Examining Chinese Writers’ Literature Review Writing Skills and Their Impact on Academic Writing Performance

Purpose This study aims to clarify the construct of literature review (LR) writing skills and examine its impact on research proposal (RP) writing performance among postgraduate students in Hong Kong SAR, China. Design/Approach/Methods A total of 286 postgraduate students completed an LR writing task and an RP writing task within a Chinese academic writing course. Twelve skill variables were analyzed using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) to define the LR writing skill construct. Latent profile analysis (LPA) was employed to categorize students into skill-based profiles and evaluate their influence on RP writing performance. Findings The EFA identified four key factors underlying LR writing skills: Citation and Synthesis, Research Question Elicitation, Language Expression and Organization, and Contextual Awareness. The LPA classified students into two groups: students with low LR writing skills and students with moderate-to-high LR writing skills. Students in the moderate-to-high skill group performed significantly better in RP writing than their low-skill counterparts. Originality/Value This study provides a comprehensive framework for understanding the construct of LR writing skills and highlights its practical implications for academic writing instruction. By identifying skill-based student profiles and their relationship with RP writing performance, the findings offer insights for designing targeted pedagogical interventions to enhance LR and overall academic writing skills.