Up to now, we have primarily been focusing on how to find books and journal articles using the Library's research tools. In this module we consider two very important parts of the research process that occur after you have located a piece of information (book, journal article or website): evaluating and citing sources.
Relevance: How is the information relevant to your assignment?
Authority: Who/what is the source (such as author and publisher) of the information?
Date: When was this information published? Is publication date important?
Appearance: Does the information look professional or academic? Does it have citations and references/a bibliography?
Reason for Writing: Why did the author publish this information?
Adapted from: Mandalios, J. (2013). RADAR: An approach for helping students evaluate Internet sources. Journal of Information Science, 39(4), 470–478. https://doi.org/10.1177/0165551513478889
The CRAAP Test is another method for evaluating information to help you determine if the sources you found are reliable. CRAAP is an acronym for Currency, Relevance, Authority, Accuracy, and Purpose. These are questions you can consider as you evaluate any piece of information you find:
The CRAAP Test was developed by librarian at California State University, Chico. Content for this guide also based on CRAAP Detection: Criteria for Evaluation Information, created by OTIS College of Art and Design Library.