Primary vs. Secondary Sources | Difference & Examples
When you do research, you have to gather information and evidence from a variety of sources.
Primary sources provide raw information and first-hand evidence. Examples include interview transcripts, statistical data, and works of art. A primary source gives you direct access to the subject of your research.
Secondary sources provide second-hand information and commentary from other researchers. Examples include journal articles, reviews, and academic books. A secondary source describes, interprets, or synthesises primary sources.
Primary sources are more credible as evidence, but good research uses both primary and secondary sources.
What is a primary source?
A primary source is anything that gives you direct evidence about the people, events, or phenomena that you are researching. Primary sources will usually be the main objects of your analysis.
If you are researching the past, you cannot directly access it yourself, so you need primary sources that were produced at the time by participants or witnesses (e.g. letters, photographs, newspapers).
If you are researching something current, your primary sources can either be qualitative or quantitative data that you collect yourself (e.g. through interviews, surveys, experiments) or sources produced by people directly involved in the topic (e.g. official documents or media texts).
| Research field | Primary source |
|---|---|
| History |
|
| Art and literature |
|
| Communication and social studies |
|
| Law and politics |
|
| Sciences |
|
What is a secondary source?
A secondary source is anything that describes, interprets, evaluates, or analyses information from primary sources. Common examples include:
- Books, articles and documentaries that synthesise information on a topic
- Synopses and descriptions of artistic works
- Encyclopaedias and textbooks that summarize information and ideas
- Reviews and essays that evaluate or interpret something
When you cite a secondary source, it’s usually not to analyse it directly. Instead, you’ll probably test its arguments against new evidence or use its ideas to help formulate your own.
Primary and secondary source examples
| Primary source | Secondary source |
|---|---|
| Novel | Article analysing the novel |
| Painting | Exhibition catalog explaining the painting |
| Letters and diaries written by a historical figure | Biography of the historical figure |
| Essay by a philosopher | Textbook summarising the philosopher’s ideas |
| Photographs of a historical event | Documentary about the historical event |
| Government documents about a new policy | Newspaper article about the new policy |
| Music recordings | Academic book about the musical style |
| Results of an opinion poll | Blog post interpreting the results of the poll |
| Empirical study | Literature review that cites the study |
Examples of sources that can be primary or secondary
A secondary source can become a primary source depending on your research question. If the person, context, or technique that produced the source is the main focus of your research, it becomes a primary source.
How to tell if a source is primary or secondary
To determine if something can be used as a primary or secondary source in your research, there are some simple questions you can ask yourself:
- Does this source come from someone directly involved in the events I’m studying (primary) or from another researcher (secondary)?
- Am I interested in analysing the source itself (primary) or only using it for background information (secondary)?
- Does the source provide original information (primary) or does it comment upon information from other sources (secondary)?
Primary vs secondary sources: which is better?
Most research uses both primary and secondary sources. They complement each other to help you build a convincing argument. Primary sources are more credible as evidence, but secondary sources show how your work relates to existing research.
What do you use primary sources for?
Primary sources are the foundation of original research. They allow you to:
- Make new discoveries
- Provide credible evidence for your arguments
- Give authoritative information about your topic
If you don’t use any primary sources, your research may be considered unoriginal or unreliable.
What do you use secondary sources for?
Secondary sources are good for gaining a full overview of your topic and understanding how other researchers have approached it. They often synthesise a large number of primary sources that would be difficult and time-consuming to gather by yourself. They allow you to:
- Gain background information on the topic
- Support or contrast your arguments with other researchers’ ideas
- Gather information from primary sources that you can’t access directly (e.g. private letters or physical documents located elsewhere)
When you conduct a literature review, you can consult secondary sources to gain a thorough overview of your topic. If you want to mention a paper or study that you find cited in a secondary source, seek out the original source and cite it directly.
Remember that all primary and secondary sources must be cited to avoid plagiarism. You can use Scribbr’s free citation generator to do so!
Frequently asked questions about primary and secondary sources
- What are some examples of primary sources?
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Common examples of primary sources include interview transcripts, photographs, novels, paintings, films, historical documents, and official statistics.
Anything you directly analyze or use as first-hand evidence can be a primary source, including qualitative or quantitative data that you collected yourself.
- What are some examples of secondary sources?
-
Common examples of secondary sources include academic books, journal articles, reviews, essays, and textbooks.
Anything that summarizes, evaluates or interprets primary sources can be a secondary source. If a source gives you an overview of background information or presents another researcher’s ideas on your topic, it is probably a secondary source.
- How can you tell if a source is primary or secondary?
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To determine if a source is primary or secondary, ask yourself:
- Was the source created by someone directly involved in the events you’re studying (primary), or by another researcher (secondary)?
- Does the source provide original information (primary), or does it summarize information from other sources (secondary)?
- Are you directly analyzing the source itself (primary), or only using it for background information (secondary)?
Some types of sources are nearly always primary: works of art and literature, raw statistical data, official documents and records, and personal communications (e.g. letters, interviews). If you use one of these in your research, it is probably a primary source.
Primary sources are often considered the most credible in terms of providing evidence for your argument, as they give you direct evidence of what you are researching. However, it’s up to you to ensure the information they provide is reliable and accurate.
Always make sure to properly cite your sources to avoid plagiarism.
- Is a movie a primary or secondary source?
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A fictional movie is usually a primary source. A documentary can be either primary or secondary depending on the context.
If you are directly analysing some aspect of the movie itself – for example, the cinematography, narrative techniques, or social context – the movie is a primary source.
If you use the movie for background information or analysis about your topic – for example, to learn about a historical event or a scientific discovery – the movie is a secondary source.
Whether it’s primary or secondary, always properly cite the movie in the citation style you are using. Learn how to create an MLA movie citation or an APA movie citation.
- Is a newspaper article a primary or secondary source?
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Articles in newspapers and magazines can be primary or secondary depending on the focus of your research.
In historical studies, old articles are used as primary sources that give direct evidence about the time period. In social and communication studies, articles are used as primary sources to analyse language and social relations (for example, by conducting content analysis or discourse analysis).
If you are not analysing the article itself, but only using it for background information or facts about your topic, then the article is a secondary source.
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Streefkerk, R. (2023, May 15). Primary vs. Secondary Sources | Difference & Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved 9 December 2024, from https://www.scribbr.co.uk/working-sources/primary-vs-secondary-sources/
