Secondary literature/secondary research/supporting research is an important part of the research process of a topic. Secondary research is any form of literature the condenses, synthesizes, or draws upon primary literature: this means this type of research summarizes and analyzes existing literature on a topic.
These sources provide a starting place for understanding a topic because they are easy to read and provide background information and they may be useful for identifying keywords, phrases, or concepts. When using secondary sources it is important to know that is that they are not necessarily peer-reviewed and that they include a second layer of interpretation of original data that may or may not be correct.
Examples of secondary research include books, review articles, magazine and newspaper articles, handbooks, and factsheets. While secondary literature might be published by reputable publishers, it is important to remember that they are an interpretation of original data and experiments.
