Writing a literature review for your DBA thesis is one of the most intellectually demanding and strategically important stages of your Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) journey. This chapter not only demonstrates your mastery of existing knowledge but also positions your research within the broader academic and professional discourse. A well-structured DBA literature review establishes your research gap, justifies your research questions, and grounds your study in theoretical and empirical evidence.
Still thinking “How to structure my literature review?”
Table of Contents
- 1. Why is the literature review critical for your DBA thesis success?
- 2. How do you systematically search for high-quality DBA literature?
- 3. How do you evaluate and select relevant sources for your DBA literature review?
- 4. How should you structure a literature review for a DBA thesis?
- 5. How do you synthesise literature instead of summarising it?
- 6. How do you identify and justify the research gap in a DBA literature review?
- 7. How do you write a critical and evaluative DBA literature review?
- 8. How do you ensure academic integrity and avoid plagiarism in your literature review?
Why This Matters??
Your DBA literature review is not just a summary of previous studies — it is a critical analytical foundation for your doctoral research. It proves your ability to engage with peer-reviewed research, apply theoretical frameworks, and justify your methodological choices. A weak literature review leads to weak research design, poor conceptual alignment, and fragile doctoral logic, while a strong review establishes academic credibility, applied relevance, and doctoral-level rigour.
Steps to Write a Strong Literature Review for Your DBA Thesis
1. Why is the literature review critical for your DBA thesis success?
The DBA literature review validates your research problem, aligns your study with existing business theories, and demonstrates your ability to operate as a practitioner-scholar. It connects your real-world business challenge with the global body of academic knowledge, ensuring that your research is both theoretically grounded and practically relevant.
2. How do you systematically search for high-quality DBA literature?
A systematic search involves using authoritative academic databases such as Scopus, Web of Science, ProQuest, and Google Scholar to locate peer-reviewed journal articles, doctoral theses, and high-impact business research. You should apply Boolean operators, structured keyword strings, and citation chaining to ensure comprehensive coverage of your topic—this is one of the most critical literature review steps.
3. How do you evaluate and select relevant sources for your DBA literature review?
Every source must be assessed for credibility, theoretical relevance, methodological rigour, and publication quality. You should prioritise studies that are published in high-ranking journals, directly address your independent and dependent variables, and meaningfully influence current management practice.
4. How should you structure a literature review for a DBA thesis?
A well-structured DBA literature review is typically organised into theoretical frameworks, key thematic areas, empirical findings, and industry-specific insights. This logical flow ensures conceptual coherence, strong theoretical linkage, and precise research alignment—which directly solves the problem of not knowing how to structure your literature.
5. How do you synthesise literature instead of summarising it?
Literature synthesis means comparing, contrasting, and integrating multiple studies to reveal patterns, trends, and contradictions. Instead of describing each paper separately, you group findings by themes, conceptual models, or methodological perspectives, which is the core application of thematic analysis in a DBA literature review.
6. How do you identify and justify the research gap in a DBA literature review?
The research gap emerges when existing studies fail to address a specific context, population, methodology, or business application. Your role is to clearly demonstrate what is missing, why it matters, and how your DBA research will directly fill this gap—this is one of the most critical doctoral evaluation criteria.
7. How do you write a critical and evaluative DBA literature review?
A critical literature review does not accept prior research at face value. It evaluates sampling weaknesses, methodological limitations, theoretical inconsistencies, and generalisation issues. This level of critical appraisal is what distinguishes a doctoral-level review from a postgraduate summary.
8. How do you ensure academic integrity and avoid plagiarism in your literature review?
You must use reference management software, apply correct APA or Harvard citation styles, and always paraphrase with original analytical framing. Academic integrity protects your doctoral credibility and ensures full compliance with institutional ethics standards.
DBA Coach Resources
External Learning Resources
- Scopus – Advanced Academic Research Database
https://www.scopus.com - Harvard University – How to Write a Literature Review
https://guides.library.harvard.edu/literaturereview - University of Manchester – Literature Review Guide
https://documents.manchester.ac.uk/display.aspx?DocID=34439 - Elsevier Researcher Academy – Literature Review Methods
https://researcheracademy.elsevier.com - Purdue OWL – Writing a Literature Review
https://owl.purdue.edu
FAQs
- How long should a DBA literature review be?
A typical DBA literature review ranges between 6,000 and 10,000 words, depending on institutional requirements and topic complexity.
- What is the difference between a PhD and DBA literature review?
A PhD review prioritises theoretical advancement, whereas a DBA review focuses on applied business relevance and organisational impact.
- Can I use industry reports in a DBA literature review?
Yes — but they must support, not replace, peer-reviewed academic sources.
- How many sources should a DBA literature review include?
Most DBA theses reference between 120 and 250 high-quality academic sources.
- When should I stop adding new studies?
You should stop when theoretical saturation is achieved and new studies no longer change your conceptual framework.
Conclusion
A strong DBA literature review is the intellectual backbone of your doctoral thesis. When you truly understand how to write a literature review for DBA, apply structured literature review steps, use thematic analysis, and clearly justify your research gap, your study gains both academic authority and real-world business relevance.
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