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Purpose: This page explains what an integrative review (often described in thesis writing as an integrative narrative synthesis) is, why it is a strong fit for many ELT/applied linguistics projects, and how to write one with clear logic and traceable links to a thesis statement and research questions.

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1. Definition (what it is)

An integrative review is a literature review that synthesizes evidence from multiple study types (for example, quantitative, qualitative, mixed methods, and conceptual/theoretical work) in order to build a coherent, argument-driven explanation of what is known about a topic.

In other words, it integrates:

• what the field claims (theory and constructs),
• what the field has found (empirical patterns), and
• how the field has studied it (methods and measures).

2. How it differs from a narrative review (and why the label matters)

A narrative (traditional) review can be excellent, but it is sometimes read as “mostly conceptual” or “mostly descriptive” when writers do not clearly manage evidence types.

An integrative review makes the writer’s intention explicit:

• The goal is not only to describe themes.
• The goal is to combine heterogeneous evidence to support a practical research argument.

In ELT/applied linguistics, this is common because the same classroom problem may be studied using:

• surveys and correlational designs,
• quasi-experiments,
• classroom observations,
• interviews and teacher narratives,
• design-based or action research,
• theoretical frameworks (SLA, SDT, AfL, teacher cognition, etc.).

3. What an integrative review does in a Thesis Seminar project