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Librarian Presentation - Amy An

1. Are my sources good quality (authoritative)?

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Read sources critically to determine if they are reliable and match the quality you need. See the tabs for information about evaluating: journal articles, websites, & news sources.

ACRL Standard #3: The information-literate student evaluates information and its sources critically (Frame # 1: Authority is Created and Contextual).

Information location and production time: internet and in library databases (see the document below for more details).

 

What can I do to check the quality of my sources?

Try one of these options:

  1. Ask a librarian! They can help you check your sources to see if they match the assignment criteria.
  2. Try the 5Ws test. Assess the article/information by asking yourself: who, what, when, where, and why?
  3. Try the SIFT Method. Stop, Investigate the source, Find better coverage, Trace info to the source.
  4. Try the SMART check. Who or what is the SOURCE? What is their MOTIVE? Who is the AUTHOR, and what are their credentials? REVIEW the information, does anything sound untrue? TWO-SOURCE TEST, how does the information compare to other sources?

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Scholarly and peer-reviewed sources have already been reviewed for quality but be sure you know how they are defined.

Venn diagram of scholarly and peer-reviewed sources; the smaller circle for peer-reviewed sources fits inside the larger scholarly sources circle. See the text below for more details

1. Scholarly 

"Scholarly" sources are written by a subject matter expert (SME) for an audience of other experts, researchers, or students. They are: 

  • Written by SMEs, often with advanced degrees, who work at universities or similar organizations
  • Intended for an audience of other scholars and students - that means they assume you already know the jargon and the articles are technical and difficult to understand
  • Usually, original research that contain charts, tables, and graphs
  • Meant to inform, tend to be lengthy and formal
  • Well-documented, they cite other sources extensively throughout the work and include a lengthy list of references 
  • Usually include formal sections like an abstract, literature review, methods, discussion, and conclusion
  • Most often found in library databases

2. Peer-reviewed

"Peer-reviewed" articles are scholarly articles that have undergone a review process by other experts in the field before being accepted (or rejected) for publication in a scholarly journal. The goal of this process is to ensure that only articles of a certain level of quality are published. 

 

Note: These sources are NOT the best place to find background information. They show how one specific study or experiment contributes one small piece of information to help us better understand the larger question or topic. They are highly technical, difficult to understand, and assume you already know the jargon of the field.

 

 

Types of Articles: Scholarly, Trade, Popular
  Scholarly Articles Trade Articles Popular Articles

Who is the author?

What are their credentials?

 Researcher, scholar, or student author; education and affiliations are listed. Author works in the field or profession; some credentials or bio are listed. Journalist, freelance writer, or unknown author; typically no credentials listed.
Are sources cited? Yes, many in-text and reference list sources.  Yes, but not many.  Few or no sources. 
What is the purpose of the article? To share results of research or experiments with other scholars/students. To provide information to people in a specific trade or industry.  To provide general information, gossip, entertainment, or to sell a product. 
What is the style of the language? Formal technical language with a scholarly vocabulary.  Specialized vocabulary used in the industry or trade. Easy to read, everyday language. 
Are their images? Sometimes. But they are graphs, tables, or figures that show the research. Often there are photos or images that support key points. Yes, mostly intended to draw attention to the article for viewership.
Is their advertising? No, or they are focused on academic events and books.  Yes, advertising specific to the trade or industry. Yes, many advertisements for a range of products.
How long is the article? Very long, usually 5-20+ pages.  Brief, generally 1-2 pages. Brief, generally 1-2 pages.
How formal is the organization? Divided into traditional, formal, academic sections.  Usually some structure, formal to informal.  Usually some sections, informal.
Adapted from a graphic from the HPU Library.

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Read laterally to evaluate websites.

ART of reading laterally: Author, Reliability, Target

Tips for reading laterally:

  • Get off the page to evaluate it: search online for information about the site.
  • Evaluate the author: who is the site/article author?, what are their credentials?, what biases might they have?
  • Evaluate reliability: what is the publication date?, what do other sites say about the author, site, or claim?
  • Evaluate the target audience: who is the target audience?, why are they the target?, what does the author/site want the target to believe, do, or purchase?

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It can help you know if a website matches the quality you need if you look at the "domain name." This gives some clues to quality, but all websites should be vetted or reviewed to assess their quality! 

Internet domain names and quality of source: .edu and .gov are preferred

Use domain name to help evaluate quality:

  • can be purchased by anyone (so cannot assume quality):
    • .com
    • .org
  • cannot be purchased (known owner implies some quality):
    • .edu
    • .gov

What about Wikipedia?

See what Wikipedia says about Wikipedia.

media bias chart with icons for news sources placed along the 2 axes (x axis is left/right bias, y axis is more/less news value and reliability)

How to Use the Chart:

  • The specific placement of a specific news source icon on the chart is not the most important feature of this chart!
  • The important concepts to think about when evaluating news sources are 1. news reliability and 2. bias (the x- and y-axes).
  • Evaluate any sources (news or other online sources) you plan to include in your paper - google them to find out:
    • if they have a reputation as left- or right-leaning (x-axis)
    • and if they are recognized as factual reporting, analysis, opinion, propaganda, or as misleading/fabricated (y-axis)

Are my sources useful/relevant for my assignment?

 

Read sources critically to evaluate whether or not they have the information content you need.

ACRL Standard #3: The information-literate student evaluates information and its sources critically (Frame # 5: Scholarship as Conversation).

Targeted Reading: Don't read scholarly articles from beginning to end!

  • Read the abstract of a scholarly article to determine if it has the content that will be useful for your assignment. 
  • Use the section headings to skip to the sections you need. Headings are fairly consistent so you can predict where the most helpful information will be for you. Typical headings: Introduction, Literature Review, Methods, Results, Discussion, Conclusion, & References.

Extra tip: Look at the keywords for the article. Do they match your search terms?

  • If they don't match, is the article still relevant to your project? It may be!
  • If the article is relevant, add those search terms to your keywords.

 

list of sections in a scholarly paper and which order to read them in - see the text above this for more details.