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Evaluating Print and Electronic Sources  
Print Sources
Electronic Sources

Always evaluate your sources according to your instructor's guidelines or according to standards for print and electronic resources. The quality of the sources you rely upon affects the quality and reliability of your final paper. Just because you find a book or journal article in the library or an electronic source on the internet, it does not necessarily guarantee that the item is a good source of information for your research paper.

Generally, books and journals undergo some type of selection process to get into the library, but this is definitely not the case for electronic sources since anyone with some computer knowledge can post information on the Web and make it look professional. Even though electronic sources require even more close evaluation than print sources, it is possible to find reliable, reputable information on the internet. As a researcher, it's your job to find information written by experts and eliminate information posted by non-experts.
Print Sources

  • Is the information recent? Select up-to-date, current information unless you are conducting historical research. This is particularly true in the sciences.

  • Did an expert in the field prepare the information? Look for the author's credentials and affiliations. For citations to biographical material about an author, consult a biographical source, such as Biography and Genealogy Master Index (Ref. Z5305.U5 B56), Contemporary Authors, or Biography Index. [If the author is affiliated with an educational institution, a limited amount of information may be available in the Directory of American Scholars (Ref. LA2311 .C32). Additionally, if you know an author's institutional affiliation, college catalogs usually have faculty listed with the degrees earned. See CollegeSource Online for college catalogs]. See Maag Library's guide to Biography for additional resources.

  • Is the information from a reliable source? Choose information from a scholarly journal (Finding Scholarly Journals) or from a book published by a reputable publisher. Choose books that have received favorable reviews. Consult one of these indexes for citations to reviews: Book Review Index [Ref. Z1035.A1 B]; Book Review Digest,[online 1983-present; earlier volumes in Ref. Z1219 .C96]; Index to Book Reviews in the Humanities [Ref.Z1035.A1 I63]; Children's Book Review Index [Ref. Z1037.A1 C475]; andBalay's Guide to Reference Books [Ref. Z1035.1 .G89]. 

  • Does the writer seem to be represent material fairly and accurately? All argument shows bias because it attempts to persuade or influence its audience. However, guard against using information that seems unreasonably or unfairly biased. 

  • Who is the intended audience? Is the information for a specialized or general audience?
Electronic Sources

  • Who is the author of the page or site? Does the author appear to be qualified to write about the topic? 

  • Is the site affiliated with any institution, company, or organization? If so, does this affiliation add bias to the information? Or, does it suggest that the source is credible?

  • When was the site created or last modified? 

  • Is the design of the site effective? Do graphics interfere with the site's readability? Do links to other sites work? Is it easy to navigate the site?

  • Who is the intended audience? Is the information for a specialized or general audience? 

  • Does the information seem unreasonably or unfairly biased in any way? (Avoid any sites that appear to be advertising a product or service.)