How to Research: 5. Know Your Sources

Know Your Sources

Scholarly Sources

You will want to use scholarly sources in research papers and anytime you want verified facts and opinions supported by evidence. One type of scholarly source is peer-reviewed, meaning experts in the field have evaluated and approved the article before publication.

Opinion or editorials articles within scholarly journals are NOT scholarly!

Non-Scholarly Sources

Non-Scholarly sources can be used for finding best practices, current events, popular opinions, easy to understand summaries, and entertainment. These sources are usually not appropriate to use in research papers.

Types of Sources Handout

The PDF below includes an overview of each type of source in different formats. Consult this handout to easily determine whether a source is appropriate for your research paper.

Primary Sources

For some research topics, you may want to cite original documents, interviews, artwork, artifacts, novels, poetry, or music. These are all primary sources, which were either created at the time of an event or created by a person who experienced an event. Primary sources offer a unique insight into a particular time or topic.

Examples of primary sources:

  • Letter

  • Email

  • Diary

  • Photo

  • Play

  • Pottery

  • Novel

  • Poetry

  • Autobiography

  • Financial record

  • Meeting minutes

  • Historical Account

  • Official records (ex. Birth certificate)

  • Government documents

  • News recording

  • Newsletter

  • Speech

  • Newspaper

  • Magazine

  • Census data

  • Obituary

  • Interview

  • TV show

  • Advertisement

  • Music

  • Book

  • Political ads

  • Cars

  • Architecture

  • Film

  • Artwork

  • Furniture

  • Coins

  • Map

  • Clothing

  • Memoir

 

Find Primary Sources

Peer-Reviewed Articles

Peer-Reviewed vs. Popular Periodicals