Research Guides: Visitor Resources: Searching For & Evaluating Sources

Having Trouble Finding Articles?

Remember to check the sources of other articles!

Many journal articles that you read will provide a list of the sources that the author used in their writing. You can examine these sources at the bottom of the article, and then look up these sources with the "Find an Article" tab on the main library home page. This allows for you to discover more information about your topic from other relevant articles!

Think broad!

You might be too precise on your search. If you are searching for articles on "Facebook," try checking for "Social Media" instead.

Make sure it is not too current!

Journal articles take time for research and review. If you are focusing on a current event, articles may not have been published on the topic yet. Remember to concentrate on the larger subject.

Ask A Librarian for help!

Librarians are here to help you. You can visit the library and go to the Research Help Desk, schedule a Research Consultation, or use Ask A Librarian for a live chat!

Using Boolean Operators to Search for Sources

Using the correct terminology helps to find quicker, and more effective results. To find the best information, make sure to implement the Boolean search terms: AND, OR, and NOT. Additionally, make use of quotation marks and asterisks to help maximize your search results!

Here is a short video to help you understand Boolean searches!

McMaster Libraries [McMaster Libraries]. (2016 November 28). How Library Stuff Works: Boolean Operators (AND OR NOT) [video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCAULDuMcso.

http://beets1278.blogspot.com/2012/10/boolean-logic-is-not-logical.html

Critically Evaluating Sources

For each source that you are considering incorporating in your research, look to some basic citation information and ask yourself the following questions to help determine whether the source is credible and fit to utilize:

Author

What types of credentials does the author have?
- Are they affiliated with an institution, like a university, governmental agency, or organization? What is the reputation and values of said institution?
- What is their educational background?
- Do they have previous works? Are they often cited in their field?
- What other experiences, whether professional, educational, or otherwise, do they have that may affect their authority on a given subject?
Is the author's area of expertise relevant to the topic of the source?

Publication Date

Is it current or out-of-date for your topic?
- Keep in mind that some disciplines value currency more than others. For instance, the sciences typically favor more current sources of information whereas the humanities value and frequently require the incorporation of material produced at an earlier time - context is key!
Since the original publication date, have there been updates to, revisions of, or new editions of the material that reflect new information?

Journal/Periodical

What type of journal/periodical is the material published in? Is it popular or scholarly?
- Identifying this information can be a good indicator of the purpose and depth of the material as well as the intended audience.
Does the journal/periodical require material go through an editing process before being published?

Publisher

Who is the publisher of the source?
What is the reputation of the publisher?
Does the publisher have a political or economic agenda?

"Critically Evaluating Sources: Surface Level Evaluation" is adapted from "Critically Analyzing Information Sources: Critical Appraisal and Analysis" by Research & Learning Services of Olin Library at Cornell University Library, used under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International Licence.

"Critically Evaluating Sources: Surface Level Evaluation" is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International Licence by Liz Dunne.

After conducting a surface-level evaluation and reading a source, it's time to analyze the content of the source.

Look to the following aspects of the content and ask yourself the corresponding questions to evaluate whether or not and how you'd like to incorporate the material in your research.

Purpose

Is the information presented in the work meant to inform, entertain, or persuade?
Are the author's intentions made clear?
What audience is the author primarily addressing? Does the source cater to a specialized/academic audience or a more general audience?
- Discerning the intended audience will help you evaluate whether the source is too advanced, too elementary, or well-suited for your research needs and the audience you are writing to.

Relevance & Coverage

Does the information contained in the source relate to your research topic or attempt to answer questions similar to the ones you are investigating?
Does the work substantiate other materials you have read or does it deviate from the majority of works in the field?
What new information does the work add to the field?
What gaps in the research and suggestions for future research does the work suggest?
Is the work a primary or secondary source?
- This will affect the scope of the material and the level of engagement with other materials.

Objectivity & Accuracy

What biases (political, cultural, ideological, personal, etc.) exist in the work?
Is the information fact, opinion, or propaganda?
Is the information well-researched, verifiable, or supported by evidence?
Are any assumptions made reasonable?

Writing Style

Is the material organized in a logical way?
Are the main ideas clearly expressed?
Is the work free of spelling, grammatical, and formatting errors?

"Critically Evaluating Sources: Content Analysis" is adapted from "Critically Analyzing Information Sources: Critical Appraisal and Analysis" by Research & Learning Services of Olin Library at Cornell University Library, used under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International Licence.

"Critically Evaluating Sources: Surface Level Evaluation" is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International Licence by Liz Dunne.

Check out our other handy Research Guides to help sharpen your senses towards fake news and other insufficient sources:

The Asterisk

An asterisk acts as any combination of letters that follow the preceding word.

For example:

Gives you all words that start with writ!

This includes: write, writing, and written.

Quotation Marks

Place quotation marks around your phrases to make sure that the search engine locates the complete phrase, and not the individual words.

For example:

A screen capture of the Academic Search Complete search box containing the words "john smith" in lower case. without quotes

will find information on all people named "John," and all people named "Smith."

However:

A screen capture of the Academic Search Complete search box containing the words "john smith" in lower case., in quotes

will only give you results for people named "John Smith."

Visitor Resources