When evaluating information, it is useful to identify if it's a Primary, Secondary, or Tertiary source.
By doing so, you will be able to recognize if the author is reporting on his/her own first-hand experiences, or relying on the views of others.
| Source Type |
Examples |
Primary
A first-person account by someone who experienced or witnessed an event. The original document has not been previously published or interpreted by anyone else. |
- Creative works, such as a novel, play, poem, etc.
- First person account of an event
- First publication of a scientific study
- Speech or lecture
- Original artwork
- Handwritten manuscript
- Letters between two people or a diary
- Historical documents, e.g. Bill of Rights
|
|
Secondary
One step removed from the primary original source. The author is reexamining, interpreting and forming conclusions based on the information conveyed in the primary source.
|
- Literary criticism
- Newspaper reporting on a scientific study
- Review of a music CD or art show
- Biography
|
|
Tertiary
Further removed from a primary source. It leads the researcher to a secondary source, rather than to the primary source.
|
- Bibliography
- Index to articles
- Library catalog
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