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There are three main types of sources: primary, secondary, and tertiary
Primary sources are original materials created or produced during the time under study.
They present original thinking, report a discovery, or share new information.
These materials have not been interpreted, filtered, or evaluated.
Primary sources enable the reader to make their own interpretations about the event, without having to rely on what has already been written on the topic.
A primary source reflects an individual viewpoint from a participant or observer.
Original research is created using primary resources.
Examples of Primary Sources include: Studies, Survey Results, Statistics, Speeches, Interviews, Letters, Official Records of Organizations or Government Agencies, and Photographs.
A secondary source analyzes, evaluates, and interprets one or more primary sources.
Examples of secondary sources include: Journal Articles that Interpret or Review other Works, Book Reviews, Books (not: Fiction or Autobiographies), Newspaper Articles (not first hand accounts), Magazine Articles, Criticisms, and Histories.
Keep in mind:
If a journal article contains experimental research or data sets, the article would be considered a primary source.
A tertiary source typically provides an overview on a specific topic and may contain both primary and secondary sources.
Usually a collection of secondary and primary sources that are presented as factual information with basic terminology.
Compiles general common knowledge into one source, while providing key terms, phrases, and/or additional key (seminal) sources.
Tertiary sources are not usually credited to one author.
The information is not analyzed or interpreted.
Tertiary sources are generally not acceptable for academic research, but are a great place to learn about your topic and get information.
Examples of tertiary resources: encyclopedias, text books, Wikipedia, and book reviews.
If the newspaper article describes a persons first hand account of an event, the article would be considered primary.
If the writer of the article includes additional background information on the topic and interprets an event, then the article is a secondary source.