Stuck on my literature review: How to organize all these sources without going crazy.

[AnnaCross]

I have 35 articles saved on my computer. 35. And they're just... sitting there. Some are PDFs with random file names like "jstor-2384723.pdf" and some are just links I saved to my browser. I've tried to start writing my lit review three times now, and I just end up staring at the screen, paralyzed. How do people organize this chaos?

I finally asked my PhD student mentor for help, and she showed me her system. It's a game-changer.

Step 1: The Spreadsheet of Doom (in a good way). Create a simple spreadsheet with columns for:

• Author, Year, Title
• Methodology (qual/quant, case study, etc.)
• Key Findings (just 1-2 sentences)
• Themes/Categories (this is crucial)
• Quotes I Might Use (with page numbers!)

Step 2: The Theme Sorting. Once you've filled out the spreadsheet for all your sources, use the filter function. Sort by your "Themes/Categories" column. Now, all the sources that talk about Theme A are grouped together. All the sources for Theme B are together. Suddenly, your literature review has a structure! You can write one section on Theme A, one on Theme B, etc.

Step 3: The Synthesis Sandwich. When you write, don't just list sources ("Smith found X. Jones found Y."). Synthesize them. "While early research focused on X (Smith, 2015; Jones, 2017), more recent studies have shifted toward Y (Lee, 2020; Chen, 2021), revealing a gap in understanding Z."

It turns the lit review from a dreaded chore into a manageable, almost satisfying, puzzle. Now I just need to actually do it...