This section is devoted to different types of sources. Your information need and purpose will influence what types of information sources you seek. When doing academic research, you may be required to use scholarly sources or longform journalism. Visual and AI-generated sources may require specialized criteria to evaluate. Fake news and misinformation are also particular types of information that are commonly found online and require special consideration.
Scholarly articles (sometimes called "scientific" or "academic" articles) are written about new, original research or present new, original analyses, written by researchers or scholars. The main criterion that defines a scholarly article is peer review, which is the process by which an article is evaluated and accepted by a scholarly publication. It is called "peer" review because the both the author(s) of the article and the reviewers are experts in the subject area. Peer review is a long and intensive process. Authors are almost always required to revise their work even if it is accepted, and it can take months to a year from submission date to publication. This rigorous review helps ensure that scholarly articles are reliable and credible. Scholarly publications are often referred to as "journals" and are typically published at quarterly intervals due to the time demands of the peer review process. You can often see this reflected in their titles: Journal of Global Entrepreneurship Research, Business and Professional Communication Quarterly, etc.
Review the resources below to learn more about scholarly articles and how to identify them.
This short video from Wayne State University Libraries demonstrates how to spot some of the differences between these two types of articles.
| Scholarly | Popular | |
|---|---|---|
| Authors | Researchers, scholars | Journalists, general public, specialists |
| Audience | Researchers, scholars, subject professionals, students | General public |
| Publishers | Scholarly journals, university presses | Magazines, newspapers, websites |
| Purpose | Report original research or new analyses of previous research, educate | Inform, entertain, persuade, sell |
| Language | Specific/expert-level or technical vocabulary, formal and objective tone, reference citations | More basic vocabulary, less formal and sometimes emotional tone, rare use of references or citations (though may report on scholarly research) |
| Structure | Long/descriptive titles, extensive length, structured sections (often including abstract, introduction, literature review, methods, results/data analysis, discussion, references) | Eye-catching and brief titles, shorter length (though may vary) |
| Visuals | Charts, diagrams, data tables, black & white | Photos, illustrations, glossy paper, use of color |
| Time to Create and Publish | Months to years | Hours to weeks |
This interactive graphic from NCSU Libraries illustrates the different sections typically found in scholarly articles.
You can find scholarly articles using library resources. Academic libraries purchase subscriptions to scholarly publications in order for for students and faculty to be able to access research. These resources are often databases that are collections of many scholarly publications; for example, EBSCO's Academic Search Premier database includes thousands of journals (see the graphic below for a simplified illustration of the relationship between articles, publications, and databases). Make sure to access databases and articles through library webpages so that you are under the library's subscription. If you are ever asked to pay to access an article, go back to a library webpage or ask a librarian for help (you can always email us at research@babson.edu)!
A good place to start is the Power Search bar on the library homepage. Limit your results to "Scholarly & Peer reviewed" using the filters on the left-hand side of the results page. You can also select a specific library database based on your topic and will typically find similar filters for peer review (some examples are included below).
Having trouble finding articles that are relevant to your topic? For advanced tips, read this short resource on search strategies from the Ohio State University Libraries. You can also make an appointment to meet with a Babson librarian for help!
When discussing sources, the terms "primary" and "secondary" are used to describe the creator's relationship to the content in terms of time and sources. A primary source is one that is created at the time of the events described, i.e., "first-hand information" that is directly observed or experienced by the creator. Texts such as newspapers, letters, speeches, annual reports, financial statements, diaries/memoirs, photographs, and audio/video recordings are all classified as primary sources. The results of original research, such as scientific experiments, would also be considered primary. Secondary sources are one degree removed from the original content or event: They written after the fact, often summarizing, interpreting, or analyzing one or more primary sources. Biographies, historical reviews, scholarly articles, analyst reports, and books are usually classified as secondary sources. Sources that use secondary materials as sources, such as encyclopedias or textbooks, are referred to as tertiary sources, being a further degree removed from the original content or event.
The graphic below demonstrates the primary-secondary-tertiary relationship between A) a newspaper article written in 1963 about the assassination of JFK, B) A biography of JFK that may discuss the newspaper article, and C) an encyclopedia entry that may use both A and B (and other documents) as sources.
The different types of sources provide different perspectives or understandings of an event or topic. Primary sources are firsthand, so they reflect direct observations; however, this means they have the potential bias and limited viewpoint of an individual's perception or interpretation. Secondary sources are once removed from the situation, so they may include inaccuracies; however, this means they have the benefit of time and analysis to provide context and deepen understanding. If you need direct evidence or a historical viewpoint on something, primary sources are probably the right choice. If you need background information, the broader context of a situation, or the scholarly discourse on a topic, secondary sources are probably the right choice. In some circumstances, you'll want to use both types of sources in order to investigate multiple aspects of a topic, for example, discussing scholars' opinions on a historical event and including an analysis of a primary source from the time as an illustrative example.
Primary research is new, original research, such as experiments, surveys, focus groups, or interviews. Secondary research uses primary research as sources, potentially combining data from different primary research sources. Industry and market reports can be considered primary research if the data was collected "in house" by the publishing organization, but are more often secondary or tertiary research, as they synthesize data from multiple external sources. When you write an academic paper or a business analysis, you are typically conducting secondary (or even tertiary!) research as you search for data or articles to support your arguments and conclusions.
Interested in learning more about primary research? Check out the Methods 101 video series from the Pew Research Center, a nonpartisan organization that conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, content analysis and other data-driven social science research.
Longform journalism consists of substantive articles, usually more than 1000 words in length, that go further in depth than standard newspaper or magazine articles. The research, investigation, and writing of these types of articles will take longer than is afforded in the modern 24/7 news cycle (typically months). Therefore, they are published sparingly in traditional news sources, more often appearing in dedicated publications such as the examples below.
The periodicals below are some recommended sources of longform journalism, though not every article that appears within them is longform. The links connect to Babson's subscriptions to these publications; log in with your Babson credentials to access them. To search for other periodicals (e.g., journals, magazines, trade publications) available through the library, use our eJournal Finder tool.
Review the following screenshots for help navigating the eJournal Finder tool and databases where longform journalism articles can be accessed.
As a different medium, visual texts include elements not present in writing. The video below from the Purdue OWL discusses a few elements for analyzing (or creating) visual media in terms of form (like color and arrangement) and rhetoric (purpose/message).
Visual media can be used to influence or mislead viewers when manipulated outside of its original context. The following links focus on verifying the origin of images in order to identify their source and/or evaluate the veracity of the claims they support.
See also the Fake News & Misinformation tab on this page for more about this topic.
It can be tempting to use AI as a quick and convenient way to find information. However, there are many concerns that should be considered before using information generated by AI.
Review the resources below to learn more.
Source: Saskia Kusnecov, CC-BY, 2024
If none of these concerns apply in your implementation of AI, then it might be an appropriate use! For example, some common low-stakes uses of generative AI including brainstorming, organizing ideas, editing for grammar or tone, and discovering background information on a topic.
According to PEN America's (2017) definition, fake news is "demonstrably false information that is being presented as a factual news report with the intention to deceive the public." They further divide fake news into four categories: for profit, for political motive, government-sponsored, and conspiracy theories; consider these categories as you try to determine whether information is legitimate. The proliferation of fake news is a pressing contemporary concern, as "the spread of disinformation pose[s] a fundamental threat to the quality of our public discourse and to our political system, sound policy outcomes, and national cohesion" (PEN America, 2017, p. 4).
Review the image below for some steps you can follow to identify fake news. Several of these steps align with criteria from the general SIFT, CRAAP, and RADAR techniques for evaluating sources, but with a specific eye toward identifying misinformation and/or disinformation.
See also the "Images and Fake News" section of the Visual Sources tab on this page for more about this topic.
