Before analyzing whether a source is primary or secondary, it is important to understand
the difference between two. In general, primary source refers to a work created during the
time period in study and provides the direct information about a work, person, or event. In
social studies numerical data that provides an insight of people, events, and
interconnections in between is also considered as a primary source. Secondary sources are,
in turn, reflect, evaluate, analyze, or process in other way a primary source data.
Information from the Wall Street Journal about the unemployment rate reflects on the
primary source, namely unemployment rate data, therefore it is a secondary source.
Information from a focus group of potential customers about a new online ordering system
is a piece of raw data that is yet to be analyzed, therefore is a primary source. Information
about an industry’s use of social media collected by following a blog summarizes the
original blog data, which makes it a secondary source. Information about salaries collected
from members of the listserv of a professional organization is not processed yet and should
be considered as primary source. Information about the
courtesy of the service staff gathered from a survey of the customers is the original survey
data, which means it is a primary source.
The executive summary presents condensed data of the full report. Since the readers do not
have access to the report itself, it is of utmost importance for the executive summary to be
self-contained. Since providing key facts and figures enables full understanding of the
conclusions drawn from them, it is crucial to include the most important data of primary
sources into the executive summary.
Works Cited
“Lafayette College Library.” Primary Sources: What Are They? N.p., n.d. Web. 11 June
2016.