A literature review is an essential part of a research project. It discusses previous research on a topic. Some reasons to conduct a literature review include:
Typically, literature reviews involve doing a comprehensive search for the literature, and can be a cyclical process involving the use of primary (original research), secondary sources (summaries of original research such as review articles, textbooks, etc.), and tertiary sources (e.g. translations).
As a starting point, to find literature reviews on your topic, search in a database related to your topic (e.g. PsycINFO) and include these keywords in your search. Below are some sample searches:
"literature review" AND [your topic here]
"literature review" AND "social work" AND [your topic here]
Sample articles with literature review methodologies:
For more information on writing literature reviews for the social sciences, you may want to consult these ebooks: