In Module 4, you complete a “Literature Review Assignment.” A literature review provides a summary and synthesis of information related to a specific topic. A literature review is used in many disciplines to provide the foundational information needed to support various projects such as a research study, grant proposal, health risk assessment, thesis, or dissertation. An “Annotated Bibliography” is a bibliography that includes a brief summary of each citation and how it will be used to support your literature review. Download the Annotated Bibliography Checklist from the Learning Resources to help you create this Assignment.
For this Assignment, choose a chronic disease or condition and select a particular, narrow focus as the topic of your Literature Review Assignment due in Module 4. A chronic disease is a long lasting condition that can typically be treated, but not necessarily cured (for example, atherosclerosis, arthritis, diabetes, and cancer). Find at least four recent (less than 3 years old), peer-reviewed, primary research articles that concisely explain the pathophysiology of your topic.
You may use more than the minimum number of sources, as needed, to support your Literature Review paper, but your Annotated Bibliography should rely mainly on primary research. You may also utilize a high quality review article or meta-analysis, but note that a review article is secondary, so does not count as one of the required four primary studies. If you use any secondary sources, make sure they are of good quality, from a scholarly source.
Your Instructor uses the Module 3 Assignment Annotated Bibliography Rubric to grade this Assignment.
By Day 7 of Week 5
Submit the Annotated Bibliography, to include:
- Title page
- Concise description of the focus
- Sources: Four recent (less than 3 years old), primary, peer-reviewed research articles that support the topic of your paper. Beyond the minimum four primary research articles, you may add additional, high quality secondary literature (reviews or meta-analyses), and you may use websites—if from a scholarly and relevant source (e.g., CDC, NCHS, etc.). Note: Your sources must follow APA formatting.
- Annotation: For each research article, include the study aim, the methods used, and the findings. For each non-research source, provide a concise description of the relevant key points addressed in the source. Include in the annotation a brief description of how you plan to use each source (e.g., provides statistics for the problem, etc.)
