Summary
Discovering that a published study overlaps heavily with your planned thesis topic can feel unsettling, but it is a normal part of academic research rather than a crisis. Overlapping work helps you understand the field, refine your focus and sharpen your unique contribution.
This guide explains how to read overlapping sources critically, identify differences, clarify your niche and make adjustments where necessary. It also explores how careful reading, multiple passes and discussions with supervisors can strengthen your methodology and research direction.
Instead of viewing similar studies as threats, doctoral researchers can use them as valuable tools to improve their dissertation design, deepen their literature review and position their work confidently within existing scholarship.
Strategic engagement with overlapping sources ensures that your thesis remains original, relevant and academically rigorous.
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How to Analyse Sources and Establish Your Niche in Thesis Writing
One of the most challenging—and inevitable—moments in doctoral research occurs when you discover a published study that appears to address the exact topic you intend to explore in your thesis. Many doctoral candidates react with alarm: fear that their idea is no longer original, worry that their contribution will be overshadowed or frustration that their planned approach may now seem unnecessary. Although understandable, this initial reaction almost always fades when the source is read carefully. Overlap in research is far more common than students expect, and identifying it early on can actually make your thesis stronger, clearer and more original.
Academic research is cumulative. Every project builds on previous work, responds to existing debates and extends theoretical, methodological or empirical frameworks. In this collaborative landscape, it is rare—and almost impossible—to find an untouched topic with no prior scholarship. Instead, your task is to carve out your specific niche within an already established conversation. This requires reading overlapping sources with precision, critical awareness and strategic thinking.
This article provides a detailed exploration of how to read overlapping scholarship effectively, how to position your thesis confidently and how to refine your academic niche as you develop your dissertation topic.
1. Why Overlapping Research Is Normal—and Even Good
New doctoral researchers sometimes imagine that originality means studying a topic no one has ever examined. In reality, originality in academic writing is rarely about being the first to ask a question—it is about offering a new perspective, method, dataset, interpretation or theoretical angle.
When you discover a study that resembles your planned research, this does not negate your idea. Instead, it confirms:
- that your topic is relevant to the field,
- that other researchers consider it valuable,
- that you will be able to build on a recognised scholarly foundation,
- that literature exists to support your thesis framework.
A complete absence of related research would be more worrying. It may indicate that the topic lacks scholarly value, is too obscure or does not have measurable academic potential. Overlap, therefore, is a sign that your topic matters.
2. First Impressions Can Mislead: Read Carefully and Completely
Many doctoral candidates panic too soon. A title or abstract may suggest significant overlap, but only a full reading reveals the true scope of the study. Once you analyse the content in detail, differences usually appear naturally. These may include:
- different research questions,
- a variation in population or dataset,
- a slightly different theoretical lens,
- alternative methodologies,
- a different historical or geographical focus,
- distinct interpretations or conclusions.
Even if the overlap is substantial, identical projects are exceptionally rare. Researchers bring their own perspectives, analytical approaches and technical choices to every study. The same topic can be explored in dozens of ways, each producing distinct findings.
Read the source slowly and critically. Make notes on similarities and differences, identifying the precise areas that concern you. A second reading is often helpful, especially when the source is long or conceptually complex.
3. Determining What Makes Your Research Unique
Once you understand the existing study thoroughly, you can begin identifying your niche. Ask yourself:
- What can I contribute that this study does not?
- Is my research question narrower or broader?
- Can I apply a different theoretical framework?
- Do I have access to different data or participants?
- Can I explore the topic from a new methodological angle?
- Are my aims or motivations different?
Your niche may emerge through:
- a unique combination of methods,
- a different dataset,
- a geographically distinct case study,
- a different time period,
- a more nuanced interpretation of the same data,
- a critique or extension of an earlier study’s conclusions.
This differentiation will become essential for your literature review and introduction chapters, where you must explain how your work builds upon and diverges from previous research.
4. Using Overlapping Sources to Strengthen Your Research Design
Similar studies do not threaten your project—they improve it. They reveal how other scholars structured their methodology, what challenges they encountered and which analytical tools proved successful. You may identify weaknesses or gaps in the existing study that your dissertation can address. Alternatively, you may adopt certain strengths from the prior research while adapting them to your own context.
Overlap can also validate your methodological choices. Knowing that other scholars have used similar approaches successfully gives you confidence that your procedures are robust and appropriate. At the same time, you may identify opportunities to refine or expand your design.
In some cases, overlapping work may even inspire you to explore dimensions you had not previously considered. What may first appear as competition often becomes a valuable resource.
5. Discussing Your Concerns with Your Supervisor
Your supervisor has almost certainly faced this challenge. Scholars constantly navigate overlapping territory, and they can help you interpret similarities productively. Bring the source to your next meeting and explain your concerns clearly.
Questions you might raise include:
- Do these similarities pose a problem for my project?
- Should I refine or narrow my topic?
- How can I differentiate my approach effectively?
- Which elements of the study are most relevant for my work?
Supervisors provide reassurance, strategic adjustments and fresh perspectives. They can help you rewrite your research questions, adjust your methodology or modify your focus without disrupting your entire project.
6. Acknowledging Overlap Transparently in Your Thesis
Once you identify the similarities and differences, it is important to acknowledge the overlap openly in your thesis. This is typically done in the literature review or introduction.
A clear explanation can:
- demonstrate your awareness of the field,
- show that your research is grounded in existing scholarship,
- position your work as a constructive contribution rather than duplication,
- clarify your unique angle or innovation.
Transparency builds credibility. Attempting to conceal overlap may raise questions during examination, whereas acknowledging it strengthens your academic position and shows confidence in your contribution.
7. When Adjustments to Your Project May Be Necessary
In rare cases, the overlap may be so extensive that adjustments are advisable. For example, if the existing study uses the exact same dataset, method and research questions, and its conclusions align closely with what you expect to find, you may need to modify your approach.
Adjustments can include:
- refining your research question to focus on a different aspect,
- adding a new theoretical framework,
- collecting a distinct dataset,
- expanding your methodology,
- framing your study as a replication with new insight.
Replication is not a weakness. High-quality replications are increasingly valued in many fields, especially in psychology, biomedical research and empirical social sciences. Your work may contribute to broader debates on methodological rigour and reproducibility.
8. Overlapping Research as an Unexpected Advantage
What begins as disappointment can become a significant advantage. Overlapping studies help you sharpen your argument, refine your methods and articulate the importance of your dissertation with greater confidence. They also provide valuable models of structure, style, methodology and analysis—resources you can learn from as you develop your own work.
In many cases, overlapping research pushes you to think more critically about your approach, leading to a thesis that is more innovative, more precise and more intellectually compelling than it would otherwise have been.
Conclusion
Finding a study that appears to duplicate your research idea can be unsettling. However, careful reading, critical analysis and strategic adjustments can turn this moment into an opportunity. Instead of competing with existing scholarship, you join a well-established academic conversation and contribute something new and meaningful to it.
By reading overlapping sources thoroughly, identifying your niche, seeking supervisory guidance and acknowledging similarities openly, you will produce a thesis that is both rigorous and original. Overlap is not a barrier—it is a pathway to deeper understanding and stronger scholarly contribution.
