how do you evaluate the credibility of a source

While a scientific study showed that Wikipedia is as accurate as professionally generated encyclopedias. An opinion-based source is not necessarily unreliable, but its important to know whether the author recognizes that their opinion is not the only opinion. Course ReservesLibrary materials reserved for your classes. Copyright 1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. Privacy policy. Open Educational Resources, or OERs, are materials that have been licensed for free use in educational settings. Primary sources are often considered the most credible in terms of providing evidence for your argument, as they give you direct evidence of what you are researching. If a source has a list of references, it often means that the source is well-researched and thorough. Revised on Credible sources are published in peer-reviewed journals, scholarly books with lists of references, or .gov websites. Advocacy or non-profit organizations end in .org. However, if you find information that you find useful, that information may be cited in a more reputable footnote. It can be especially challenging to verify the credibility of online sources. There are several factors that contribute to a source's credibility. One of the first steps in evaluating a source is to locate more information about the author. In order for a source to be included in a database, it usually must go through a screening process that requires individuals to verify the information in the text. Facts are objective, while opinions and propaganda are subjective. One way to do this is to look at paratextual material, or the parts of a work other than the text itself. PNAS Proceedings Of The National Academy Of Sciences Of The United States Of America 111.43 (2014): 15316-15321. Evaluating Primary Sources It is important to examine primary sources with a critical eye since they represent unfiltered records of the past. Is a source of funding disclosed? The domain extension can help you understand what type of website youre dealing with. As you examine each source, it is important to evaluate each source to determine the quality of the information provided within it. Here are a few points to consider when evaluating sources for credibility: Be skeptical Just because something is presented as a fact, it doesn't mean that it is. Before you evaluate your source, you need to first evaluate the purpose of your research. Is the language objective or emotional? A credible source should pass the CRAAP testand follow these guidelines: Peer review is a process of evaluating submissions to an academic journal. Note also that the difference between an opinion and propaganda is that propaganda usually has a specific agenda attachedthat is, the information in the propaganda is being spread for a certain reason or to accomplish a certain goal. Both National Geographicand TEDuse .com domain extension, despite the fact that theyre large organizations. Rather than taking these figures at face value, you decide to determine the accuracy of the sources claims by cross-checking them with official statistics such as census reports and figures compiled by the Department of Homeland Securitys Office of Immigration Statistics. Coverage (relevance): Consider whether the source is relevant to your research and whether it covers the topic adequately for your . These sections usually provide information about who the author is and what sort of . Petersen, Alexander Michael, et al. what a sources motive is. Who are the intended readers and what is the publication's purpose? Relevance. Evaluating InformationLearn how to choose the best and most reliable information that meets your research needs. Of course, there is no such link. It can be very unclear (often by design!) Was the source published on-line? Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use. Begin by reading the Introduction or the PrefaceWhat does the author want to accomplish? How can you tell if a source is credible? These sites may include lecture materials and interpretation of sources. Verify the information you already know against the information found in the source. Evaluating source credibility is an important information literacy skill. Evaluate sources of information by examining them for authority, accuracy, objectivity, currency, and coverage. There are no glaring grammatical or orthographic errors. Does the source provide original information (primary), or does it summarize information from other sources (secondary)? This is not necessarily bad, but it will depend on who published it, why it was published, and how you intend to use the material. There are several main criteria for determining whether a source is reliable or not. For example, a journal article discussing the efficacy of a particular medication may seem credible, but if the publisher is the manufacturer of the medication, you cant be sure that it is free from bias. Evaluating Sources for Credibility - YouTube 0:00 / 3:14 Evaluating Sources for Credibility libncsu 4.88K subscribers Subscribe 1.9K Share Save 739K views 7 years ago What does it mean for a. How does the source engage with them? Use preliminary evaluation to determine whether a source is worth examining in more depth. A database is a large collection of data, usually about one specific topic or idea. To evaluate a source, ask yourself a series of questions that address Currency, Relevance, Authority, Accuracy, and Purpose (aka CRAAP questions!). I have checked that it is supported by evidence and/or verifiable elsewhere. Always make sure to properly cite your sources to avoid plagiarism. When evaluating a personal website, find out what you can about the author and their affiliations. The author and publication should be a trusted authority on the subject you are researching. Web. When you are determining the credibility of the author of a book, you will first check the book in the following places: Author's note (if there is one), Foreword and/or Introduction (if there is one), and the About the Author (often found on the back cover). If you need some guidance on finding good sources, set up a, Evaluating the Credibility of Your Sources, Academic Integrity Best Practices for Faculty, research consultation with Columbia Libraries. For each criterion, there are several questions to be asked. Finally, look at the date of publication to make sure the information is still valid. The ability to navigate and evaluate digital resources is essential to both educators and students. Copyright 1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. Your resources need to be recent enough for your topic. Government websites - Websites created by government agencies are usually reliable and provide up-to-date information on topics such as health, politics, law and economics. Any resourceprint, human, or electronicused to support your research topic must be evaluated for its credibility and reliability. It can also involve the selective reporting of true information in order to deceive an audience. Approved. Useful approaches include the CRAAP test and lateral reading. In general, while you will probably not use a lot of social media in your research, if you do, try to locate the people or groups behind the usernames. Here are five ways to help you identify a reliable source: 1. Published on This test is used to evaluate sources of information and determine their credibility. For example, if you were to search How to change a flat tire in a search engine, you would most likely get how-to videos and pages, rather than someone selling their car on Craigslist, because the algorithm sorts the webpages based on the keywords you input. 2) Authority. If you have never heard of the source, you probably should do some research to learn about it. Like other encyclopedias, Wikipedia can provide valuable information about certain topics. The peer review process evaluates submissions to academic journals. The author's level of expertise on the topic he or she is writing about could take the form of an advanced degree or other extensive experience in the field. A private individual does not have the credibility needed for academic work; however, a large, established organization like the American Medical Association or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention do. However, unlike encyclopedias, Wikipedia pages can be edited by anyone, which means that sometimes the information stated is not reliable and is edited for the sake of making a joke (see example below). With so much advertising, controversy, and blogging going on, how do you sift through the chaff and cut to the chase? A credible source is free from bias and backed up with evidence. by Does the information come from an author or organization that has authority to speak on your topic? However, if you are examining an historical event, you may want to find primary documents from the time of the event, thus requiring older sources. Understanding which articles are clickbait helps you evaluate your sources for credibility. Why is it important to use these sources? It is more appropriate to compare something to an objective standard than to label it with words that represent abstract concepts for example, "these and other illegal acts" is preferable to "these and other despicable acts". An opinion gives the thoughts of a particular individual or group. However, they are written to entertain a lay audience, not to inform a scholarly audience. The materials collected here do not express the views of, or positions held by, Purdue University. Determine whether a source is worth examining in more depth, Increase the quality of the information you consume. Most sources will use a mix of primary and secondary sources to form an argument. Purdue OWL is a registered trademark. The last example above uses facts in a bad-faith way to take advantage of the audience's fear. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. If a source does not pass the above guidelines, it does not mean that the information contained within is false. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/b\/b3\/Evaluate-the-Credibility-of-a-Source-Step-1-Version-2.jpg\/v4-460px-Evaluate-the-Credibility-of-a-Source-Step-1-Version-2.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/b\/b3\/Evaluate-the-Credibility-of-a-Source-Step-1-Version-2.jpg\/aid368290-v4-728px-Evaluate-the-Credibility-of-a-Source-Step-1-Version-2.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":546,"licensing":"