Information may be categorized as primary, secondary, or tertiary depending on where it appears in the publication cycle. A graphical representation of the publication cycle will help explain the concepts.
In a university or research setting, it is often expected that the information you use to support your writing comes from scholarly literature, and not from popular magazines. What are the main differences between the two types of publications? How do you know if an article is scholarly or popular? Is it ever acceptable to use information in popular magazines for your essay?
Many scholarly publications go through a peer review process before they can be published. What is peer review? Check the tutorial video: The Peer Review Process. Consult Ulrich's Periodical Directory to identify scholarly journals.
