Nursing Dissertation Literature Review: Expert Writing Guide

The literature review is where a nursing dissertation shows that you can find, judge, and combine evidence. In nursing, it also has a practical purpose: your review should explain what is known about a clinical problem and what remains uncertain, so that your own question makes sense.

This guide walks you through the process: define your question, search systematically, screen and appraise, then write a critical synthesis. It is specific to nursing and healthcare, so it uses tools you will meet in your program.

Step 1: Turn Your Topic Into a Question

A vague topic produces a vague review. Use a structured framework to sharpen it.

• PICO (Population, Intervention, Comparison, Outcome) suits questions about effectiveness.
• PICOT adds time, and our guide to PICOT questions in nursing explains it fully.
• PEO (Population, Exposure, Outcome) suits questions about experiences or risk factors.
• SPIDER suits qualitative evidence.

Example: "In adult inpatients (P), does structured hourly rounding (I) compared with usual care (C) reduce falls (O)?" Each element gives you search terms and inclusion criteria.

Step 2: Plan Your Search

A transparent search is the foundation of a credible review.

Choose databases. Common nursing and health sources include CINAHL, MEDLINE or PubMed, PsycINFO for mental health topics, Embase, and the Cochrane Library. Your library may also offer discipline-specific databases.

Build search terms. List synonyms for each concept, such as "falls," "falling," and "accidental falls," and combine them with Boolean operators:

• Use OR to join synonyms within a concept.
• Use AND to combine concepts.
• Use truncation (nurs*) and phrase searching where the database allows.
• Use controlled vocabulary (subject headings) alongside keywords.

Set limits. Typical limits include publication date (often the last five to ten years, unless classic work is needed), language, and peer-reviewed status. Justify each one.

Record everything. Keep a log of databases, dates, search strings, and number of results. Our guide to a dissertation literature search covers record-keeping and reference managers.

Step 3: Screen Studies

Define inclusion and exclusion criteria before you screen.

1. Remove duplicates.
2. Screen titles and abstracts against your criteria.
3. Read the full text of remaining studies.
4. Record reasons for exclusion.

Many nursing programs expect a PRISMA flow diagram showing how many records were found, screened, excluded, and included. Include one if your program asks for a systematic or structured review.

Step 4: Appraise Quality

Not all studies are equally reliable. Appraisal shows that you can judge strength of evidence.

• CASP checklists cover randomized trials, cohort studies, qualitative research, and systematic reviews.
• JBI critical appraisal tools cover many designs, including quasi-experimental and cross-sectional studies.
• Cochrane risk of bias tools are used for trials.

Our guide to critically appraising nursing research with CASP and JBI explains how to use them and how to report results.

Present appraisal results in a summary table in an appendix, and discuss overall quality in the text, without turning the review into a list of checklists.

Step 5: Extract and Organize Data

Create a data extraction table with columns such as author and year, country, design, sample, intervention or exposure, outcomes, key findings, and quality rating. Use it to compare studies side by side.

Then look for patterns. Group studies by:

• Theme (for example, barriers to hand hygiene)
• Intervention type (for example, education versus reminders)
• Setting (for example, acute versus community)
• Outcome

Thematic organization is almost always clearer than study-by-study description.

Step 6: Write a Critical Synthesis

Synthesis means combining the findings to answer a question, not just summarizing each source.

A strong paragraph usually does the following:

1. States the point in a topic sentence.
2. Presents evidence from several studies.
3. Compares findings, noting agreement and disagreement.
4. Comments on quality, sample, or setting.
5. Ends by linking the evidence to your question.

For example, instead of "Smith (2020) found X. Jones (2021) found Y," write: "Two of the four trials found a reduction in falls (Smith, 2020; Jones, 2021), but the study with the largest sample reported no effect (Lee, 2022), which may reflect differences in staffing levels." Notice the comparison and the possible explanation.

Step 7: Structure the Chapter

A clear structure might be:

1. Introduction: Purpose and scope of the review
2. Search strategy: Summary of databases, terms, criteria, and screening (details in an appendix)
3. Overview of included studies: Numbers, designs, settings, and quality
4. Thematic synthesis: Two to four themes, each with a heading
5. Gaps and implications: What is missing and how it leads to your question
6. Summary: Key conclusions of the review

See our general guide to writing a dissertation literature review for more on critical writing.

Writing Tips for Nursing Students

• Prefer primary and high-quality secondary sources. Reference systematic reviews and guidelines when they are available.
• Use current evidence. Nursing practice changes, so check publication dates.
• Be careful with grey literature. Policy documents and guidelines can be useful but should be identified clearly.
• Link evidence to practice. Consider how findings apply to the care setting you study.
• Reference accurately. See our guide to the dissertation reference list.
• Paraphrase and cite. Read How to Paraphrase Without Plagiarizing if you need a refresher.

Common Mistakes

• Searching only one database
• Not recording the search, which makes it impossible to repeat
• Including every article found instead of applying criteria
• Describing studies one by one without comparing them
• Ignoring study quality when drawing conclusions
• Citing old sources without checking for updates

A Short Example of Search Terms

Suppose your question concerns pressure injuries in older inpatients. One concept block might use the terms pressure ulcer OR pressure injur OR bedsore OR decubitus. A second might use older adult OR elderly OR aged OR geriatric. A third might use prevent* OR repositioning OR turning OR risk assessment. You would combine the blocks with AND, run the search in each database, and record the results. Test your search by checking whether it finds a few key papers you already know about. If it does not, adjust the terms.

Conclusion

A strong nursing literature review follows a visible process: a clear question, a recorded search, defined criteria, quality appraisal, and a thematic synthesis that leads to your research question. Treat the review as an argument built from evidence, and show your reasoning at every step.

Where to Go Next

• Get feedback on your chapter through our nursing support.
• Polish clarity and referencing with professional editing.
• Read next: Nursing Literature Review: How to Search, Appraise, and Synthesize.
• See Nursing Dissertation Methodology: A Practical Guide.
• Review our pricing and ethics policy.

From choosing a topic to polishing a final draft, CampusScribe's subject-specialist editors and coaches help with dissertations, capstone projects, presentations, and more - whether you need topic guidance, structural feedback, or a final edit before your deadline.