This guide introduces tools and strategies for conducting literature reviews in the social sciences, with a focus on using AI tools alongside traditional scholarly databases. It is designed for graduate student courses but may be useful to others conducting research.
It highlights the dual approach of using traditional scholarly databases alongside emerging AI tools to support searching, synthesis, and organization. Students will find guidance on how to define the purpose of a literature review, locate and evaluate scholarly sources, experiment with AI tools, and critically assess the accuracy and ethics of AI-assisted outputs.
A literature review is more than a summary: it identifies key debates, methodologies, and theoretical frameworks in your field. AI can streamline discovery and organization, but human expertise and critical thinking remain essential.
Key Features:
What a literature review is (and why it matters in social science research)
How to use scholarly databases effectively
AI tools that can assist with searching, summarizing, and synthesizing
Critical evaluation of AI outputs (accuracy, ethics, transparency)
Resources for citation management and writing
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