Types of Sources
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Example |
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| Audience | General Public |
| Author | Written by journalists with no subject expertise |
| Citations | Very few or none |
| Content | Current events, general interest articles |
| Purpose | To inform, entertain |
| Review Process | Editorial staff, usually with no background in the field |
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Example |
 |
| Audience | Professionals in a specific field |
| Author | Usually expert in a field, journalist with subject expertise |
| Citations | Some articles will have citations, but they are not required |
| Content | Articles about a certain industry |
| Purpose | To inform about current news, trends, and tools in an industry |
| Review Process | Editor who is usually an expert in the field |
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Example |
 |
| Audience | Academics, researchers |
| Author | Academics and researchers experts in their field |
| Citations | References required |
| Content | Research results/reports, reviews of research, book reviews |
| Purpose | To share with academic community |
| Review Process | Editorial board made up of other experts, many articles are peer-reviewed |
Primary Sources VS. Secondary Sources
| Primary Sources | Secondary Sources |
| Direct observation | Reviews or remarks |
| Author is who conducted the research | Author did not conduct the research |
| Usually a research paper, a lab notebook, research data, technical reports, or a conference presentation | Includes review article, book, and brief or popular science report about the topic |
What is a Peer Reviewed Article?
Watch this short video to learn more.