Learn All About an Article Review
What connotation does the term 'review' conjure up for you right away? Most people see it as a product evaluation. Before purchasing any product, how many times do you check the reviews left by other customers? You do that most of the time, don't you?! That's because that feedback offers valuable guidance from people who have already used the same product or service. But the review also evaluates a publication or a critical take on different affairs in politics, culture, or literature.
Speaking of which, an article review is a great way to engage your reader. We have prepared a comprehensive guide if you don't know what it is or how to write an article review. You just have to use our tips, follow some suggestions, and stick to the article review structure. Master those, and you can easily write like a professional.
Defining What is a Review Article
Let's start the learning process by answering the question, 'what is a review article?'
An article review is a professional form of writing in which the writer engages with a scholarly source (for example, a journal article or academic book) by reporting its main points, ideas, claims, findings, etc. In addition, it discusses the reasons that support these ideas and critiques their contribution to knowledge in the discipline it's published. Review articles require a high level of in-depth analysis and a better understanding of forming well-structured arguments.
Before guiding you on how to write a review of an article, let's discuss the two types of review:
- Critical Analysis - A review focused on a specific book or article with a small scope. It is a critical evaluation of a text containing detailed commentary. The purpose of critical review is to engage with the author's work instead of just reading it over and accepting everything the text says without questioning. But to be critical doesn't necessarily mean assessing it negatively. Critiquing means challenging a work's opinions to evaluate or judge its overall worth.
- Literature Review - A survey of scholarly articles like books, journals, and theses. It's a special kind of review with a wider focus that provides an analysis, a study, and an assessment of previously published works on a certain subject. A literature review summarizes the current level of knowledge on the topic you are writing about. It can also include suggestions for future research or discussion of different methodological issues.
Now you know the basics of a review paper, but to start writing, you need good article review topics, the knowledge of the structure, and some other tips. So let's get you on track with those.
Article Review Types
Review articles are very relevant as they draw upon the work you are evaluating to suggest new directions, strengthen existing theories and identify patterns among different studies.
Review articles have several types. Let's discuss each before introducing you to the article review template of how to write one as an expert. But still, if you prefer other professionals to do the work for you, just tell us 'write my paper,' and it'll be done in a blink.
Journal Article Review
For different kinds of assignments, like critical analysis, you may also be asked to write a review of a journal. Again, it's an opportunity to demonstrate your qualified evaluation and opinions of the article's arguments and research.
For example, a journal article review refers to evaluating the strength and weaknesses of a publication. It's an appraisal of the limitations and potencies of subjects and opinions discussed in an article. This type of review is usually written in APA style and demands thoughtful reading of the work and then presenting your opinions on its key points. In a journal review, a writer should demonstrate the value of an article through strong analysis and interpretation.
Research Article Review
In a way, we can say that all article review types have the same purpose - to critique the paper, analyze its main points, define its strengths and weaknesses, and then present personal opinions of whys - but the execution happens differently. For example, in the research article review format, you evaluate the research methods used in the paper and hold it through to discuss the whole work. That's how it differs from other review article types.
Plus, when reviewing a research article, there are certain aspects you expect to find in a manuscript. For example, you should ensure that an Institutional Review Board approves this research. The purpose of it is to protect the human rights of the subjects.
Now let's discuss the last one before heading to the article review structure.
Science Article Review
Good review articles give the audience a great understanding of a subject and highlight key challenges and gaps to address with future research. The same is for science article review as well. Summaries and critiques are ways to write a good article review of a scientific paper. In addition, they help you learn to synthesize information from different sources.
The main difference between this and other article reviews is that a science paper review requires a good understanding of the literature and implications of discoveries made so far. That's because compiling years of scientific progress into a short article is a hard job. So instead, a good science review examines the consequences, summarizes important discoveries, and speculates how the future will improve our understanding of the field.
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Article Review Outline
As for now, you are aware of general information about the article review. Now it's time to get familiar with the article review structure so you can compose the paper quickly and effortlessly.

Every academic work has to have a structured framework. Therefore, it's usually a good idea to create an article review outline before you start writing. For each paragraph, write a mini summary of what you will talk about and what topic you should discuss so that you won't go off-topic. For example, you can provide background and state the primary subject for the introduction outline. Let's talk about each paragraph of an article review to better comprehend the concept of outline and organization.
Introduction
The first step of writing a good review is to learn how to write an article review introduction. It should be a brief glimpse of what the paper is about. Then, conclude with other details that your audience might find interesting. Finally, the introduction must compose the central theme of the article.
Here are some major tips that can help you to master that:
- Expand on the abstract and try to set the scene
- Provide context by introducing the topic
- Make the article review introduction short and self-contained
- Make sure that title, abstract, and introduction complement each other
- Aim to draw the reader in from the very beginning
- Turn your intro into an attention-grabbing hook
- The introduction should end with the thesis and address the issue
Methods
The next paragraph for your article review will be the methods section. It should contain databases selected, chosen keywords, access dates, criteria for including articles, etc.
Now go through the list of major tips to consider while writing a methods section:
- Include the design, aim, and setting of the study
- Define the used type of statistical analysis
- Describe the characteristic of participants and materials
- Make a clear description of interventions, processes, and comparisons
- If proprietary brands are used in research, always include the brand names in parentheses
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Findings
The findings section in the article review describes what you found when analyzing the paper. Its purpose is to use your insights collected to answer the issue posed in the introduction, even if your results challenge the hypothesis.
The findings section, also called the results section, should describe trends, insights, and discoveries revealed by the data analysis.
Here are tips for reviewing while writing the findings paragraph in your article:
- Pay attention to the keywords given in the article (such as 'increased' and 'decreased')
- 'No change' can also be considered an important finding, so don't forget to mention its relevancel
- Begin with a description of how you analyzed the paper
- Describe how you transformed the information given to facilitate analysis
- Organize findings in a way that reflects the study design
- Present your findings in order of importance; start with the answering to the primary issue
Discussion
The last part of the article review structure is the discussion. In this paragraph, the authors analyze, describe, and interpret their findings and explain the significance of these results. It brings together all the paragraphs discussed before and allows the audience to see the connection between those parts. In discussion, the writer engages with the reader in three ways: Interpretation, analysis, and explanation.
If you want to make your discussion section perfect, follow these tips:
- Summarize the key findings and link them to the primary issue
- Place your findings into context
- Mention every unexpected result and discuss them
- Describe if there were any limitations or weaknesses in the process and address them
- Provide a brief part of potential future research
- Crosscheck quoted results in previous literature
- In conclusion, restate the most relevant finding
All these tips for each paragraph should make it easier for you to write your article review like a professional. Also, never forget to use proper citation style in your writing.