Synthesis Matrix Builder
Organize your sources by theme to spot genuine patterns, the foundation of real synthesis rather than source-by-source summary.
A synthesis matrix, sources as rows, themes as columns, is one of the most effective tools for moving from reading individual sources to actually synthesizing them. Filling in the grid forces you to identify what each source contributes to each theme, and reading down a column then shows you exactly what a group of sources collectively say about that theme.
Add your sources and themes below, and fill each cell with a short note: a finding, a methodological detail, or a point of disagreement. Once it's filled in, the columns themselves often become the thematic sections of your literature review.
Building the matrix from your actual sources, rather than deciding themes in advance and forcing sources into them, is what keeps a review's structure genuinely grounded in the literature rather than imposed on it.
Add your sources as rows and your themes as columns. Fill each cell with a short note on how that source relates to that theme, e.g. a finding, a method, or a gap.
| Source | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Once your matrix is filled in, look for patterns across rows within each theme column -- that's usually where your actual thematic organization for the review comes from, rather than deciding themes in advance of reading your sources.