If your lecturer asks you to find a journal article that is a primary source of information, what should you look for ?
A. A journal article that reviews previous journal articles on the topic.
B. A journal article written in a popular magazine such as Psychology Today.
C. An article that reports an original discovery, experiment, trial or survey.
Answer
C. is correct. Primary source articles in peer reviewed journals report original findings (and usually have an extensive reference list).
A. A review article is a secondary source.
B. You don't usually find original research articles in popular magazines.
I need to find what sources of information there are in Education for my thesis on 'patient compliance in young children'. I am a nurse. Where should I start looking?
A. In the Encyclopedia of Early Childhood Education published in 1992.
B. Find out whether your library has a subject guide to Education available on the Web or in print.
C. Look in your library catalogue for a guide to the literature of Education.
Answer
B. and C. are both correct. Guides to the literature describe the main sources of information in a subject area. You can use these to find sources of more detailed information.
A. The encyclopaedia is not the best answer. Although it may contain a summary article, you will need to learn about sources of more up-to-date information.
What type of information is the most difficult to find?
A. The most 'repackaged', least current information found in books, encyclopaedias and handbooks.
B. Very current information about ongoing research projects and researchers.
C. Secondary sources such as review articles, journal articles and books.
Answer
B. is correct. It can be difficult to find this type of information as, usually, little is published at the early stages of research.
A. Books are the easiest to find. The information is older and more consolidated.
C. Secondary sources are also easy to find if you use relevant indexing databases or search several library catalogues.
Do you now know a little more about how information is born and matures? Good! Your prize is a free trip to Trek 12!
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