Sources for Research Paper

Research papers require students to gather multiple sources on a single topic and synthesize and analyze those sources in order to draw conclusions about that topic. There are a variety of possible sources for research paper material; however, not all sources are equally valid to the academic community. Sources for research papers must be scholarly. This is how they differ from other information sources. A scholarly source is an academic source that is peer-reviewed. This means that experts in the field in which the source was written have read and assessed the validity of the source and determined it to be qualified for publication.

Sources for research papers are primarily found in university libraries. They are not, however, limited to books. Scholarly books are excellent resources, and often provide in-depth information. Aside from books, however, university libraries have access to vast amounts of information via scholarly online databases. These databases hold electronic versions of journal articles, research studies, and reference volumes that can be efficiently searched by keywords and subjects. Frequently, journal articles found on these databases are very up-to-date; therefore, students can often find recent research on their topics. In addition, scholarly online reference works can often point students to the most authoritative materials available on their topics. For instance, some online reference works are bibliographies. A bibliography is an extensive list of available sources on a certain subject. Bibliographies are invaluable sources for research papers because they can point students to the exact titles of relevant information on their topics.

Students are often comfortable with searching the internet, and therefore frequently turn to websites as sources for research paper information. Though there are many valuable and informative websites, students should be wary of accepting all information on the internet as valid. Most websites are not authoritative, and fewer are peer-reviewed. In order to assess the validity of websites as sources for research paper material, students must discover the publisher of the website. If the publisher is a university, major academic or informative institution (such as a national medical organization), or the government (these sites will all have .gov addresses), the sites are likely accurate and authoritative. Most personal websites are not authoritative sources unless the topic of the research paper is the person who runs the site.

One of the best sources for research paper materials and assistance is a reference librarian. A reference librarian is an individual with advanced degrees in library science who knows more about how to find and obtain information than most people ever will. Most universities are staffed with at least one reference librarian. Starting research by consulting a reference librarian will always be a great assistance.

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