Promotional cover of the Degree Doctor Literature Review PhD Survival Guide for qualitative researchers, highlighting how to turn reading into argument, decide what matters and create a clear literature review structure.
Promotional cover of the Degree Doctor Literature Review PhD Survival Guide for qualitative researchers, highlighting how to turn reading into argument, decide what matters and create a clear literature review structure.

Literature Review

When you’ve read so much, but still don’t know how to turn it into a literature review.

£85 GBP

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The Literature Review Guide helps you work out what actually belongs in your literature review, see how the literature connects, and turn all that reading into a clear, coherent argument. You’ll be able to read more strategically, write with focus, and build a chapter you feel good about sending to your supervisor.

Scroll down for more details of what’s included, previews of the guide, and reviews from our customers.

This is a digital download. As soon as you purchase, you’ll receive an email with a secure link to access the full guide and worksheets, so you can start making progress straight away.

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Here's what this guide helps you do

Graphic highlighting the benefit of building a clear thematic literature review structure by organising literature around your own research instead of summarising individual papers.
Graphic highlighting the benefit of building a clear thematic literature review structure by organising literature around your own research instead of summarising individual papers.
Graphic explaining how the guide helps qualitative PhD researchers develop academic judgement by deciding what matters, identifying meaningful patterns and building a stronger argument.
Graphic explaining how the guide helps qualitative PhD researchers develop academic judgement by deciding what matters, identifying meaningful patterns and building a stronger argument.
Graphic describing how the guide helps qualitative PhD researchers revise, refine and strengthen a thematic literature review as their understanding of their research develops.
Graphic describing how the guide helps qualitative PhD researchers revise, refine and strengthen a thematic literature review as their understanding of their research develops.

A practical, straightforward approach to your literature review.

12 structured guides

Each section tackles a specific element of the thematic literature review.

Work through them in order or begin where you’re stuck.

Overview of the 12-part Literature Review PhD Survival Guide, covering themes, searching, critical reviewing, writing and next steps.
Overview of the 12-part Literature Review PhD Survival Guide, covering themes, searching, critical reviewing, writing and next steps.

6 PDF printable and editable worksheets

Structured exercises to turn your notes in clear themes.

These tools help you decide what to include, cut, prioritise and get words on the page.

rintable literature review worksheets for exploring themes, tracking literature, developing ideas and reflecting on progress.
rintable literature review worksheets for exploring themes, tracking literature, developing ideas and reflecting on progress.
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How literature reviews really get written

Graphic showing how the Literature Review Guide and worksheet work together to help organise notes into clear themes for a thematic literature review.
Graphic showing how the Literature Review Guide and worksheet work together to help organise notes into clear themes for a thematic literature review.
Graphic showing how the Literature Review Guide uses synthesis prompts and a literature review log to help qualitative PhD researchers compare sources, identify patterns and build a clear, critical argument across a thematic literature review.
Graphic showing how the Literature Review Guide uses synthesis prompts and a literature review log to help qualitative PhD researchers compare sources, identify patterns and build a clear, critical argument across a thematic literature review.
Graphic showing pages from the Literature Review Guide that help qualitative PhD researchers turn themes and ideas into clear, structured paragraphs using sentence starters and a simple paragraph framework.
Graphic showing pages from the Literature Review Guide that help qualitative PhD researchers turn themes and ideas into clear, structured paragraphs using sentence starters and a simple paragraph framework.

Your literature review will evolve.

The literature review you write at the start of your doctorate is unlikely to be the same one that appears in your final thesis.

As your understanding of your research develops, your literature review will need to evolve alongside it.

Many resources teach thematic literature reviews as though you should write them from beginning to end in a single pass. After more than 20 years supporting qualitative researchers, I can tell you that's rarely how they develop.

As you immerse yourself in the academic literature, begin collecting data and analyse it, your understanding of your research will deepen. You'll rethink the structure of your literature review, remove papers that once felt essential, discover new angles on your research, and perhaps even bring back sections you deleted months earlier.

This is completely normal. Yet many PhD researchers worry that these changes mean they've done something wrong, simply because so much guidance isn't written with iteration in mind.

Let me reassure you: you haven't got something wrong. A literature review that shifts and changes is often a sign that your thinking is becoming more sophisticated.

That's why I've written this guide. You don't need another how-to resource that leaves you wondering whether you're doing it correctly. You need one that works with the iterative thinking involved in developing a thematic literature review - not against it.

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Before

You’ve read and read, but you still don’t feel ready to write.

❌ “I keep reading because I still don’t feel like I’ve read enough.”

❌ “I’ve got so many papers and notes that I don’t know what actually belongs in my literature review.”

❌ “I can’t see how all these different ideas fit together.”

❌ “I don’t know how to turn everything I’ve read into something I can actually write.”

After

You know what belongs, how the literature connects, and what you want to say about it.

✅ “I know what I need to read - and when I’ve read enough.”

✅ “I can decide what belongs in my literature review and what I can leave out.”

✅ “I can see the connections between the literature and the argument I’m building.”

✅ “I know what I’m trying to say, so I can actually get the chapter written.”

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What changed after using the guide

Speech bubble testimonial from a final-year PhD researcher describing how the Literature Review Guide helped them understand the purpose of a thematic literature review, build a clearer argument and write with greater confidence.
Speech bubble testimonial from a final-year PhD researcher describing how the Literature Review Guide helped them understand the purpose of a thematic literature review, build a clearer argument and write with greater confidence.
Speech bubble testimonial from a third-year PhD researcher describing how the Literature Review Guide helped them realise that revising and restructuring their literature review was a normal part of developing their thinking.
Speech bubble testimonial from a third-year PhD researcher describing how the Literature Review Guide helped them realise that revising and restructuring their literature review was a normal part of developing their thinking.
Testimonial from a second-year PhD researcher describing how the literature review guide improved their structure and helped supervisor conversations focus on their ideas.
Testimonial from a second-year PhD researcher describing how the literature review guide improved their structure and helped supervisor conversations focus on their ideas.
Speech bubble testimonial from a final-year PhD researcher describing how the Literature Review Guide felt like guidance from an experienced supervisor, helping them understand both what to do and why.
Speech bubble testimonial from a final-year PhD researcher describing how the Literature Review Guide felt like guidance from an experienced supervisor, helping them understand both what to do and why.
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Looking for support beyond your literature review?

Complete PhD System showing all four PhD Survival Guides: Clarifying Your Research, Literature Review, Data to Analysis, and Discussion and Writing Up.
Complete PhD System showing all four PhD Survival Guides: Clarifying Your Research, Literature Review, Data to Analysis, and Discussion and Writing Up.

Questions about this guide?

Portrait of Dr Elizabeth Yardley, founder of Degree Doctor and creator of the PhD Survival Guides for qualitative researchers.

Contact me using this form.