Checklist

Below is a checklist of some of the questions you may ask to evaluate you sources. You will learn the following four useful criteria:

• Reliability 
• Objectivity 
• Accuracy 
• Relevance 

Consider the questions you find most relevant for your literature search according to this criteria.

 

Does it matter where the information comes from?

The warning "do not believe everything you read" applies for both printed and electronic information. Be particularly observant when evaluating information on the Internet. Practically anyone can publish anything on the Internet, without having the information evaluated by experts in advance.

The material on the library shelves and web pages, on the other hand, has been evaluated and quality controlled.

• Publishers will let an editor or an expert group evaluate the quality on books, articles from journals, etc.
• Librarians (often assisted by a scientific staff) select the printed and electronic material that the library buys. The purchase is based on how suitable the material is for the academic activity.

Reliability, objectivity, accuracy and suitability can help you ask the right questions, but you must be the final judge. You are the one who must separate good quality information from information of poor quality.

 

You should use this type of critical evaluation for all types of information sources.

 

The text is from VIKO: Your guide to information literacy: http://www.ub.ntnu.no/viko/en/mod6/mod6_side1.php