Library and Internet resources should be evaluated to determine their
quality and relevance to your topic before citing them for a research
assignment. Use the criteria below to help you evaluate resources. Note:
Titles below marked with an asterisk * are in hardcopy in the Oviatt
Library--click the link to get location information.
Jump to: Authority | Content
& Coverage | Timeliness | Accuracy
| Objectivity | Using URLs
to Determine Authority & Objectivity
Authority
- What are the qualifications of the author or organization responsible
for the content of the resource?
- What are the author's education and/or experience?
- Is it a reputable publisher or Web site? Is there an "about us"
link on the Web page that provides information about the organization?
- Is it a commercial, governmental, educational or personal Web site? Often
the URL domain's extension (.com, .edu, etc.) gives you
a clue about the site.
- Look for the author's biography or information about the responsible organization
either within the publication or Web page itself or use the sources below
to find out more about authors, publishers, and organizations:
Content & Coverage
- Who is the audience for the publication or Web site (scholarly or general)?
- Is the information primary
or secondary in nature?
- Does it provide general background information or in-depth information
on a specific topic? Which do you need?
- How extensive is the bibliography or list of cited references? Can you
use these references to find more information on your topic?
Timeliness
- What is the publication date of the book or article?
- Is there a date anywhere on the Web page, such as date created, last update,
etc.?
- How up-to-date are the citations in the bibliography?
- How current do you need for your topic?
Accuracy
- Have other scholars evaluated the resource?
- Can you find the same information in another source?
Objectivity
Determine whether the information is fact, opinion or propaganda.
- Are there footnotes to show the source of the facts or quotes?
- Does the publisher have a particular bias?
- Are opinions or propaganda easy to recognize?
- Do the words and phrases play to your emotions or bias the content?
- Are there advertisements that suggest the information might be biased
toward selling a product rather than providing objective information?
- Can you determine from the Web site's address (URL) a particular bias?
Often the URL domain's extension (.com, .edu, etc.) gives
you a clue about the site.
Using URLs to Determine Authority and Objectivity
Internet address (URL) domain extensions can be used to help determine
authority and objectivity. A more complete list of two- and three- letter
URL
extensions is also available.
- .gov
- Government. The intent of the site is to present official information
collected by or about the workings of a government.
- .edu
- Educational institution. The intent of the site
is to educate as well as present information collected by or about
the educational institution.
- .com
- Commercial. The intent of the site is to sell goods
or services, as well as provide information about the company.
- .org
- Organization, usually non-profit. The intent of
the site is to present information collected by or about the organization.
Sometimes, the intent of the site is to promote a particular point
of view.
- .net
- Network, usually personal Web pages. The intent
of the site is as varied as the individual(s) responsible for the
content.
