There are many different strategies that can be used to evaluate sources.
Author/Creator
- Who created the content? Can you find out more information on them?
- What are the person or organization's qualifications? What is the affiliation with other groups or universities?
- Does the author have expertise in the area? What are their credentials?
- If it is a group or organization author, what is their mission? Their sources of funding or connections to other businesses?
- Who published the content? Are they an academic press, commercial, a professional organization?
Currency/Timeliness
- When was the information published or created? When was it last updated? Is a date available that indicates when the content was updated?
- Do you need historical information or current information?
- Are the references or linked citations current?
Relevance/Purpose
- Why was the information created? Does the content inform, sell, entertain, teach, or persuade?
- Is the information based on facts or opinions?
- Who is the intended audience? How relevant is the source to your topic?
Privilege & Bias
- Who are the marginalized voices in the subject area? Does a source reflect diverse perspectives?
- Who is missing from the conversation? Who is not represented?
- What privileges do the authors hold?
Accuracy & Quality
- Can the information be verified through other sources? Can you find other sources that corroborate the information?
- Overall quality of the source, where is the information coming from?
- Does the layout or table of contents follow a logical sequence?
- Are there advertisements or clickbates?
- Are there references or links to other sources? Are sources cited and how reliable or authoritative are those sources?
- Who collected and analyzed any data that is presented?
Actively seek other places to find scholarly research, including open access journals, scholarly websites or blogs, and other open sources. Evaluate your sources so you rely on and share high quality information.
