted a reason for every full text I excluded
- Every included source exists: its DOI resolves, or I found it in Crossref, PubMed or a library catalogue
- Reference details match the publisher's record (authors, year, title, journal, volume, pages)
- I checked included sources for retractions and corrections
4. Read and take notes
- I have a synthesis matrix with one row per source
- For each source I recorded the aim, design, sample, key findings, quality or limitations, and themes
- Direct quotations in my notes are marked as quotations, with page numbers
- My other notes are in my own words
- I appraised study quality with a tool or criteria appropriate to my field
5. Synthesise and structure
- I have grouped sources into themes (or another structure that suits the question)
- For each theme I know where studies agree, where they disagree, and possible reasons why
- I have identified gaps: questions not yet studied, or studied only weakly
- My outline has an introduction, one section per theme, and a conclusion
6. Write
- The introduction states the question, defines key terms and explains how sources were found and selected
- Each body section opens with a claim, not a citation
- Most paragraphs draw on several sources and compare them, rather than summarising one paper
- I describe the strength of the evidence accurately (one small study versus a consistent body of work)
- The conclusion summarises what is known, what is uncertain and what is missing
- In a thesis or proposal, the conclusion leads to my research question
7. Final check
- Every claim attributed to a source is something that source actually says (I re-read the passage)
- Every in-text citation has a matching reference-list entry, and vice versa
- References follow the required style consistently
- Secondary citations are marked as such, following my style's rules
- Any AI use is disclosed as my course requires
- I have proofread the review once for argument and once for language
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