'Just Structure Your Review Chronologically': Good Idea or Comfort Trap?
Order your review chronologically . You’ve probably come across this idea before – or maybe toyed with it yourself, especially if you’re sitting on a massive pile of notes and wondering what to do next. You know you have to corral it all somehow, give it some sort of structure, turn it into a chapter or section worth someone’s time to read. But how? The Temptation This is when the chronological temptation starts creeping in. Every finding has a year on it. The years can be grouped together. Look, I can start right now – there’s a cluster from 2015 . . . It feels like you are doing something. If feels like you are bringing order to chaos. It feels like you are finally making progress and sorting it all out. Beware of those feelings. The Reality There are many ways to bring order to chaos. You could organise findings alphabetically by the surnames of their authors. Or you could group findings by the different journals they appear in. Or according to the order you ...