How to evaluate what you find

What will I learn in this tutorial?

In this tutorial you will learn how to critically evaluate the information that you use for your assignments and academic work.

Evaluation involves the ability to decide which information sources are worth pursuing, and determining whether the information that you have found is appropriate for your work.

You are already "evaluating" every time you look for a book in the library catalogue or use a search engine on the web and try to decide whether what you have found is relevant to your topic.

Why do I need to evaluate?

Not all information sources are equally useful, and a source that may be appropriate in one case may not be suitable in another. For your work to meet assessment criteria at a university level you need to be able to substantiate your research with acceptable sources. Evaluating saves time - why look for, or read through, sources that aren't going to be of any use to you?

The growth of the WWW makes it even more important for you to be able to evaluate information critically, since much of the information on the web may be highly biased.

When do I need to evaluate?

You should evaluate:

when you first look for information in a catalogue or search engine
when you have the information in your hand, or on the screen, and you are deciding whether it is usable.

Evaluation begins when you look for information and you are deciding whether it is worth walking upstairs to get a book off the shelf, or following a particular link on a web page. Doing this efficiently can save you a lot of time and effort.

Once you have a piece of information, you need to decide whether it can be used in your work, and whether the information is reliable.

Is this printed source relevant?

Some points to consider to help you to decide if a printed source is relevant:

Title - Does the title indicate that the item is too specific or not specific enough? Is there a subtitle with more information?
Author(s) - What are their credentials and reputation, are they associated with any institution or organisation?
Date of publication - Is it recent enough for your work? Does it need to be recent at all?
Edition - Multiple editions indicate the item is well regarded enough to have been through revisions, and has been updated
Publisher - Is it published by a recognised body?
Name of journal - Scholarly or popular? What audience is it directed towards?
Subject headings - What headings are assigned to this source? Are they the same as other sources you have found useful?

Is this electronic source relevant?

Some points to consider to help you to decide if an electronic source is relevant:

Title - Does the title indicate that the item is too specific or not specific enough? Is there a description with more information?
Author(s) - What are their credentials and reputation, are they associated with any institution or organisation?
Date of revision - Is it recent enough for your topic? Does it need to be recent at all? Updates imply that changes have been made.
Owner of site - Is it a government body (.gov in address), an academic institution (.edu or .ac) or a commercial body (.com)? Is it Australian based (.au)? Find the right site for your needs.
Description - Search engines obtain the description from the headings assigned by the page's author, or from the beginning of the page: does it look relevant?

Is this source useful to me?

Once you have decided to pursue a source and have it in front of you, you need to decide whether it is as useful as it first seemed. In some cases this will become clear from scanning the contents or index, but you may need to skim a few sections to be sure.

There are a number of factors that you should consider to help you decide whether a piece of information is appropriate to your needs. These include:

Intended audience
Currency of the information
Reliability of the author or information source
Coverage of the topic that the information provides
Accuracy of the information
Level of objectivity of the author

Intended audience

What type of reader was the information written for? Material can be written with distinct audiences in mind. There are also different levels of information. These can vary according to the topic and the place of publication. You must decide whether the information suits your needs.

Think carefully about who the intended audience is. Information that is directed at high school students may not be appropriate for a university essay. Equally, some academic work may be too advanced, specific or specialised for your needs.

Currency

How up to date is the information source? Does it cover recent developments? Has it been updated (in the form of a new edition or update) to deal with changes in knowledge or corrections? This is more important in some areas (e.g. the sciences) than others (e.g. literature).

Be aware that dates can be misleading:

Books - It can take up to two years for a book to be published, so the information in a 1999 book may already be out of date. Some dates represent the year a book was republished (as a paperback, or after being out of print for some years).
Journals - Journal articles are usually printed more quickly than books, but there can still be a delay of over a year (depending on the journal) before you see it, especially considering that many journals are sent to Australia by sea.
Webpages - Many are updated constantly, but there is no guarantee that the date given (if given at all) is accurate.

Reliability

Is it clear who is the author? What are the author's credentials? What qualifications do they have for writing the piece? Are they backed by a reputable or traceable organisation?

Information that does not conform to these criteria is not necessarily flawed or unreliable, but you should use it with caution. Remember that the web in particular is open to anyone who can write anything they want. Look carefully for evidence of bias, omissions or unsupported statements of "fact".

Coverage

When considering whether an information source is going to be useful you need to look at the range it covers. You also need to consider whether it consists of primary or secondary source material.

Primary material contians new information or a new interpretation of previously known information. Secondary material is interpretation and comment on primary material by others.

Does it have the detail you need? Does it supplement other sources you have read or merely confirm information you already knew? You may need to cover a variety of different viewpoints.

If your essay is on a broad topic don't try to absorb every detail you can find. Start with an article from an encyclopedia or find a book that gives a general overview of your topic. When you need detailed information an academic article is more likely to help you than a general overview.

Accuracy

Can you check the information elsewhere? Are the sources of any facts clearly and correctly listed? Do you have faith in the spelling and other proof reading aspects of the work?

Key dates, facts and other figures should always be verified from alternative sources to ensure that they are correct. Check that they come from the source cited in the work. An incorrect citation may imply that the facts are not correct.

While spelling and proof reading may seem trivial, consistent misspellings may mean that facts and figures are also typed or printed incorrectly. They may also imply that the information has not been thoroughly checked for inaccuracies.

Objectivity

This is the most difficult area to judge because virtually all sources are subjective in some way. Good academic work considers all viewpoints and uses material from many sources to show a depth of research and consideration of all aspects of a question.

Some tips for recognising bias in information sources:

Use of emotive or derogatory language
Omissions in the information presented
Contradictions to other material you have read
Viewpoints that seem extreme to you

You may disagree with some sources, but you need to show your familiarity with them, and demonstrate why you disagree with them.

How can I tell if this web page is any good?

Anyone with access to a server can put material on the web; there are no controls on what people choose to write. As a result, web pages should be viewed with even more caution than most print material. In particular you should look for:

Who is responsible for the site - is there a name and contact address?
What is the rationale for the site - is it endorsing a particular viewpoint to the exclusion of other views?
Is there a list or bibliography of corroborative evidence?
Is there a date when the site was last updated - how long ago did this happen?
Does the site seem to be permanent or part of a permanent organisation?

Summary

In this tutorial you have learned about the importance of thinking critically about the information you use, so that you can save time, and ensure that you are using the most appropriate material for your work. The key elements you should look for are:

Relevance to your topic
Intended audience
Currency of the information
Reliability of the author or information source
Coverage of the topic that the information provides
Accuracy of the information
Level of objectivity of the author

If you need more help contact the library.