When do you "stop" reading?

[adel9216]

Hello,

Just a quick question.

When do you "stop" researching/reading literature ? Or how do you structure researching/reading the literature?

I ask this question because I spend entire days, and hours making so many discoveries on my research topic that truly fascinate and interest me. I feel like I am making all relevant discoveries (both contemporary and more old, doctoral and master's thesis, books, videos, movies, etc.) that is very tied to my topic, so I don't feel like I going in all kinds of directions that are non-relevant. But it's kind of like a rabbit hole. There's just so much out there. I click on one thing that leads me to this other amazing thing, etc. I mostly add it all to my Zotero library to organize it later or I order paper books I feel like I should read to have solid background knowledge on my topic. Or I jump to the sections I feel are the most relevant to me and to my topic if I don't have the luxury to read the entire thing.

(I put "stop" in quotations marks because I don't think any researcher should stop entirely to read the literature no matter how experienced they are, because I feel it'd be irresponsible to my future students and to my credibility as a scholar. It's very important to be up-to-date throughout my entire career.)

What I mean is: how do you schedule your reading time? Because one of my thesis committee member told me that I should read now as much as I can because I won't have time to do it as much if I become a professor.

[polly_mer]

I was told as a grad student to "stop" reading when I wasn't getting any new information on a given topic. I may still have references on the list at that point, but skipping around time and groups doesn't lead to significantly big jumps in understanding.

As a professional starting a new project, I have notes on the big themes that I update as I read.  When I no longer add paragraphs to the themes I have, let alone new themes, then I'm done for now.  Usually, that's about six weeks of half-time work, as long as I have access to the good library.

When I can write the equivalent of all the literature sections I'm reading, then I'm definitely getting close to done for now.

[adel9216]

I was told as a grad student to "stop" reading when I wasn't getting any new information on a given topic. I may still have references on the list at that point, but skipping around time and groups doesn't lead to significantly big jumps in understanding.

As a professional starting a new project, I have notes on the big themes that I update as I read.  When I no longer add paragraphs to the themes I have, let alone new themes, then I'm done for now.  Usually, that's about six weeks of half-time work, as long as I have access to the good library.

When I can write the equivalent of all the literature sections I'm reading, then I'm definitely getting close to done for now.

For once, I did not feel you are being condescending towards me in this response. That's actually good advice that I will keep in mind.

Thank you polly_mer! ;-)

[polly_mer]

This question aligns with the stated goal of finishing a PhD.

Other questions you've asked recently are aligned with other goals. Perfectly fine career goals, but not the actions to finish a PhD in a timely manner.

You already have a master's degree.  For the field you're in, you could go get a job that would pay you to advocate through op-eds and interviews while working on your book that fills a known gap.

If you want to be an academic, then certain activities align with that goal.

If you're already a recognized expert in an area of human knowledge, then other actions are relevant things to do, but they don't align with being on the path to a PhD.

[Parasaurolophus]

I think it's less about when to stop reading than it is about when to start writing--and the answer to that is 'yesterday!'

Just start writing, even if it's not very good. After you've written a little for the day, you can stop and start reading. And that reading can inform your subsequent writing. That way, you allow your writing to inform your reading, too, especially in terms of what you should read next/new directions/etc. But thinking of the reading and writing phases as entirely separate is a recipe for getting lost in the reading and never writing.

FWIW, I can't usually handle reading for work for more than an hour or so a day. So that's about how much I do. I don't try to read everything before starting a new writing project; I just start writing, then read when I get tired of writing for the day or when I get stuck. And that reading informs my next session, and so on, until the paper is submitted. At that point, I stop reading on the subject until I get it back for revisions or resubmission.

[sprout]

I think it's less about when to stop reading than it is about when to start writing--and the answer to that is 'yesterday!'

My initial thought was "when the deadline for your paper is getting too close." (Self-imposed deadline or otherwise.)  Basically in line with Parasaurolophus' more nuanced answer.

[adel9216]

This question aligns with the stated goal of finishing a PhD.

Other questions you've asked recently are aligned with other goals. Perfectly fine career goals, but not the actions to finish a PhD in a timely manner.

You already have a master's degree.  For the field you're in, you could go get a job that would pay you to advocate through op-eds and interviews while working on your book that fills a known gap.

If you want to be an academic, then certain activities align with that goal.

If you're already a recognized expert in an area of human knowledge, then other actions are relevant things to do, but they don't align with being on the path to a PhD.

I think this is field specific. ;-) Because I see a lot of researchers in my field doing both.

[adel9216]

I think it's less about when to stop reading than it is about when to start writing--and the answer to that is 'yesterday!'

Just start writing, even if it's not very good. After you've written a little for the day, you can stop and start reading. And that reading can inform your subsequent writing. That way, you allow your writing to inform your reading, too, especially in terms of what you should read next/new directions/etc. But thinking of the reading and writing phases as entirely separate is a recipe for getting lost in the reading and never writing.

FWIW, I can't usually handle reading for work for more than an hour or so a day. So that's about how much I do. I don't try to read everything before starting a new writing project; I just start writing, then read when I get tired of writing for the day or when I get stuck. And that reading informs my next session, and so on, until the paper is submitted. At that point, I stop reading on the subject until I get it back for revisions or resubmission.

Good advice! And yes, I always write and read a little bit at the same time just so I can reflect on what I've read!

Thanks :)

[adel9216]

I think it's less about when to stop reading than it is about when to start writing--and the answer to that is 'yesterday!'

My initial thought was "when the deadline for your paper is getting too close." (Self-imposed deadline or otherwise.)  Basically in line with Parasaurolophus' more nuanced answer.

;-)

[Ruralguy]

The answer is never, but start writing anyway.

[FishProf]

What Polly laid out is similar to the approach for determining "diversity" in an area.  Go out an look.  Write down all the "critters in question" you see.  Do it again.  Do it again.  When you slow down or stop adding "new" critters to your count in X days (predetermined), you are done.  Does that mean you got every single one?  No.  But the ROI on the looking is no longer paying off.