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Research Help: Step 3: Evaluating Information

Tips for researching effectively at your library.

Why?

When doing research, it's important to find information that is accurate, reliable, and appropriate for your assignment.  No matter the type of source you should always evaluate the information before you use it.

Knowing how to evaluate information can help you not only with your research assignments but also with larger life decisions.  Knowing how to find accurate and relevant information can help you make decisions about graduate school, car loans, your health and more.

What to look for

In evaluating information sources, there are always certain things to look for:

  • Who? Authority
    • Who wrote this?  What are his/her credentials?
    • Where is it published?
  • What? Accuracy
    • Do they cite their sources?
    • How does it compare to other sources on the same topic?
  • When? Currency
    • Was it written around the time the topic occurred?
    • Has it been updated?
  • Why? Point of view/Purpose
    • Is there bias?
    • Are they trying to sell you something?
  • Where?
    • Where is this published?  Are they reliable?
  • Relevance
    • Does it meet your information need?

Worksheet

Use this worksheet to help you discover information about the websites you use in your research.

Lateral Reading

Lateral reading is what professional fact-checkers do to determine whether a source is credible or not.  Instead of diving right into the source, it's about seeing what others have to say about that site/source. Check out this video to learn more.

Fake News/Hoaxes

There is a long history of using misinformation, especially in times of war, to further agendas.  This type of information used to be spread by pamphlets, leaflets, and word of mouth.  Nowadays, the Internet has created numerous ways for this information to spread.  The good news is that there are ways to discover whether that image is accurate and those facts are true.

Use our Fake News/Disinformation Research Guide to learn those techniques.