Integrating Sources

Many assignments of varying types require a minimum number of sources to be included to back up claims being made. While having to use sources isn’t uncommon, figuring out the different source types, knowing how to include them throughout your work, and figuring out where to look for them can be a challenge. This resource will serve as a guide to break down the different kinds of sources you may see, potential places to look, what to do when you choose your sources, and how to work them into your writing.

Types of Sources

You may be familiar with the terms popular source, scholarly source, trade source and so on, but do you really know what they mean in terms of research? While the source types differ in many ways, each can be beneficial depending on the intended use. Some professors specify that they only want one source type included, or maybe that they want a minimum amount of one specific source type so make sure to look at your assignment guidelines when determining what types to use. Some are easier to find than others, but they may not be the right fit for your assignment.

Scholarly Sources

Scholarly sources are written by an expert in the field and have been peer reviewed which means that they are credible and have gone through multiple channels to be published. If you’re ever unsure if a source is scholarly, check to see if it’s been peer reviewed and if it was written by an expert in the field. Peer reviewed means that the work has been looked over by one or more other experts in the field before being published to ensure quality work. You can tell if something has been peer reviewed by looking at the publishing information within the journal itself. It may plainly say that is has been peer reviewed, or perhaps show the needed qualifications to get to publication, such as “to submit articles, send three copies…”. Depending on where you’re looking, it would also be helpful to use settings to only look for peer reviewed sources as another way to narrow your search. Research is typically presented within these sources and they go in-depth on a very specific topic. Scholarly sources can be articles within a journal or review, but the articles are typically part of a larger piece of work. With that being said, these sources do tend to be lengthy since they convey a lot of detail on a matter. The language used within these sources are field specific and complex because the intended audience is other experts, or others just interested in the field. You won’t find many advertisements in the pages, but there may be some detailed graphs or tables as supporting points. Since these articles are checked over, credible, and specific to a topic, they are great to use when carrying out in-depth research assignments. Some examples of popular journals include American Journal of Sociology, Nursing Science Quarterly, Journal of the American Medical Association, and so on.

Scholarly books vs popular books can be tricky to distinguish between but keep some of those previously mentioned principals in mind when it comes to scholarly sources. Scholarly books focus on research within their discipline among professionals. They are also published by academic or university presses and written by an expert in the field. Popular books may be well written and informative, but they will not be peer reviewed and tend to entertain or tell more of a story. The topic may be explained in a broader sense with less specific details. These are published by commercial publishers and can be written by featured authors or journalists.

Popular Sources

Popular sources are another common source type you may come across. These are typically more geared toward entertainment compared to scholarly sources. Popular sources can also inform and persuade, but they are not specific to one industry. These sources may not be as credible, but they do touch on popular subjects and can be very relevant to current events. Popular sources may contain a lot of colors and pictures to highlight articles and the use of language is very simple and not complex. There are also a lot of advertisements throughout sections. These sources may be good to use when writing about current events or when trying to persuade your audience… It is important to keep in mind the lack of credibility that can exist within articles here.

Trade Sources

Similar to popular sources, trade sources are geared to a broad audience. The main difference between popular and trade sources, though, is that trade sources tend to be within a specific industry. Because they are more industry specific, the language used is both simple and complex. Advertisements do occur within trade journals, but they are geared toward the specific industry. The author of these may have some knowledge and be credible, but they are not reviewed as intensely as scholarly sources and therefore are also not as credible overall. This isn’t to say that they are never credible, just that scholarly sources are the most credible. These can be useful when writing about industry specific current events or as supporting arguments in a research paper.

Credibility

As the different source types are described above, the areas about credibility are important to pay attention to. Credibility is how trustworthy or reputable a source, person, or thing is. This is a really important element in many cases because if you are using outside information to back up a claim, it is probable that you want that outside information to be trustworthy. In some assignments this might not be a huge requirement and it may not be a big deal, but verifying information about the author(s) of a source isn’t a bad idea. Scholarly sources are recommended a lot simply because the peer reviewed element of them prove that they have been thoroughly checked out, also these types of articles are generally written by experts in the field which lends to the credibility. This isn’t to say that popular and trade sources are never credible and should be avoided, it is just important to understand credibility and its overall importance.

How Old is your Source?

As we all know, we live in an ever-changing world full of new developments and expansion. With that being said, information changes all the time. Some professors ask to use outside information from the past five years, some go even further than that and ask the sources to be from the past six months. This may seem like an odd request at times, and it may also seem like it limits your search, but the reason for this speaks to the fact that information changes. One day we can read an article with hundreds of supporting facts proving that a new invention is correct and there is no denying it and then the next week can come around where someone factually disproves the whole thing; we never know what is going to happen. While only being able to search within a certain date range can seem tasking, so many people devote all their time to research and writing so you should almost always be able to find sources that are more current and more relevant. If you absolutely cannot, then explain your concerns to your professor and they will probably be happy to help you look, or at least give suggestions to help you out.

Where to Look for Sources

Finding potential sources can be a very daunting task because there are many databases, articles, websites, and so on out there that you could potentially pull from. The first thing to do is figure out what kind of source is best to include in your particular work. Sometimes this is specified by your professor so check your assignment guidelines and rubric but sometimes you have free reign to incorporate whatever you feel is necessary. If you feel unsure about the different types, please refer back to the previous section that goes over these.

Joyner Database

ECU offers databases that can be extremely helpful during research. To access them you do need to be an ECU student with valid login information. This resource is really great because it is free for students and easy to use once you get the hang of it. You can search through the thousands of resources by subject or type and specify exactly what you’re looking for. While many databases exist within this resource, some are better for specific majors than others. If you’re unsure of where to start, ProQuest Search tends to be a great option where you can find a range of information, same thing goes for JSTOR as it supports multiple fields. When trying to locate the correct database for you, the best thing to do is type in names or keywords into the search bar. The search bar does not work in the same way as it would on Google or other search engines though, meaning that you can’t just type in a question or entire statement. This is why keywords are great because they can pull up a number of related resources that you can then search through and narrow down. Another great feature of this is the “Ask a librarian” tab on the top menu options. This is a great feature because you can ask any questions you may have about how to find something by scheduling an online chat.

You can also go into Joyner Library in person if you are around the area because they offer an immense amount of books with really great information. If you do this, a librarian can help out while you’re there to look for any specific resources you may have in mind.

Searching the web

Search engines tend to be a popular place people go to look for outside information to include in a project. While this is a fine way to go, engines like Google provide an overwhelming amount of choices for every search and sometimes what is displayed is not relevant. In order to help yourself out and narrow down the results, there are certain tricks that can be applied in your search:

Reviewing and Annotating Potential Sources

Once you have found a few sources you would like to incorporate, consider reviewing them to ensure they are a good overall fit for your assignment. It is easy to come across a source and just read the title; researching all day can be exhausting after all. However, thoroughly going through your source to ensure it aligns with your overall focus is the best thing to do. Here you can find a few tips to help review your source.

Before you begin annotating to choose content to include, review the source information to double check it is what you want to use:

Read the preface, this will give you an overview of what the author is trying to accomplish
Look at the table of contents as this will show you what elements the piece consists of
Consider whether the piece is fact or opinion
Check the date of the source and make sure it is in an allowable range based on professor requirements
See if the author used outside evidence to support points and, if so, are those sources credible
Credibility

As the different source types are described earlier on, the areas about credibility is important to pay attention to. Credibility is how trustworthy or reputable a source, person, or thing is. This is a really important element in many cases because if you are using outside information to back up a claim, it is probable that you want that outside information to be trustworthy. In some assignments, this might not be a huge requirement and it may not be a big deal, but verifying information about the author(s) of a source isn’t a bad idea. Scholarly sources are recommended a lot simply because the peer reviewed element of them prove that they have been thoroughly checked out. Also, these types of articles are generally written by experts in the field which lends to the credibility. This isn’t to say that popular and trade sources are never credible and should be avoided, but it is just important to understand credibility and its overall importance.

How Old is your Source?

As we all know, we live in an ever-changing world full of new developments and expansion. With that being said, information changes all the time. Some professors ask to use outside information from the past five years, and some go even further than that and ask the sources to be from the past six months. This may seem like an odd request at times, and it may also seem like it limits your search, but the reason for this speaks to the fact that information changes. For example, one day we can read an article with hundreds of supporting facts proving that a new invention is correct and there is no denying it. After keeping this in mind, the next week can come around where someone factually disproves the whole thing; we never know what is going to happen. The sciences can be a little bit stricter when following the ages of a source because so much is constantly being developed in those fields. Not all professors will explicitly say your article has to be from a certain date range, but keeping in mind the field you are working in is important to ensure accuracy. While only being able to search within a certain date range can seem taxing, so many people devote all their time to research and writing, so you should almost always be able to find sources that are more current and more relevant. If you absolutely cannot, then explain your concerns to your professor and they will probably be happy to help you look, or at least give suggestions to help you out.

Annotating

The act of annotating is essentially adding notes or comments around text in order to further break it down and understand it more. This is important to research because going through and annotating sources forces you to go through each piece and actively engage while reading. You don’t want to just summarize what is being said, but instead analyze it for a deeper meaning.

If you are doing this on printed material (make sure they are copies and do not write on someone else’s property without permission) using different colored highlights, pens, and ways to color code can be beneficial. As you annotate, you may have different categories you want to put information in and using color helps differentiate. There is no right or wrong way to go through this process; it is just important that you find something that works for you. You can circle key words, highlight phrases that stand out, draw arrows to connecting ideas, ask questions beside lines you want to further explore, and so on. Some people go line by line while others break things down by paragraphs. It may take some time to get the hang of it, but once you do you will realize how much annotating can open your eyes to what you can really find within writing; maybe it will even inspire you in your own writing.

Putting in the Source Information

Once you have determined the sources and parts you want to use, it is time to figure out how to include them in your assignment. Knowing the difference between paraphrasing and directly quoting are really important in this step. While both have their advantages, paraphrasing really allows your own voice to shine through in the writing. This is still source information being used so a citation is always needed, but it is using the source information in your own words. It is important to note that only changing a word or two isn’t paraphrasing. This is where annotating really helps out because you are taking a deeper understanding of source information and laying it out in your own assignment in your own words, even though it is still from a source.

For more information on paraphrasing, directly quoting, and how to include the actual citations, please view our citation guide.

References

Driscoll, D., & Brizee, A. (2010, April 17). Evaluation during reading. OWL. https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/conducting_research/evaluating_sources_of_information/general_guidelines.html

Hunter College. (n.d.). The writing process. https://www.chino.k12.ca.us/site/handlers/filedownload.ashx?moduleinstanceid=34965&dataid=72719&FileName=Annotation%20Guidelines.pdf

Hypothes.is. (n.d.). Annotation tips for students. https://web.hypothes.is/annotation-tips-for-students/

USC Libraries. (n.d.). Research guides. https://libguides.usc.edu/writingguide/scholarly#:~:text=Scholarly%20sources%20%2D%2D%20intended%20for,and%20extensive%20references%20to%20sources.&text=Popular%20sources%20range%20from%20research,interest%2C%20agenda%2Ddriven%20publications