SLRSystematic Literature ReviewFrom Literature Discovery to Publication

SLR FOUNDATIONS · PRE-HANDS-ON LEARNING

SLR Research Gap & Novelty

Establish why a new review is needed before writing search strings.

From Existing Reviews to a New Contribution: A review gap needs evidence, not just a new title
A review gap needs evidence, not just a new title · Click to enlarge

Four defensible reasons for a new SLR

Coverage gap

Important populations, settings, techniques or outcomes are not adequately covered by existing reviews.

Time gap

New evidence materially changes the landscape; recency alone is not sufficient.

Methodological gap

Previous reviews lack transparent searching, appraisal or an appropriate synthesis.

Conceptual gap

Existing reviews do not integrate an important theoretical lens or comparison.

Novelty assessment workflow

  1. Find 3–5 closely related published reviews.
  2. Compare scope, review questions, search dates, databases and synthesis approaches.
  3. Identify what evidence remains unaddressed.
  4. Write one specific, verifiable contribution statement.
  5. Re-check the claim before manuscript submission.

Weak: “No SLR exists.” Stronger: “Existing reviews focus on X; this review examines Y in Z context and synthesises newly available evidence.” Only use the stronger claim after checking the literature.

Editable comparison matrix

Download Research Gap Matrix (Word)