Good specifications of reviews for publication in scientific journals
A review paper is an exhaustive review of literature in which the reviewer attempts to trace out all the possible information on a certain topic. It is usually written as a survey of primary literature over a given period indicating the developments and trends in the concerned period. Before attempting an exhaustive review, try to define the scope of the review in such a way that it is within bounds, and the number of articles to review is manageable. The main objective of writing a review paper is to appraise previously published literature and to put them into some kind of perspective. An exhaustive list of references at the end of review serves as a good bibliography on the topic.
While writing reviews, remember that the intended audience for review papers and primary papers is different. The primary paper is highly specialized, and its audience consists of peers of the authors. Ordinarily, a review paper is long; ranging from 10-50 printed pages. The subject would be general in scope unlike original research papers.
A good review paper offers critical evaluation of the published literature along with bibliographic completeness, and often provides important conclusions based on the literature. The organization of review is also different. There will not be sections as “Materials and methods”, “Results”, and “Discussion”. The strategy is to compile and annotate the papers published on a particular subject during a defined period. Most prefer reviews that provide a new understanding of a rapidly moving field, and the recent literature on the subject is evaluated and catalogued. Historical analyses are seldom given now, and whether to include historical analysis is a matter of choice. However, if you are reviewing a subject that has not been previously reviewed or one in which many misunderstandings have developed, you must cover the relevant historical aspects adequately.
Prepare an outline first, similar to a term paper or assignment before you start writing. While writing, slight modifications can be made in the outline. Many review journals give an outline of review at the beginning of the paper where it serves as a convenient “Table of contents” for prospective readers.
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