The phrase "primary sources" can have a couple of different meanings when it comes to research.
In history, it often means documents that contain the personal experiences and thoughts of people at a certain point in time. It can include official government documents such as the court records of a persons testimony, or someone's personal diaries. While the form of the item can be a clue, its important to remember that the key feature you are looking at is the contents. The creator of the item needs to have first-hand knowledge.
In the physical, social, and health sciences, the phrase "primary sources" generally refers to documented original research. This type of research is also called empirical research and is often found in peer-reviewed sources such as scholarly or academic journals focused on a particular discipline or area of research.
In most cases, primary sources are those that were created by someone who was there for the event being described. Legal sources are an exception. For help identifying primary and secondary legal sources, please visit the disciplinary page for legal studies.
Some of the SLCC Library's databases include tools and filters that can help you locate primary sources on your topic. Search suggestions for your discipline can be found on the discipline specific research guides
