2.4 Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Sources

Now that we know the difference between scholarly and non scholarly sources, what is the difference between primary, secondary and tertiary sources?

Primary Sources

Primary sources present original findings or research. Authors describe their research and their conclusions

– Journal articles describing original research

– Theses and dissertations

Secondary Sources

Secondary sources analyze, summarize or synthesize original research. They comment on information presented in primary sources

– Review articles (often have review in the title)

– Books (including textbooks)