Whatever the current educational level, students are faced with writing papers, papers, and presentations. In this sense, any academic document of a scientific or philosophical nature must be based on solid foundations that prove the author’s point of view and approach in the development and conclusion of his research. These bases are none other than the sources of information.
But what are sources of information? They are instruments or resources that allow the reader to know the theoretical support of the work presented, thus satisfying the need to go deeper into the subject.
In addition, information sources are the best way to locate and obtain a document whose title and author are already known.
Index:
What are the sources of information?
Primary sources
Secondary sources
Tertiary sources
What are information sources (+examples)
Sources of information: Other classifications
What sources of information can I use?
What are the sources of information?
Although there are other classifications, the most common is distinguishing 3 types of information sources: primary, secondary, and tertiary.
They come from books, web pages, theses, newspapers, conferences, interviews, videos, manuals, magazines, and databases, among other publications.
Primary sources:
Also considered the “master keys” of any research, primary sources provide original and novel information obtained during the development of the academic work, which has not been evaluated or interpreted by other people.
Secondary sources:
Secondary sources serve the important purpose of increasing access to primary sources and their contents; they analyze, synthesize and reorganize the original information. In this way, they make it easier for the reader and researcher to approach the intellectual work of third parties. Generally speaking, they are used when there is no way to access the primary source.
Tertiary sources:
When primary and secondary sources are combined, tertiary sources are the result. Through them, we can find well-identified content, carefully compiled and indexed to facilitate control and access to information. They can be thematic or chronological compilations. It could be dictionaries/encyclopedias (may also be secondary), almanacs, fact books, Wikipedia, bibliographies (may also be secondary), directories, guidebooks, manuals, or handbooks.
The information presented in tertiary sources has the endorsement and support of experts in the field or official institutions; therefore, it can be used in any research work without losing scientific rigor.
The examples of sources
It is not enough to know what a source of information is. It is also necessary to recognize each one to use them more skillfully in the research. Here are some examples of information sources, according to their type:
Primary sources: results of a laboratory experiment, raw statistics, and measurements from the observation of a case, among others.
Secondary sources: academic publications, essay examples, books, and theses, among others.
Tertiary sources: bibliographies, directories, and abstracts, among others.
Information sources: Other classifications
According to their classification, we can find up to 5 different sources of information, with their respective sub-divisions:
According to the degree of information: those already mentioned: are primary, secondary, and tertiary.
By the type of information they contain: general and specialized.
By the channel used: oral, observation, or documentary.
By format or support: audio, video, or text.
By geographical coverage: local, regional, national or international.
Understanding the classification of information sources allows us to use them appropriately in our research, understanding that material could belong to two or more categories simultaneously. That is to say, content can be a source of primary, specialized, and national coverage information at the same time.
What sources of information can I use?
Without information sources, it would not be possible to disseminate knowledge for third parties to read and therefore, it would not be possible to produce quality work. Unfortunately, not all information and content is a good source on which you can build your research.
So how do I know which sources of information to use?
Works published or distributed with the endorsement of a government or private institution (especially if independent peers or experts have reviewed the source) and with high credibility within the field of study of your career are usually the most appropriate. But also those that feature a trustworthy and credible author or authors with verifiable experience in the field.
