This tutorial will help you determine the credibility of some types of sources.
Evaluating Sources
Not all information is created equal! Evaluating sources of information is an important step before using them for research. When trying to decide if a source is sufficient for your topic, consider the author, accuracy, and publication date in an initial evaluation. Questions to ask yourself include:
Author: Who is the author(s)or sponsoring agency responsible for publishing this info? Are credentials evident? Has the author(s) produced other information valued in the field of study?
Accuracy: Is background information easy to look up? Does the author(s) cite sources? Are facts clearly indicated?
Publication Date: When was the information published, and how time sensitive is the topic? Is it updated regularly?
Even if you have found credible information, you must still do a secondary (critical analysis) to make sure the information will fit into the context of your project.
Types of sources
Some assignments only allow students to use peer-reviewed material. Check with your instructor for clarity. Some types of sources include:
Scholarly Sources: Written by experts (scholars, professors, researchers) in a given field, scholarly sources are highly specialized and often individual research projects that include methodology and theory and may undergo a peer-review process. They include journal articles, books, and some sources found on the web. They assume the reader has some knowledge of the topic.
Trade/Professional Publications: Written by professionals in the field or journalists working for the publisher, these publications report on industry trends, new products or techniques, and discipline-specific news.
Popular Magazines: Written by journalists or freelance writers, popular magazines inform readers about issues of common interest to the general public.
Newspapers: Written for the general public, newspapers have different sections (ranging from investigative reporting to editorials). Look carefully at the section and what is being said in the articles to distinguish the types of articles you have found.
Primary Sources: The terms "primary" or "original" sources are used to describe several different types of sources. In the sciences, original research or primary sources describe an original article. In the humanities, a primary source could be the text of a novel or an artifact such as a diary or map. A few books collect primary sources and a number of web collections (often affiliated with a special collection or museum) provide digitized primary sources.