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Evaluating Information

In an era where answers are no longer black and white, critically thinking about your information sources is no longer an optional activity – it is ABSOLUTELY essential. Books, articles and web sites will present many different viewpoints. You must consider not only the purpose of the information, but also the context of your project. Use the following guidelines to determine if the book, article, or web site you’re considering is appropriate for your project. More details on evaluating websites.

Source

  • What can I discover about the journal or magazine that published this article?
  • Does the journal represent a certain point of view?

For example, if you were writing a paper on a current political topic, why might the information from an article in The Nation present radically different information than an article in The National Review? Take a look at their homepages and see what biases you can detect.

TIP! Look on the Web for the homepage of the journal from which your articles come. You can learn a lot about the personality of a source this way.

Context

  • Web sites are not all bad!
  • Scholarly articles are not all good!

TIP! Information is not inherently good or bad. You must consider the intent of the author of the information in relation to the context of your project. For example, you might want to use a holocaust denial site if you are researching holocaust denial. If you were researching the conditions of concentration camps, then you probably wouldn’t want to use the holocaust denial site as one of your sources.

Author

  • What can I find out about the author of the article or book?
  • What else has my author written?
  • What organizations is the author affiliated with? Is this important?

TIP! If the author is with an organization, consider what that means. And remember, non-profit does not mean bias-free.

Accuracy

  • If my article uses statistics and data, is it accurately reported?
  • Does the media report the data correctly?
  • Does my article cite numerous sources for support?

TIP! This can be hard to nail down. Sometimes a famous study will be talked about a lot on the web, both in support and against.

Point of View or Bias

  • What theories or beliefs can I uncover in this article or book?
  • What do people say about this book?
  • Does the article use inflammatory or emotional language?
  • Does the article use political language?
  • Did I remind myself that people can have incredibly different world views that influence what they write, without being technically right or wrong?

TIP! Use a database, such as Academic Search, to look for reviews on the books you’re using for your project. Reviews will often reveal the biases present in books.

Coverage

  • Does the author acknowledge what he/she left out?
  • Does it cover a limited region, time period or group of people?
  • Does it strive to be comprehensive or does it focus on a narrow aspect of a topic?

TIP! Look for a variety of articles to fill in all angles of a topic. One or two articles usually is not enough.

Timeliness

  • Does my topic demand current or older materials? Or a mix?
  • Will the currency of my topic affect my ability to find scholarly information?
  • Did I find the most recent research?

TIP! Sometimes the most current material is not available in books, try articles instead. If your topic is extremely current, news magazines and web sites may be your only choice.