The first thing you should do when you have a research assignment is figure out what types of sources are required or allowed by your instructor. Some professors require you to use only scholarly peer-reviewed journals, primary sources, newspapers, or books from the library while others might be more flexible in the types of sources used. Here are some source terms you should be familiar with:
Scholarly article: Written by an expert in the field and reviewed by peers who are experts in the same area. In many databases, you can limit your search to scholarly, peer-reviewed or refereed journals to weed out any non-scholarly content. You can learn how to identify and find them in our Finding Peer-Reviewed Articles guide.
Professional/trade article: Trade or professional journals can have articles written by experts in the field or by staff writers. The articles are only reviewed by editors for style, so they go through a less rigorous review process. The articles often do not contain reference lists. Examples of trade journals include School Library Journal, Harvard Business Review, Engineering and Mining Journal, and American Biology Teacher.
Popular journals: Written for a general audience rather than for professionals or scholars. Examples include The New Yorker, People, and Rolling Stone.
Primary source: An item that was created during the period being studied and documents in some way what is being studied. Examples include newspaper accounts, government documents, letters, diaries, autobiographies, speeches, oral histories, museum artifacts, and photographs. Learn more in our Primary Source guide.
Secondary source: A source that is one step removed from an event and analyzes primary sources. Examples include a book about World War II that is based on records from the time or a journal article about Chinese immigrants to San Francisco. Most books and articles are secondary sources.
Next, think about what types of evidence you need to answer your research question or make your case. This chart makes suggestions for specific types of resources for your research:
|
If you need |
Try using |
| Expert evidence | Scholarly articles, books, and statistical data |
|
Public or individual opinion on an issue |
Newspapers, magazines, and websites |
|
Basic facts about an event |
Newspapers and books |
|
Eyewitness accounts |
Newspapers, primary source books, and web-based collection of primary sources |
|
A general overview of a topic |
Books or encyclopedias |
|
Information about a very recent topic |
Websites, newspapers, and magazines |
|
Local information |
Newspapers, websites, and books |
|
Information from professionals working in the field |
Professional/trade journals |