There is a huge growth in the number and varieties of people who want to conduct and understand research as consumers. Vital to the research process is the development of a literature review which may, inter alia, help the writer to: ? distinguish what has been done from what needs to be done; ? discover/uncover important variables relevant to the topic; ? synthesize and gain a new perspective; ? identify relationships between ideas and practice; ? establish the context of the topic or problem; ? rationalize the significance of the problem; ? acquire and enhance the field vocabulary and discourse; ? understand the structure of the field; ? relate ideas and theories to applications; ? identify the main methodologies and research techniques used within the field; ? place the research in its historical context and to show familiarity with the state-of-the-art; and ? judge the weight of evidence of the literature.