Are you tired of spending countless hours sifting through multiple sources for your literature review assignment when literature review tools are available to help streamline the process? These tools can help you search for, manage, and organize information from multiple sources quickly and efficiently. Instead of wasting time, you can focus more on the critical analysis and synthesis of the literature. Ready to learn more about the benefits of using these tools? Let’s take a closer look at the advantages of incorporating literature review tools into your research process.
What Is Literature Review?
A literature review discusses published information in a particular subject area and sometimes information in a particular subject area within a certain time period. It can be just a simple summary of the sources, but it usually has an organizational pattern and combines both summary and synthesis.
Understanding the Difference Between Summary and Synthesis in Literature Reviews
A summary is a recap of the important information of the source, but a synthesis is a reorganization, or a reshuffling, of that information. It might give a new interpretation of old material or combine new with old interpretations. Or it might trace the intellectual progression of the field, including major debates. And depending on the situation, the literature review may evaluate the sources and advise the reader on the most pertinent or relevant.
It surveys the literature in your chosen area of study.
It synthesizes the information in that literature into a summary.
It critically analyzes the information gathered by identifying gaps in current knowledge; by showing limitations of theories and points of view; and by formulating areas for further research and reviewing areas of controversy.
Defining your research is critical so you know what to look for. A literature review can help you discover what others say about your research topic. The research question may help you figure out what to include in your literature review. The number of sources you use can vary, but there’s no single right answer. You should think about what’s “enough” in the context of your research.
2. Identify the literature
A good literature review is based on good research. You need to find out what’s been written about your topic. A good place to begin is with scholarly books, journal articles, and dissertations. Doing a wide search will help you understand what’s out there. You’ll need to get an idea of what terms are helpful, what kind of resources you can use, and so on.
3. Critically analyze the literature
You need to read through your gathered resources, not just summarize them. You need to look critically at them. This means looking for relationships, major themes, and any “holes” in what’s been done. When you summarize each resource, you should be able to tell what’s authoritative, if it’s current, and whether it covers what you need. You should also look at how the research was done, and how the resource relates to others you’ve collected.
4. Categorize your resources
You’ll want to organize your resources based on how they answer your research question. You might divide them into categories that show their role in addressing the question. You might arrange them by when they were done, by theme, by research methods, or by philosophical approaches. You could also use other ways, depending on your research.
15 Best Literature Review Online Tool For Efficient Writing
1. Unriddle.AI
Unriddle AI is a fantastic tool that enhances reading speed and comprehension. Its capabilities aid in simplifying complex subjects, note-taking, and writing. Students and researchers widely use Unriddle, which has an AI assistant for reviewing documents, which helps quickly summarize and understand information in academic papers. This tool links you to relevant research you've previously engaged with, facilitating a more informed literature review process.
2. AskYourPDF
AskYourPDF is an excellent AI-powered literature review writer that streamlines research activities, generates structured summaries, and creates comprehensive reviews. This tool is particularly useful for academics looking to enhance their work by saving time and energy during the literature review process.
3. SciSpace
SciSpace is an AI platform specifically designed for academic research. It provides access to over 270 million research papers and includes an AI assistant called Copilot. This assistant offers explanations, summaries, and answers to questions you may have while reading scholarly articles, making it an essential tool for literature review.
4. Semantic Scholar
Semantic Scholar is a sophisticated tool that simplifies the process of discovering relevant research papers. It utilizes advanced AI algorithms and an extensive database to aid researchers in their literature review activities.
5. Mendeley
Mendeley Citation Manager is a free tool available both on the web and desktop. It significantly streamlines the citation management process, making it easier to reference sources and create bibliographies.
6. Elicit
Elicit is a popular literature review tool that has gained a significant following amongst researchers. With its vast database of scholarly articles and user-friendly interface, Elicit makes the research process more efficient, saving time and effort.
7. Scholarcy
Scholarcy is a tool that many students utilize to read and analyze research papers quickly. By uploading articles to Scholarcy, users can cut their reading time in half, identify essential papers more efficiently, and compare articles easily.
8. Scite.AI
Scite.Ai is a well-known literature review tool that enhances the research process for scholars. With its innovative citation analysis feature, researchers can evaluate the credibility and impact of scientific articles, allowing them to make more informed decisions during their literature review.
9. Zotero
Zotero, a free, open-source citation management tool, is an essential part of many literature review workflows. It helps manage citations, gather information, cite sources, attach PDFs, notes, and images to citations, and create bibliographies.
10. DistillerSR
DistillerSR is a powerful literature review tool trusted by many researchers due to its user-friendly interface and robust features. With advanced search capabilities, researchers can quickly find relevant studies across multiple databases, making the literature review process smoother and more efficient.
11. Sysrev
Sysrev is an AI tool that facilitates screening, collaboration, and data extraction from academic publications, abstracts, and PDF documents using machine learning. This platform is free and supports public and Open Access projects exclusively.
12. Rayyan
Rayyan is a tool that simplifies the research process for scholars and academics. With its user-friendly interface and efficient management features, many researchers rely on Rayyan for their literature review activities.
13. Colandr
Colandr is a free, open-source, internet-based analysis and screening software. It is specifically designed to enhance collaboration throughout various stages of the systematic review process. Although it may be slightly complex, this tool offers immense value for researchers.
14. Consensus
Consensus is a state-of-the-art literature review tool that researchers worldwide prefer. Its intuitive interface and powerful capabilities enable scholars to navigate and analyze scholarly articles efficiently.
15. Lateral
Lateral is a revolutionary literature review tool trusted by many researchers. Its user-friendly interface and powerful search capabilities simplify the process of gathering and analyzing scholarly articles.
Complete Step-by-Step Guide On How To Use Unriddle's AI Research Tool
Here is a step-by-step guide on how to use Unriddle. I’ve also copied it below :)
From here, it's pretty simple.
Unriddle helps you read, write and learn faster.
Interact with documents via AI so you can quickly find and understand info.
Then start writing in a new Note and Unriddle will show you relevant content from your library as you type.
When you upload a document, Unriddle generates an AI assistant on top of this data.
Click 'New' in the right sidebar and then select 'Upload' to get started.
Use this assistant to answer specific questions about the text, summarize content and simplify jargon.
The trick is to be super clear about what you want.
If you're summarizing a research paper, for example, instead of saying “Summarize” or “Summarize this research paper”, say something like “Explain this research paper to me in simple terms. What method did the researchers use? What did they find? Why does it matter?”.
The second prompt will produce a much better overview of the paper because we're giving the AI more hints about what we want.
Automatic relations
Unriddle grasps the context behind each Note and Document in your library and automatically links them based on meaning.
Let's say you have a collection of nuclear physics papers in your library.
When you start writing a note about The Manhattan Project, simply mentioning "The Manhattan Project" will prompt Unriddle to find the connection between this note and the nuclear physics papers.
Even if you didn't explicitly mention the research papers, Unriddle's knowledge of Oppenheimer, his work, and the significant relevance of these papers means it understands the connection and automatically links them together.
In short, Unriddle shows you relevant content from your library at the exact moment you need it, even if you haven't explicitly mentioned it.
Citing your sources
Writing is hard when you have a ton of sources to track.
So we made it easy.
Highlight some text, click ‘Cite’ and you’ll see items from your library that contain information related to the selection of text you just highlighted as determined by our AI.
When you select an item Unriddle inserts a link into highlighted text that, when clicked, takes you to the referenced item.
Writing with AI
Click ‘New’ in the sidebar and hit ‘Note’ to open up a new note.
Here you’ll find all the text formatting options you’re used to and more.
Type ‘++’ to generate text based on the context of what’s already written.
Highlight text and click ‘Ask AI’ to open up the AI menu where you’ll find options to improve, expand, summarize and explain.
You can type custom prompts too!
Finally, you can open any note in a pane on the right side of the screen while interacting with documents. Just click the orange pencil icon at the top of the chat window.
Chat Settings
Adjust the model, temperature and response length in the Setting sidebar.
Click the cog icon in the top right corner of the screen and look for "Chat Settings".
These apply across all documents but you can easily flip between them regardless of settings at the time of upload.
Model: the machine learning model used to generate responses.
Temperature: the amount of creative license you give to the AI.
Max length: the maximum number of words generated in a response.
Got feedback or questions? Send us an email and we'll get back to you within a day.
The introduction in a literature review sets the stage for your discussion. It provides a brief overview of your main topic and thesis and gives your readers a glimpse of what to expect in the review. This section forecasts crucial topics or texts you will cover, preparing your audience for the following detailed information.
Body
The body is the meat of your literature review. This is where you summarize, synthesize, and analyze the main points of each source. It is essential to combine these points to create a coherent narrative. Your task is to paraphrase other authors and add your own interpretations. This adds value to your work and helps establish your field expertise.
Critically evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of your sources. This helps you and your readers understand where each author excels and where they fall short. Make sure your paragraphs are well-structured, using transition words and topic sentences to create a smooth flow in your writing.
Conclusion
The concluding part of your literature review is where you tie everything together. Summarize the key findings you have gleaned from the literature and highlight their significance. Make sure you connect these findings back to your primary research question. This helps establish a clear link between the reviewed literature and your research objectives.
This structure will help you create a compelling and well-organized literature review. By following this format, you can provide your readers with a clear roadmap of your review and help them understand the significance of the literature in relation to your research question.
Read Faster & Write Better With Unriddle for Free Today
Unriddle is a groundbreaking literature review tool that uses AI to help users read more quickly and write more effectively. This platform is a game-changer for anyone who struggles to locate specific information within documents, simplify complex concepts, and take notes efficiently. Here’s a detailed breakdown of how Unriddle’s innovative features can elevate your research and writing process.
AI Assistant for Efficient Information Retrieval
Unriddle’s standout feature is its AI assistant, which can be generated on top of any document. This assistant enables users to swiftly locate, summarize, and comprehend information without laborious skimming. By understanding the context and meaning behind your writing, Unriddle can automatically link you to relevant content you have previously read or written. This intuitive feature can save valuable time and brainpower during the research process.
Seamless Citation Management
For many researchers and students, citation management can be a cumbersome task. Unriddle streamlines this process by allowing users to highlight text and instantly access the most relevant sources from their personal library using AI. This feature ensures that you never lose a citation again, simplifying the process of citing references throughout your work.
AI-Autocomplete for Enhanced Writing
Unriddle’s AI autocomplete feature is a game-changer for writers looking to improve and expand their work. This tool generates text suggestions based on the context of your writing, enhancing the quality and depth of your work. By leveraging AI to offer intelligent suggestions, Unriddle empowers users to craft more sophisticated and well-structured pieces.
Collaborative Workspace for Real-Time Collaboration
Research is often a collaborative endeavor, and Unriddle acknowledges this by offering a collaborative workspace where multiple users can contribute and chat in real-time. This feature enables seamless teamwork on documents, allowing users to work together efficiently and provide feedback instantaneously.
Experience the Unriddle Advantage
Unriddle’s powerful toolset caters to researchers, students, and professionals across diverse fields. Combining AI capabilities with intuitive features for reading, writing, and citation management, Unriddle is a must-have for anyone seeking to enhance their literature review process.
Try Unriddle today and unlock the full potential of this groundbreaking platform for your research and writing endeavors.