Sharon585

“You can’t write what you don’t know”, or can you? That’s my initial thoughts that come to mind, when I think about writing my first Literature Review. For those of you new to this blog, a Literature Review is a “written argument that supports a thesis position by building a case from credible evidence obtained from previous research” (Machi & McEvoy, 2022). Now that this is defined, I know that I would like to address the topic of the Child Welfare system, dealing with neglect and abuse in some form or fashion. This is where I begin to overthink and am in a brain fog. How do I begin to narrow my inquiry and develop a specific area of research questions? How do I make this topic interesting to the intended readers or my peers or my teacher?

Literature reviews require recognizing and defining problems; solving problems; collecting data; discovering evidence; building upon findings; critiquing the literature; drawing conclusions and then writing it all down on paper. Seems exhausting just thinking about it. I know I have excellent written communication skills, and a sharp intact brain built for critical thinking, but putting it all down on paper can be very daunting, especially since this is my first literature review.

There’s so much to do and so little time when you think about the larger picture. I just need to break it down into smaller components and tackle each task one at a time in the order above. I know I can do it, just will take time and concentration to develop a literature review worth reading.

So, I have the personal mindset and the school library tools to begin this literature view paper. I am going to come at it through the lens of the basic narrative literature review approach. I need to argue my position about my current state of knowledge on this subject. I think it’s common to still have some doubts as you go along the road on this process, but one has to push pass those self-doubts until you see the light at the end of the dark tunnel. It will involve documenting, analyzing and finally drawing conclusions. This appears to be the only way to churn out a paper that will be of social importance and relevancy to my field of interest in the child welfare field. industry.

So can you write what you don’t know? I say “no” you can’t. A good, finished literature review paper takes time and is an exercise in deliberate, critical thinking to say the least. Just writing about this process gives me great hope that I can do it. I believe I have the patience to do this right and do it right by following the steps that have been outlined above. It’s not like I am re-inventing the wheel, right. Many have been on this path of writing literature reviews before me. So, I won’t be the last to embark on this journey. I just need to remember to use reason and logic and deductive analytic skills that are already withing me as a person. The key to success is to increase my skills and my knowledge base and I will in turn develop a successful literature review.