"Grey literature" is a term used by scholars and librarians to refer to all the information that gets published outside of the formal avenues of journal articles and books (which are covered in other pages of this guide.) This is particularly important for political science research, as many experts in policy, law, development, and more work outside of academia in government or at think tanks, IGOs, and NGOs. These experts often do not publish in academic journals or write books but rather generate reports, whitepapers, policy memos, or a variety of forms of government document.
These types of sources can be as important (or more!) than formally published academic sources depending on your need. It is important to remember that these documents will usually not go through a peer review process and are not interchangeable with journal articles.
There are a variety of places you can look for these types of documents: see the box below.
