PSYC-452: Developmental Psycholinguistics

Reviewing your original question in the context of your search results is an important final step.

• Do the articles retrieved during your literature search process (the "identify specific information" step) fulfill your information needs? Can you respond to your research question?
• If not, how can your search strategy be modified to get back on track?
• Look for resources to fill in gaps or clarify other materials.
• Is the information you retrieved timely? Credible? Authoritative? Reliable?

*If you came up empty-handed, revisit your research question and tweak as necessary. The process is often not a linear one.

Evaluating your sources is a critical element of the research process. It is particularly important to evaluate information that you find on the Internet. 

You need to evaluate carefully each source to determine its appropriateness and quality. Use the CRITICAL guide to determine if a source is appropriate for your research and to prompt you to think about how you search for and select research materials. This guide supports our commitment to decolonizing information literacy and our focus on I-EDIAA (Indigenous, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, Anti-Racism, and Accessibility).  Evaluation criteria may include:

• Credibility: The reliability or accuracy of the information.
• Relevance: The depth and importance of the information.
• Intention: The purpose of the information. 
• Timeliness: The currency of the information.
• I-EDIAA (Indigeneity, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, Anti-Racism, Accessibility): The voices that are represented.
• Coverage: Does the source address your topic in depth, only partially, or is it an broad overview?
• Authority: The source of the information. Consider the author's background, writings, experience, and positionality.
• Level: The reading and analysis level of the source.