21H.931 Seminar in Historical Methods

Evaluate Information

Read information you find from any source with a critical eye! Consider these points when evaluating books, articles and Web sites:

• Who?

• Who wrote it? What ideas is the author trying to promote?
• Does the author seem to favor one idea over another? Could this affect the conclusions drawn?

Check:

• that the author's name is given
  
• where the author works - the author's affiliation or credentials
  
• who published the article or book
  
• the type of journal in which the article is published (hint: most scholarly research appears in journals that are refereed or reviewed by peers - sometimes called "peer reviewed" journals)
  
• the reputation of the newspaper in which the article is published (is it from the Washington Post or the National Enquirer?)

• What?

• Do the conclusions in the paper seem justified? Does the research make sense - i.e. if you were conducting this research, would you feel comfortable drawing the same conclusions based on the results?
  
• While you may not feel qualified to judge research in areas that are unfamiliar to you, evaluating information involves little more than being critical of what you read and using a little common sense.

• Where?

Where's the information from? (see "Who?")

Check:

• the type of journal the article is published in or the reputation of the newspaper
  
• if the research was done by the author ("primary" source), or
  if the author is summarizing others' research ("secondary" source) - and if so are the sources cited (i.e. footnotes and/or a bibliography)?
  
• if statistics are given or others' work is quoted, are the sources named?

• When?

How old is the information? Is it too old to be useful (this can vary, depending on the area & type of information!)?

Check:

• when was the article, book or Web site written?
  
• when was the Web page last updated?
  
• is it possible that there are newer statistics or research reports?