Conducting a Literature Review

This guide was prepared by NECO librarians with the assistance of Google Gemini 3, Anthropic Claude 4.5 Sonnet, OpenAI GPT 5 Mini, and Consensus.

In the world of academia, a literature review isn't just a summary; it’s a map of what we know and where the gaps are. Depending on your research goal—whether you're looking for a quick overview or a rigorous statistical analysis—you'll choose a different "flavor" of review.

Below is a breakdown of the most common types. Click the drop-down next to each for an explanation, example, estimated time for completion, and the reasons you might want to undertake each type.