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Research Help: Primary and Secondary Sources
A well-written research paper by essay writer needs information from outside sources. The purpose of these outside sources is to add credibility to your paper. The sources also help you defend the points you make in your research paper. There are two types of sources used for academic writing. These are primary sources and secondary sources.
Primary Sources
If a source gives you first-hand information about something, then that source is a primary source. Primary sources are usually direct evidence of a certain object, event, place, or work of art. The main reason for using a primary source is that it provides researchers a glimpse of what happened during a specific time period or era.
A good research paper will include both primary sources and secondary sources. It is up to you how many primary sources or secondary sources you want to add to your essay. This article will help you answer the question, ‘What sources should I use when I write my essay?’ This article will also give you a complete overview of what sources classify as primary sources and secondary sources.
Consider you are writing your research paper on the American Civil War. Using maps or newspapers that were published during that time period would be a primary source. Primary sources are most of the time viewpoints of people living during the specific time period. Primary sources do not necessarily need to be in written form. Primary sources can be any images or pictures as well. A picture of the American Civil War can make a great primary source for your research paper.
If the topic of your research paper is a current issue, then you may use quantitative data as a primary source. This data can be collected by yourself through interviews and surveys. Another source could be data collected by researchers who were directly involved in the issue that you are basing your research paper on.
Now that you know what a primary source is, let us look at some examples of primary sources that can be used in your research paper. Still, confused about primary sources? Contact paper writing service that can help you in better understanding primary sources and how they can be used in your research paper.
What sources are primary sources?
Following are some examples of primary sources. All of these can be used as references for your research paper.
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Autobiographies are a great example of primary sources because they offer first-hand experiences. Memoirs can also be used for reference
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Personal letters and diaries are also primary sources. They are also credible and offer direct evidence
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Photographs of a person or of the time period that is the focus of your research paper
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Speeches
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Official records of a government organization is another example of primary sources
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Journal articles that include experimental research results
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Documents from the government. These include bills, hearings, and proclamations.
Secondary Sources
A secondary source is usually derived from primary sources. Proper analysis and description of the primary source is what we call a secondary source. Secondary sources differ from primary sources because they are made by people who did not experience the event firsthand.
A secondary source for the American Civil War would be a documentary or movie about the event. This qualifies as a secondary source because the director was not alive during the time of the civil war and is just retelling the story.
Secondary sources take information from primary sources and repackage them for researchers. The information taken from primary sources includes graphs, figures, and images. Just like primary sources, secondary sources do not need to be in written form. They can be in the form of images and movies. If you are confused and you need help in your assignment ask myperfectwords.com for help.
What sources are secondary sources?
Following is a list of materials that can be used as secondary sources for your research paper
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Bibliographies usually contain references to another journal article or research paper.
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Reference books are a good example of secondary sources. These books include online dictionaries and encyclopedias
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Newspaper and journal articles
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Documentaries and movies count as secondary sources
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Textbooks
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Review articles
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A literature review is a good place to find secondary sources for your research
Sometimes a secondary source can act as a primary source. This all depends on what the source is being used for. If you are using a documentary about the American Civil War for a research paper that talks about the causes of the civil war, then the documentary is a secondary source. However, if your research paper was about how to write a documentary then the Civil War documentary will serve as a primary source.
If you are still unsure about how secondary sources can be used as primary sources, get in touch with an essay writing service. Not only will they help you write your research paper, but they will also proofread it for you and let you know where improvements can be made.
Primary sources vs Secondary sources
Primary sources are more credible. This is because they give a first-hand description of the event. However, when writing your research paper you need to use both primary and secondary sources. This will boost the reliability and validity of your research paper. If you are ever stuck and cannot decide if a source is primary or secondary, come back and review this article once more. Once you know the difference between the two sources, you are on your way to write my paper a properly referenced research paper.
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