Reviewing the literature Andrs Istvn Kun An 8

Reviewing the literature András István Kun

An 8 step model of research processes 0. Identify broad area of research • discipline, school 1. Formulating the research problem (specification) 2. Conceptualising • valid, workable, managable 3. Constructing an instrument for data collection 4. Selecting a sample (sampling) 5. Writing a research proposal • ‘Final’ research questions 6. Collecting data 7. Processing data 8. Writing a report

Cyclic (‘never-ending’) process of research Concepts theory Data analysis Inductive Deductive Research question Empirical data Where is the place of literature reviewing?

Functions of reviewing literature • Knowledge basis • Theoretical background • Help to find a research problem: – What is known and what is unknown – How can you contribute to the existing knowledge body of your profession – Finding the appropriate hyptheses (abduction) • Help to find out what methodology to use – Formal hypotheses, research techniqe, sampling… • Enables you to contextualize your findings

Paradox of literature review • You read to know, but • You have to know what to read (and you have to have some knowledge to understand) • Solution: iterative process of research reviewing

Improving methodology • What are the accepted methodologies • Methodological problems and solutions

Knowledge basis • To some extent it is needed to show the context of your research and your findings • Obligatory chapter of Master and Ph. D theses

5 steps of reviewing literature 1. Search for existing literature in your of study; 2. Review the literature selected; 3. Develop a theoretical framework; 4. Develop a conceptual framework; 5. Writing up the literature reviewed.

Main sources • • Books Journals Grey literature Statistical data

Books • Availability – – Libraries Bookshops Bibliographies (!) Internet: computer catalogs (keywords, subject) • Advantages: greater likelihood of importance, relevance, quality • Disadvantages: not up to date, price, avaliability, quality-control (bibliography!) • They serve best as starters

Journals • Advantages: up-to-date (depends on the journal), area-specific journals • Disadvantages: need more knowledge to understand • They serve best for focused study • Availability: – Libraries – Electronic databases (!) – Internet

Gray literature • Grey literature (or gray literature) is a term used variably by the intelligence community, librarians, and medical and research professionals to refer to a body of materials that cannot be found easily through conventional channels such as publishers, "but which is frequently original and usually recent„ – – – Working papers Theses Company documents Magazines etc.

Quality in research • Whowhat can be qualified? – Researcher – Article – Journal – Institution – Publisher –…

Quality in research (Scientometrics) • The most accepted field of qualification is based on journals. • Academic journals • Referred journals • Peer reviewing • Journal qualification systems – – Based on citation (aim: measuring impact) Rankings Impact factors Hirsch index (h-index), half-life, immediacy – „Page rank”, altmetric score…

An example: ABDC journal quality list • http: //www. abdc. edu. au/ • In 2007, ABDC established an ABDC Journal Quality List to overcome the regional and discipline bias of international lists. • Reviewed in 2013 and 2009. The next major review will be in the second half of 2017. • In 2016: interim review: – – 1) new journals started since 1 January 2011; 2) removal of predatory open access journals; 3) change of Field of Research (Fo. R) grouping; and 4) incorrect factual details - to produce a revised 2016 list.

ABDC journal quality list • The ABDC Journal Quality List 2013 comprises 2, 767 different journal titles, divided into four categories of quality, A*: 6. 9%; A: 20. 8%; B: 28. 4%; and C: 43. 9% journals. • In each Field of Research (Fo. R) group, journals deemed NOT to reach the quality threshold level are not listed.

The Scientific Information (ISI) impact factor (Thomson Reuters) • From 1975 • The journal must be indexed in the Journal Citation Reports • Calculation: – IF for year X = A / B. – A = citations on the citable articles of the journal in years (X-1) and (X-2). – B = total number of the citable articles n a journal in years (X-1) és (X-2). – IF for year X is published in year (X+1). • The sum of the IFs can be used as a quality measure of authors, too.

Highest IF journals by some areas • Economics: JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC LITERATURE, IF: 6. 614 • General management: ACADEMY OF MANAGEMENT REVIEW, IF: 7. 288 • Accounting, finance: JOURNAL OF FINANCE, IF: 5. 290 JOURNAL OF ACCOUNTING & ECONOMICS, IF: 3. 535 • Logistics: TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH PART B: METHODOLOGICAL, IF: 3. 769 SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT - AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL, IF: 2. 731 • http: //www. lib. unideb. hu/hu/adatbazis? b=i • > Impact Factor Social Sciences Edition

Where to start your search • You can search for: – Title – Author – Keyword – JEL classification

Where to start your search • Electronic databases: – lib. unideb. hu (meta search engines) – www. jstor. org – search. epnet. com (EBSCO database) – http: //www. nber. com/ – http: //econpapers. repec. org/ • University pages • Pages of libraries • Library…

Where to start your search • „Social media” for researchers: – academia. edu – researchaget. net – ssrn. com – scholar. google. hu – tudoster. idea. unideb. hu/en

„Publish or Perish” • You are a good researcher if you can prove it through qualified publications. • The role of citations. • Its adverse effects. • The journey of a manuscript to become an article.

Other current trends • Open Access movement • Predatory journals

Referencing • Why? The role of references in research. • When? • How? Systems of referencing. – Author-date sytems: Harvard, APA – Numeric systems: in the text or in the list • Plagiarism

Thanks for your attention