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The Responsible Researcher's Guide to AI-Assisted Literature Reviews

Prof. Benita OlivierEnglishLiterature reviewResponsible and ethical AI literature reviews

TL;DR

1-min read

AI can shorten a literature review considerably, but speed is of little value if the review cannot stand up to supervisors, examiners or reviewers. This tutorial works through a complete AI-assisted literature review in SciSpace and pairs it with responsible-use practices. It is designed for PhD and master's students, early-career researchers, faculty and supervisors who want AI's efficiency without weakening academic integrity.

Key takeaways

  • A full AI-assisted review workflow can be followed from start to finish in SciSpace, from finding papers to organising themes.
  • Defining your question and inclusion criteria before searching keeps the review focused and defensible.
  • Documenting the searches and tools you used, and noting your decisions, makes the review transparent and reproducible.
  • Each AI summary should be checked against the original paper, and you should look for perspectives the tool may have missed.
  • Synthesis, critical evaluation and final wording should remain your own work, even when AI helps find and summarise sources.
  • Checking institutional and journal AI policies, and disclosing use where required, helps the review meet publication and integrity expectations.
Apply it

To apply this, start your next review in SciSpace with written inclusion criteria, keep a log of searches and AI use, and verify every source before you cite it. The tutorial closed with a question-and-answer segment on research topics and AI policies.

How to do it

  1. Start your review in SciSpace

    Begin an AI-assisted literature review in SciSpace by entering your research question in the literature review tool. A clear starting question keeps the review focused.

  2. Follow the workflow end to end

    Work through each stage of the review in SciSpace from start to finish rather than using isolated features. A complete workflow is easier to document.

  3. Apply responsible-use practices throughout

    Check the sources AI returns and keep your process transparent at every stage. This keeps the review rigorous enough for supervisors and examiners.

  4. Balance speed with scrutiny

    Use AI to save time, but slow down to verify claims a published review must defend. Speed has little value if the review cannot withstand scrutiny.

  5. Prepare the review for publication

    Check the final review against publication and academic integrity expectations before submitting. This makes it ready for reviewers.

Watch the tutorial42 min

Responsible AI-Assisted Literature Reviews: A GuidePlay video: Responsible AI-Assisted Literature Reviews: A Guide

Chapters

  1. Welcome and speaker introduction
  2. Can AI help with a literature review?
  3. What should you ask yourself before using AI in research?
  4. Do you have permission to upload papers to AI tools?
  5. What are the stages of an AI-assisted literature review?
  6. How do you plan a literature review outline and argument?
  7. How do you explain the research gap your study addresses?
  8. How do you build a search strategy with keywords and synonyms?
  9. How can a librarian help you adapt Boolean searches for PubMed?
  10. How do you organize papers, notes and references?
  11. Which papers do you need to read in full?
  12. How do you write the first draft in your own voice?
  13. How do you polish a literature review with AI feedback?
  14. Which AI tools respect data-sharing agreements?
  15. SciSpace demo: Chat with PDF and finding related papers
  16. How do you run a scoping review question with Deep Research?
  17. Why should you never copy AI summaries as is?
  18. How do you save papers and notes to your library?
  19. How do you build a literature review table with custom columns?

Try this on SciSpace

Frequently asked questions

Can I use AI to write my literature review?

AI can help you find papers, summarise them and organise themes, which saves considerable time. The synthesis, critical evaluation and final wording should still be yours, and every source must be read and verified before you cite it. Check your institution's and target journal's AI policies and disclose use where required.

How do I keep an AI-assisted literature review rigorous?

Define your question and inclusion criteria before searching, record the searches and tools you used, and verify each AI summary against the original paper. Look for missing perspectives the tool may have skipped, and keep notes on your decisions. This transparency makes the review reproducible and easier to defend in front of examiners or reviewers.

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