Answered By: Kate Holvoet
Last Updated: Jan 13, 2015     Views: 510

From WikiHow: http://www.wikihow.com/Sample/Source-Evaluation-Cheat-Sheet

Examples of sources that are often the most credible:

  • Official government websites
  • Institutional sites that represent universities, regulatory agencies, governing bodies, and respected organizations with specific expertise (e.g., the Mayo Clinic)
  • Peer-reviewed journals
  • Reputable news sources

Examples of sources that are often considered less credible:

  • Blogs
  • Web forums
  • Individual or business websites
  • Materials published by an entity that may have an ulterior motive

Factors to consider

Least reliable

Possibly reliable

Most reliable

Type of source

Unfamiliar website

Published material

Official websites, institutional sites, academic journals

Author’s background

Uncredited

Educated on topic

Expert in the field

Date published

None

Outdated

Recently revised

Depth of review

Controversial reviews

Good public response; general approval

Peer-reviewed by reliable sources

Sources cited

None

Credible sources

Citations referencing other well-cited works

Objectivity

Clearly biased

Sponsored source

Balanced, neutral


For further information on how to judge the reliability of a web site, you can use the CRRAP test.

From: http://libguides.hacc.edu/Leb_Engl002_Sweeney

What is the CRAAP Test?

  • The CRAAP Test was originally developed at California State University, Chico.

  • CRAAP is an acronym in which each letter represents one of five criteria which should be considered when deciding whether or not an article, a book, a website, or other source of information is a credible one to use for research.

  • The graphic below (from Humber Libraries at Humber College) lists the criteria. (http://libguides.humber.ca/content.php?pid=59653&sid=451734)

CRAAP Test Criteria

  • The following rubric is useful for deciding on the value and quality of a website for research. It was developed by the Ron E. Lewis Library at Lamar State College--Orange. 

http://library.lsco.edu/help/web-page-rubric.pdf

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