Choose reliable information sources!

As you research a topic you will retrieve many sources, including books, articles, and websites from a variety of different publishers and sources. Some of the sources may be scholarly and have undergone rigorous peer review, while others, particularly those on the Internet, may not have undergone any review at all. Thus, an essential step in the research process is to critically assess the quality, authority, and relevance of the information you find. Listed below are some helpful resources that describe criteria for evaluating various sources of information.

Journals vs. Magazines: Is it Scholarly? discusses the characteristics of scholarly articles and journals, professional and technical journals, and magazines.

Evaluating Websites will help you evaluate the information you find on the Internet.

Evaluating Books & Journal Articles. Susan A. Vega Garcia. Iowa State University. 15 Oct 2001

Thinking Critically about World Wide Web Resources. Esther Grassian. UCLA College Library. 18 Sept. 2001

 

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