What is research synthesis?
“Research synthesis”, refers to stand-alone studies which summarise and synthesise primary research findings from multiple studies, or conceptual and theoretical discussions, under the same topic.
Research synthesis differs from traditional literature review in terms of the methodologies used to conduct search, appraise studies, extract data, synthesise data, and report data. Traditional literature review (e.g., narrative review) employs more flexible methodologies, relying mostly on the researchers’ knowledge about the field and existing studies. On the contrary, research synthesis (e.g., meta-analysis) employs rigorous and replicable methodologies, usually documented in a discrete “methods” section or registered protocols. |
Chong, S. W., & Plonsky, L. (2023). A typology of secondary research in Applied Linguistics. Applied Linguistics Review. https://doi.org/10.1515/applirev-2022-0189
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