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Step By Step Research Guide

Evaluating Resources

There are three main types of sources: Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary.

Primary Sources are:first-hand, original accounts or raw data/evidence that provides direct evidence about a topic from the source of origin

Secondary Sources interpret, analyze, or synthesize primary sources and are at least one step removed from the original source

Tertiary Sources synthesize and compile information from primary and secondary sources and are helpful for getting an overview or introduction to a topic

It's common to use a combination of these three sources - tertiary to get an overview, secondary for in-depth analysis, and primary for actual evidence. The balance depends on the research need.

The infographic and tutorial below provide more in-depth explanations and examples of these sources.

Infographic from UCSan Diego

This infographic comes from the library of UC San Diego

Evaluating the materials you find is important to ensure they are suitable for a research paper. It's not enough that the information is relevant; it must also be credible and reliable. You'll want to find more sources than you need, so you can selectively choose the best ones for your paper. Here are some helpful criteria to apply when assessing the information you find:

Currency:

  • When was the information published or last updated?
  • Is the source outdated for your topic?
  • Have there been new discoveries or important events since publication that could impact the information?
  • How quickly does research move in the field you are researching?

Relevance:

  • How does the information relate to your argument or research question?
  • Is the content too advanced or too basic for your needs?
  • Is the intended audience appropriate for a research paper?
  • Might there be better, more relevant sources available elsewhere?

Authority:

  • Who is the author? What are their credentials related to the topic?
  • Is the publisher reputable and well-known in the subject field?
  • Did the information go through a peer-review or fact-checking process?

Accuracy:

  • Can you verify the information from other trusted sources?
  • Are sources properly cited to support the claims made?
  • Is it factual information or opinion-based content?
  • Does the information show signs of bias?
  • Are there grammatical or spelling errors that raise doubts about quality?

Purpose:

  • What is the underlying reason the information was provided - to inform, sell, persuade, or entertain?
  • Does the author/publisher clearly state their intentions and intended audience?

Thoroughly evaluating each source against these criteria will help ensure you are using appropriate, high-quality materials in your research paper.

The tutoriasl below will go into this process in more depth and give you some helpful tips to use while evaluating sources.

It is important to evaluate any source you plan on using, this includes website. The below handout will walk you through an evaluation framework called RADAR while the tutorial will provide you with more information and tips for evaluating web resources.

Misinformation is an ever growing concern when it comes to research, It is important to be aware of and to understand misinformation when you find it. The tutorial below will show you how to recognize misinformation when you run into it while doing your research.