Secondary research (also known as desk research) involves the summary, collation and/or synthesis of existing research rather than primary research, where data is collected from, for example, research subjects or experiments.
The term is widely used in medical research, legal research, and in market research. The principal methodology in medical secondary research is the systematic review, commonly using meta-analytic statistical techniques, although other methods of synthesis, like realist reviews and meta-narrative reviews, have been developed in recent years. Such secondary research uses the primary research of others typically in the form of research publications and reports.
In a market research context, secondary research is taken to include the re-use by a second party of any data collected by a first party or parties.
In archaeology and landscape history, desk research is contrasted with fieldwork.
Sometimes secondary research is required in the preliminary stages of research to determine what is known already and what new data is required, or to inform research design. At other times, it may be the only research technique used.
A key performance area in secondary research is the full citation of original sources, usually in the form of a complete listing or annotated listing.
Secondary sources could include previous research reports, newspaper, magazine and journal content, and government and NGO statistics.
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