Brace Fellows Research Guide: Helpful Research Tips

Evaluating Sources

 

C.R.I.T.I.C.A.L Method

Information can come from anywhere, anyone, and for any purpose, which means that critical evaluation is an essential part of your research process. The CRITICAL guide helps determine if a source is appropriate and prompt you to think about how your search for, select, and engage you research materials.

C.R.I.T.I.C.A.L.

Credibility
  • Is the information fact, opinion, or propaganda? Facts can be verified through comparison to several sources. Opinions evolve from the interpretation of facts.
  • Are the author's conclusions or facts supported with references? 
  • Do the authors / sponsors make their intentions or purpose clear?
Relevance
  • Is the information within the scope of your topic? Refer back to your research question or central goal.
  • Does it offer new perspectives (e.g., historical, political, cultural, social, racial, gender, sexual)
  • Does it offer different voices, conflicting viewpoints, or other ways of knowing?
  • Please be aware that library collections encompass works that portray offensive perspectives, serving to document them as evidentiary sources and facilitate ongoing critical analysis of the past and present.
Intention
  • Why was the source written?
  • Was the author's purpose to inform, persuade, or to refute a particular idea or point of view? 
  • Are there political, ideological, cultural, religious, institutional, or personal biases?
Timelines
  • Is the date of publication appropriate for your topic?
  • Is currency important or are historical perspectives needed?
  • Does your work need a chronology of events over time?
  • Is it important to include seminal works, regardless of date?
I-EDIAA
  • Does the source bring an equity lens to the topic?
  • Are aspects of I-EDIAA addressed? (Indigeneity, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, Anti-Racism, and Accessibility)
  • Does the author present multiple viewpoints or is it biased?
  • Does the author situate their own positionality? (i.e., their privilege through race, education, income, ability, gender, etc. as a means of framing their research interpretations)
Coverage
  • Does the source address your topic in depth, only partially, or is it an broad overview? Different levels can be useful.
  • Is the source a useful as a single example or case?
  • Does the source add new information or update other sources?
  • Can the source be cited to substantiate or refute other resources that you have consulted?
Authority
  • Consider the author's background, writings, experience, and positionality.
  • There are subject authorities beyond those writing in scholarly journals. For example, Indigenous Elders and Knowledge Keepers are recognized for their expertise.
  • Is the author associated with an organization, institution, cultural, or community group?
  • Who is the publisher? Does it represent the views of specific groups?
  • How is the writing acknowledged by others in the field or community? How do critical reviews rate the work?
  • Are some types of references privileged over others? Does the information draw on collective expertise from a diverse group?
  • Who benefits or is empowered from this perspective?
Level
  • What is the reading and analysis level of the source?
  • Does it align with your knowledge of the subject?
  • What level of evidence is provided in terms of citations or data? 
  • Is the resource intended for the general public, scholars, or professionals?

ACT-UP Method

The ACT-UP: Evaluating Resources for Social Justice method of evaluating sources was developed by librarian Dawn Stahura, now at Salem State University. 

ACT-UP asks you to consider important questions about your research:

Author: Who is the author and why did they present this information? Where did you find it? On a reputable website?

Currency: When was it published and does this fit the time period of your project?

Truth: Is the information correct? Does the author use sensationalizing words to evoke an emotional response? Are there typos?

Unbias: What point of view is the information showcasing? Is it trying to get you to think a certain way? Bias is present in all resources, so knowing what type of bias (even if it includes missing information), is important!

Privilege: Does the author of your information come from the dominant culture, or do they come from a marginalized group? Particularly if the author is writing about a community they do not belong to, make sure to include other sources that do represent that community.

Reading Scholarly Articles

 

While Reading

Reading a scholarly article isn’t like reading a novel, website, or newspaper article. It’s likely you won’t read and absorb it from beginning to end, all at once.

Instead, think of scholarly reading as inquiry, i.e., asking a series of questions as you do your research or read for class. Your reading should be guided by your class topic or your own research question or thesis.

For example, as you read, you might ask yourself:

  • Is the article relevant to a class theme or to my own work?
    • What questions does it help to answer, or what topics does it address?
  • Does the article offer any unique perspectives or new information?
    • Are these relevant or useful to me?
  • Can I use the contents of the article in any other ways?
    • Does the article offer a helpful framework for understanding my topic or question (theoretical framework)?
    • Do the authors use interesting or innovative methods to conduct their research that might be relevant to me?
    • Does the article contain references I might consult for further information?

Reading Strategies

Read with purpose.

  • Scanning and skimming with a pen in hand can help to focus your reading.
  • Use color for quick reference. Try highlighters or some sticky notes. Use different colors to represent different topics.
  • Write in the margins, putting down thoughts and questions about the content as you read.
  • Use digital markup features available in eBook platforms or third-party solutions, like Adobe Reader or Hypothes.is.

Categorize Information

Create your own informal system of organization. It doesn’t have to be complicated — start basic, and be sure it works for you.

Keywords

  • Jot down a few of your own keywords for each article. These keywords may correspond with important topics being addressed in class or in your research paper.  

  • Write keywords on print copies or use the built-in note taking features in reference management tools like Zotero and EndNote.  

  • Your keywords and system of organization may grow more complex the deeper you get into your reading.

New Words

Highlight words, terms, phrases, acronyms, etc. that are unfamiliar to you. You can highlight on the text or make a list in a notetaking program.

  • Decide if the term is essential to your understanding of the article or if you can look it up later and keep scanning.

Citation Tips

You may scan an article and discover that it isn’t what you thought it was about. Before you close the tab or delete that PDF, consider scanning the article one more time, specifically to look for citations that might be more on-target for your topic.  

You don’t need to look at every citation in the bibliography — you can look to the literature review to identify the core references that relate to your topic. Literature reviews are typically organized by subtopic within a research question or thesis. Find the paragraph or two that are closely aligned with your topic, make note of the author names, then locate those citations in the bibliography or footnote.

Additional OWHL Guide

For more detailed information, and examples, please see the How To Read a Scholarly Article OWHL Guide (link opens in a new window).

Analyzing Primary Sources

 

Considering the Source

  • What type of primary source is this?

  • Who made it and when?

  • Can you tell if one person created it, or was it a group, like an organization?

  • What do you know about the creator(s)?

  • Who is the intended audience?

  • What do you know about this primary source or where it comes from that helps you understand it?

  • What else was happening at the time this was created? How does that context help you understand why it was created?

  • Why was this primary source made?

  • This is one piece of a larger story. What questions do you have that this primary source doesn’t answer?

  • What evidence does the creator present that you should verify? Do other sources support or contradict this?

  • This primary source shows one perspective on this topic. What other perspectives should you get?

Look Deeper

In order to analyze a primary source you need information about two things: the document itself, and the era from which it comes. On your own you need to think about the document itself. The following questions may be helpful to you as you begin to analyze the sources:

  1. Look at the physical nature of your source.
  2. Think about the purpose of the source.
  3. What do you know about the author? Race, gender, class, occupation, religion, age, region, political beliefs? Does any of this matter? How?
  4. Who constituted the intended audience? How does that affect the source?
  5. What can a careful reading of the text (even if it is an object) tell you? What does the author choose NOT to talk about?

Evaluate It

Now you can evaluate the source as evidence.

  1. Is it prescriptive — telling you what people thought should happen — or descriptive — telling you what people thought did happen?
  2. Does it describe ideology and/or behavior?
  3. What questions can you answer using this source? What are the benefits of using this kind of source?
  4. What questions can this source NOT help you answer? What are the limitations of this type of source?
  5. If you have read other interpretations of this source or sources like this one, how does your analysis fit with theirs? In your opinion, does this source support or challenge their argument?
Subjects: Community