How to Write an Evidence Table for Your Literature Review

An evidence table is a structured summary of the papers in your literature review. It extracts key information from each source into a consistent format, making it easy to compare studies and identify patterns.

Why use an evidence table?

1. Forces systematic reading — you cannot fill in the table without actually reading each paper
2. Makes synthesis easier — patterns jump out when data is side-by-side
3. Saves time later — when writing, you can refer to the table instead of re-reading papers
4. Shows rigour — many markers appreciate seeing your evidence table in an appendix

Standard evidence table columns

At minimum, your table should include:

| Column | What to include | |--------|----------------| | Author & Year | Surname, publication year | | Aim/Research question | What the study set out to investigate | | Methodology | Qualitative, quantitative, mixed; specific method | | Sample | Size, population, demographics | | Key findings | 2-3 main results | | Limitations | What the authors acknowledge as weaknesses | | Relevance | How this paper relates to YOUR research question |

How to build one manually

Step 1: Create your template

Set up a table in Word, Excel, or Google Sheets with the columns above.

Step 2: Read strategically

You do not need to read every paper cover-to-cover. Focus on:

• Abstract (aim, method, findings)
• Methods section (sample, design)
• Results/Discussion (key findings)
• Limitations section

Step 3: Extract consistently

Use the same level of detail for each paper. If you write three sentences for one paper's findings, aim for roughly three sentences for all.

Step 4: Add your analysis

The "Relevance" column is where you add your own thinking — how does this paper contribute to answering YOUR question?

How to build one automatically with Scholise

Scholise's Evidence Table feature extracts this information automatically from your saved sources:

1. Save relevant papers to your project using the Source Finder
2. Open the Evidence Table tool
3. Scholise reads each paper and extracts aims, methodology, findings, and limitations
4. Review and edit the extracted information
5. Export as a formatted table for your appendix

This turns hours of manual extraction into minutes.

Tips for better evidence tables

• Be selective — only include papers directly relevant to your research question
• Use consistent terminology — do not describe the same methodology differently across rows
• Note contradictions — flag when findings conflict between studies
• Update as you read — add papers to the table as you find them, not all at the end
• Keep it brief — bullet points, not paragraphs

Common mistakes

• Including every paper you read (only include those relevant to your argument)
• Writing too much in each cell (keep it scannable)
• Not including a relevance/notes column (this is where your analysis lives)
• Leaving it until the end (build as you go)
• Not using it when writing (the whole point is to reference it during synthesis)

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Build evidence tables automatically from your saved papers. Try Scholise free →