There are 3 types of resources used for research - primary, secondary, and tertiary sources.
Primary sources are original materials on which other research is based, including original written works (poems, diaries, court records, interviews, surveys, and original research or field work, and research published in scholarly/academic journals.
Secondary sources are those that describe or analyze primary sources, including reference materials and books and articles that interpret, review, or synthesize original research or fieldwork.
Tertiary sources are those used to organize and locate secondary and primary sources. These include indexes, abstracts, databases, etc.
Relevance - How is this information relevant to your assignment?
Authority - Who is the author? What makes this person or organization an authoritative source?
Date - When was this information published and is the publication date important to you?
Accuracy - Where are they getting their information from? Does it have citations and references? Are they using reputable sources or explaining how they gathered their data?
Reason for writing - Why did the author publish this information?
The following video will provide you of a quick overview of how to search databases. The tips shown may be used when searching the TTU Libraries' OneSearch (catalog) as well.
Here are some additional guides to help you with searching for resources at TTU Libraries.
Thinking Tool
Use the Thinking Tool to help you narrow down your topics and come up with search terms!