A literature review isn't a task you have to complete before you get to the "real" research. It's the bedrock of the argument you intend to make, the questions or controversies your research will answer. So ask yourself:
This video provides a basic and clear overview of what is a literature review, why do we write them, and what information do they provide (UCLA Libraries, 3.21)
A literature review is a comprehensive examination of resources that are relevant to a research project. At the university level, most literature reviews cover scholarly resources, although some reviews may include popular and non-scholarly resources. Additionally, some literature reviews may include works in non-written media, like maps, videos, and so forth.
A literature review is NOT an annotated bibliography, although an annotated bibliography is often a precursor to a literature review. See the tab on annotated bibliographies for the differences between the two.
What's it for?
A good literature will offer:
A good literature review will clarify your thinking for you. Writing the literature review will help you organize your thoughts, broaden your knowledge in your topic area by requiring you to review relevant resources, and help you situate your own work within the larger context of your topic or subject.
This video includes information about how to structure and organize a literature review (UCSD Dept. of Psychology, 2.06)
The most important aspects of your literature review are:
Because your literature review should do all of the above, it should:
This video provides step-by-step instructions for weaving together different research articles into a single, coherent literature review (USU Library, 2.06)