Types of Scientific Articles
Primary Literature
Secondary Literature
Peer Review
When psychologists talk about "searching the literature" or "conducting a literature review " they
are generally referring to primary literature. Primary literature in the sciences and social sciences contains
the original research results that were obtained from a group of research participants or subjects and reported by the researchers themselves.
The primary literature may be published in the form of conference papers, dissertations, journal articles, or patents. Before research results are published in a scientific journal, however, they must pass a rigorous review process by other experts in the field, called peer review.
