Analysis of Existing Research - Interpreting, Evaluating, and Synthesizing the Literature

Grand Canyon University

In the previous assignment, you created an outline of the literature review (Chapter 2) for your dissertation. The next step is to draft the body of the literature review. The body of the literature review is its primary segment. It is here that the actual review of the literature takes place. In this assignment, you will construct a draft of the body of the literature review (Chapter 2) for your dissertation.

General Requirements:

Use the following information to ensure successful completion of the assignment:

• Refer to the most recent dissertation prospectus template in the DC (dc.gcu.edu) for details and criteria for the literature review (Chapter 2).
• Instructors will be using a grading rubric to grade the assignments. It is recommended that learners review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment in order to become familiar with the assignment criteria and expectations for successful completion of the assignment.
• Doctoral learners are required to use APA style for their writing assignments. The APA Style Guide is located in the Student Success Center.

Prepare a draft literature review (Chapter 2) of 1,750-2,000 words for your dissertation. You will not address all of the themes in your outline in this assignment.

1. Select two of the major themes from the outline of your dissertation literature review that you created in the previous assignment.

2. For each major theme, identify at least three empirical or scholarly articles (six articles total) related to the theme.

3. For each empirical article, state the article title, the author, the research question(s), the research sample, the research methodology, the gaps in the study (what questions does the study raise?), and the research findings of the study. For scholarly, non-empirical articles, state the article title and author, and provide a brief contextual summary of the article.

4. Identify at least three sub-themes that relate to each theme (six sub-themes total).

5. Identify at least three empirical or scholarly articles related to each sub-theme (18 articles total).At least one article must demonstrate a quantitative methodology.

6. For each empirical article, state the research question(s), the research sample, the research methodology, the gaps in the study (what questions does the study raise?), and the research findings of the study. For scholarly, non-empirical articles, state the article title and author, and provide a brief contextual summary of the article.

7. Select one of the quantitative empirical articles used in the sub-themes section of this assignment and identify the following elements:

• Alternative and null hypotheses associated with the research question.
• Sampling method (How were the participants recruited?).
• Variables and the type of scale for each variable.
• Inferential statistical tests for hypothesis testing (used to determine if the null hypothesis is retained or rejected).
• Level of significance set by the researcher to test the hypothesis.
• Results of the statistical tests performed (Was the result of each statistical test significant or not?).
• Descriptive statistics for the sample or the data (mean, median, etc.).
• Procedures taken to ensure reliability and validity of the data.

Write statements that synthesize the three studies of each sub-theme based on the information you stated above. You will write six synthesis statements.