Primary vs Secondary
What is a primary source?
Primary sources are the original unprocessed material on which other research is based, hence, they have not been evaluated or interpreted.
Differentiate between reliability and validity.
Reliability deals with the authority of a research. So the main question at stake is whether the source can provide the information presented. If it is so, the source is reliable, if not the source is said to be unreliable. On the other hand, validity deals with whether the information presented by the source is true. This is not dependent on its reliability, so for instance a source could be reliable but not valid, it could also be valid but not reliable.
What is research?
Research is the organised and systematic method of finding answers to questions.
What is a secondary source?
Unlike primary sources, secondary sources are primary sources after they have been examined, analyzed, and interpreted and even summarized.
What are the criteria for assessing reliability?
Author, Professional Standards, Publisher, Organization of Institution, Research Method
“War in the Middle East is ending tomorrow!- New information obtained from Middle East influencers”
Abraham Constantine (British Comedian), Published by: The Onion
-----------------------------------------------------------
Abigail wants to research the Middle East for her History SBA but is unsure of whether the source is reliable or not. Is the source reliable?
No it violates the following criteria: Author, Professional Standards, Publisher, Organization, Research Methods
Dujon goes out to interview his community on race relations between blacks and whites. He recorded the results and published a journal with said results. Christopher wants to cite the document for his Comm Studies SBA but doesn’t know whether it’s a primary or secondary source. Is the document a primary or secondary source?
It is a primary source.
What are the criteria for assessing validity?
The two criteria when assessing validity are accuracy and bias. Accuracy deals with Currency, Relevance, Sample size and replicability. Bias deals with representation, cultural bias, social bias, political bias, Faulty research methods and the aim of the source presenting the data.
“Crime has gone up by 40% in America due to Opiods, New investigation found after look at Chicago crime records”
John Lester(Right-wing commentator), 1943
-----------------------------------------------------------
Temujin wants to research the growth of crime and violence in rural areas of Jamaica over the past 10 years however he doesn’t know whether this source is valid for his research or not. Is the source valid?
No, it is not valid it violates the following criteria: Currency, Relevance, Political bias, Representation
Arianna-Lauren creates a review paper of 53 research papers on nanotechnology. She summarizes the findings, evaluates the validity of the research and draws comparisons. Javia wants to cite this source for her Communication Studies SBA but she doesn’t know if the paper is a primary or secondary source. Is the review paper a primary or secondary source?
It is a secondary source.
Akeelia is researching Tiktok’s information gathering policies and whether or not they are intrusive for her Computer Science SBA, however she is unsure about whether or not the source is appropriate to use. Is the source appropriate to use?
NO, unreliable and not valid based on CRAAP test- Currency, Relevance, Authority, Accuracy and Purpose
“ HMPV is more deadly than SARS-CoV2, new research finds!”
Brian Thompson (Infectiologist at John Hopkins Hospital), Published: WHO(World Health Organisation), January 19, 2025
-----------------------------------------------------------
Elisa-Shaunne is doing research for her Biology SBA about the new virus HMPV. However she is unsure of whether her source is reliable or not. Is the source reliable?
Yes is reliable due to following the criteria Author, Professional Standards, Publisher, Organization, Research Methods