FAQ: How old should or can a source be for my research?

How old can my source be?

How old your research sources can be, using the publication date or date of creation as the defining criteria, is either stated in your assignment rubric or depends on your field of study or academic discipline. If it is a requirement for your assignment, look for words like “sources must be published in the last 5 years” or something similar that specify the publication date or range required.

If the currency of sources is not a requirement of your assignment, think about the course involved and what an appropriate age might be. How fast-changing is the field of study?

Sources for a history paper might, by their very nature, be older if they are diaries, personal letters, or other documents created long ago and used as primary sources. Sources used for research in the sciences (health care, nursing, engineering), business and finance, and education and other social science fields require more “cutting edge” research, as these fields change quickly with the acquisition of new knowledge and the need to share it rapidly with practitioners in those fields.

A good rule of thumb is to use sources published in the past 5 years for research in the arts, humanities, literature, history, etc.

For faster-paced fields, look for sources published in the past 2-3 years. This is a good benchmark since these sources are more current and reflect the newest discoveries, theories, processes, or best practices.

How do I limit my search results by publication date?

You can use the library’s Multi-Search to limit your sources to those published within a date range you specify. On your search results page, look under the search box for the "All time" filter. This will give you the option to narrow your results to the most recent 12 months or the most recent 5 years.

If you want to customize a publication date range, go to the "All filters" button under the search box. This will bring up all of the filter options in a menu on the right side of your page. Click on the "Published Date" option to expand the section, and then click the radio button for "Custom range." Fill in your desired publication date range and click the "Apply" button.

For further assistance with this or other search techniques, contact the Shapiro Library email at ask@snhu.libanswers.com or use our 24/7 chat service.