Formatting Instructions: The literature review should be 9-10 complete pages, not including
the title page, abstract, references, tables, or figures. Fewer than 9 complete pages will result
in point deductions, and any text exceeding the 10-page limit will not be read or graded.
Please use Times New Roman 12-point font with 1 inch margins, and use Microsoft Word. Not
all reports will have tables or figures. The literature review must include at least 10
peer-reviewed primary sources, and should be written in APA format. The literature review
should be written in APA style (7th edition) for an intended audience of graduate students and
professionals in psychology. Therefore, the report is to be written using an academic tone and
the level of analysis should be reflective of graduate-level work. MFT students are encouraged
to select a topic that is related to their clinical practice interests. The Literature Review rubric
at the end of this syllabus provides details on the operationalization of “graduate-level work.”
current literature says about a particular topic and to point out limitations, shortcomings, and
gaps in our knowledge. In other words, you want to give the big picture, and also point out
blank spaces on the canvas, where the color isn’t quite right, or where there are distortions.
This is not easy to do because most research is chaotic; you have to put some order to it! It is
important to have an organized and coherent approach to writing the literature review. You can
classify studies into meaningful groups, such as type of DV, IV, subject population, etc. When
you describe previous research, do not go into excessive details on particular experiments; give
just enough information so that the reader can make sense of the description. Remember, the
reader has not read the study. When you summarize a study, make sure that you represent the
results correctly. A common mistake made in writing literature reviews is to simply present a
list of summaries of studies (similar to the annotated bibliography you prepared), like a laundry
list or book report. This approach fails to demonstrate critical analysis skills, fails to synthesize
information, and is not acceptable for this assignment. Instead, in the literature review, you
should synthesize the content from your sources and integrate the findings in a coherent and
organized manner. You should articulate your voice by interpreting the results of studies,
comparing and contrasting them, and developing an argument or thesis. Please consult with
your instructor if you have additional questions.