Analyzing Information Sources
As you come across sources in your research, it's important to take some time to analyze and evaluate them.
Analyzing a source involves...
- knowing how to identify the parts of a book or article citation, or the elements of a web site address
- determining the level of the intended audience
- determining if it's a popular publication (written by journalists) or a scholarly journal (written by peers in the field)
- determining if it's a firsthand primary source (e.g. diary, autobiography), or a secondary source (e.g. written by a journalist or researcher)
Evaluating a source involves...
- looking for information about the credentials of the author
- determining if it's biased with an agenda to get across only one view
- checking if the information is current enough or has been updated recently
- understanding the domain of the web site
- checking if the information can be verfied in other sources
- determining if the information source addresses your research question
- examining a source's works it refers to in the text to determine credibility