Define or identify the general topic, issue, or area of concern, to provide an appropriate context for reviewing the literature and to tell your reader what they can expect to see in the work that follows. You may briefly point out overall trends in what has been published about the topic; conflicts in theory, methodology, evidence, and conclusions; or gaps in research and scholarship; or a single problem or new perspective of immediate interest.

Establish your reason for reviewing the literature; explain the criteria to be used in analyzing and comparing literature and the organization of the review; and, when necessary, state why certain literature is or is not included.