Generally， scientific papers may be classified either as review papers or as empirical research papers。 Both types can serve as excellent sources for a deeper understanding of a particular area of scientific research。 However， these papers are dense and include terminology that may be intimidating。 If you have patience and approach the paper methodically， you‘ll be able to understand the research presented and incorporate it into your own work。
Contents:
Step 1： Determine the paper is a review paper。
Step 2： Identify whether the paper is a narrative review or a systematic review。
Step 3： Read through the abstract and introduction of the paper。
Step 4： Assess the design of the review critically。
Step 5： Jump to the results section of the paper。
Step 6： Analyze the methodology of the review carefully。
Step 7： Study the graphs that present the synthesized data。
Step 8： Go back through the paper from beginning to end。
Step 1: Determine the paper is a review paper.
Review papers summarize the data and conclusions of many other papers to give you an overview of a specific topic or field。 Typically， you’ll see the word “review” in either the title or the abstract of the paper。
If you aren‘t familiar with a particular field， a review paper can give you a better understanding。 Review papers can also help you identify empirical papers you need to read or use as sources in your own work。
Step 2: Identify whether the paper is a narrative review or a systematic review.
A narrative review is typically easier to read and provides a broad overview of a particular field of scholarship or area of research。 Systematic reviews are more detailed and may evaluate the methods and data of the papers reviewed。
The authors typically state the type of review in the title or the abstract of the paper。 Systematic reviews are most common with medical studies。
Step 3: Read through the abstract and introduction of the paper.
The abstract is a summary of the review paper， including the question asked and the answer found by the authors of the paper。 The introduction explains the reason the authors chose to undertake the review。
After reading the abstract and the introduction， if you determine that the paper is not relevant to your interests， there’s no need to read any further。
Step 4: Assess the design of the review critically.
A systematic review combines the results from several different studies to produce a more comprehensive understanding of the area of research。 However， this is only effective if the review includes both published and unpublished studies that used the same methodology。
In some areas of research， the outcomes of published studies differ from the outcomes of unpublished studies。 A review that only includes published studies does not present the full picture of the state of research in that area。
Some review papers may consider studies of different types， particularly in an emerging area of research where there haven‘t been a lot of studies completed。
Step 5: Jump to the results section of the paper.
Reading the results section first lets you know what to look for as you read through the rest of the paper。 Once you know what the authors concluded， you can focus on the data in the studies reviewed that support that conclusion。
The results section should be logically organized and relatively easy for you to follow。 It also typically includes a summary of the number of studies of any given type that were reviewed by the authors。
Step 6: Analyze the methodology of the review carefully.
For a review paper， the methodology section will discuss how studies were selected for inclusion in the review。 This includes the criteria used by the authors of the review and the data sources they searched for studies to include。
The authors typically will include a discussion of criteria they used to determine whether a study should be included in their review。 Think about whether these criteria introduced any bias into the review。
Methodology also includes a description of how the results of the studies reviewed were synthesized by the authors of the review。 Through synthesis， the review comes to a new （typically broader） conclusion than any of the individual studies reviewed。
Step 7: Study the graphs that present the synthesized data.
A systematic review paper makes use of graphs known as “forest plots” to evaluate all the results from all the studies included in the review。 Once you know how to interpret them， you may find forest plots easier to read than other statistical graphs。
Along the horizontal is the condition or treatment being analyzed by the review。 The vertical axis represents no effect。 To the left of this axis， studies concluding treatment was effective will be plotted according to how extreme their results were。 On the right of the axis， studies are plotted that favored the control， rather than the treatment or intervention。
With most reviews， you should be able to tell at a glance whether the majority of the studies favored the treatment or intervention。
Step 8: Go back through the paper from beginning to end.
Now that you have a strong understanding of the review and its methodology， you’ll be better able to make sense of the rest of the paper。 Read actively， taking notes as you go。 Make notes of individual empirical papers included in the review that you might want to read on your own。
If you see anything you don‘t understand， highlight it or make a note of it。 You can look it up online later， or check a scientific dictionary。
Taking notes as you read can help you paraphrase information from the paper in your own writing later， without worrying that you’re plagiarizing the original source。
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