Literature Review Paper Outline Template Page 3
ADVERTISEMENT
1
2
3
4
53 of 5
EXAMPLE FORMAT for PAPER OUTLINE AND ARTICLE SUMMARIES --
NAME: Your name
DATE: March 3, 2011
PAPER TITLE: The effect of landscape features on stream fish communities
PAPER OBJECTIVES: In this paper I will explore the effect of landscape features on stream fish communities. I will
examine not only the effects of local landscape features, but also features at a wide range of spatial scales. To synthesize
this research area, I will discuss the following topics: xxx, xxxx, xxxx and xxxx. [NOTE, the more information you provide
here, the more opportunity that you give me to give you constructive feedback and advice on your paper, so feel free to
write a long paragraph here explaining the objectives of your paper]
PAPER OUTLINE
I.
Introduction – The points here should provide background information that introduce the relevance of
your topic within limnology. They should lead logically to the specific objectives of your review..
A. first point (Hill 1987)
B. second point (Brown et al. 2001; Hilton et al. 1998)
C. paper objectives
D. At the end of the introduction, the reader should have a sense of the structure of the overall review. In
other words, you can briefly mention the major sections of the paper.
II.
Section 1 (put subtitle here)
A. First point (Cheruvelil et al. 2000)
B. Second point (Carpenter et al. 1984; Pace et al. 1987)
C. etc. Note that the key to a successful review is to integrate the findings of several papers. You should not
simply summarize one paper at a time. Rather, you should synthesize the findings to the extent possible,
by determining where there is agreement among papers versus where there are contrasting findings, etc.
III.
Section 2 (put subtitle here)
A. First point (Davis 1978)
B. Second point (Hilton et al. 1998)
C. etc.
IV.
Section 3 (put subtitle here)
A. First point (Brown et al. 2001)
B. Second point (Carpenter et al. 1984)
C. etc.
V.
Conclusion/future research
A. Major conclusions include….
B. Future research needs include….
C. etc.
ARTICLE SUMMARIES - Please use complete sentences. Do not simply provide a bulleted list of phrases.
(1) Carpenter, S.R., M.L. Pace and J.J. Cole. 1984. Catchment-scale analysis of aquatic ecosystems. Freshwater
Biology 37: 107-111.
a) The objectives/research questions of this paper were …
b) The main results and conclusions were ….
c) This paper is relevant to my topic because it shows that ……
(2) Hilton, P.J, M.P. Case and E.R. Chassen. 1998. Local vs. regional influences on local diversity in stream fish
communities of Virginia. Ecology 79(3):334-347.
a) The objectives/research questions of this paper were …
b) The main results and conclusions were ….
c) This paper is relevant to my topic because it shows that ……
… do the same for the 5 or more remaining articles.
** Please note that you should have more text than I have provided here for both the outline and the article summaries….
ADVERTISEMENT
0 votes
Related Articles
Related forms
Related Categories
Parent category: Education