Finding information is only part of the process in scholarly research. The old adage, "Don't believe everything you read" holds true in every form of publication. Just because something is in print does not necessarily mean it's true and accurate. This idea takes on a whole new meaning when applied to the World Wide Web. With a little technical know-how, virtually anyone can put up a Web page.

Printed sources from books or journals usually have methods to protect against false or slanderous information slipping through the cracks. Editorial or review processes tend to keep authors honest and accurate. Larger publishing firms have a vested interest in making sure what they print is correct and above reproach lest their paying audience lose faith and take their money elsewhere. There are always exceptions, such as "sensational" novels or supermarket tabloids, but by and large the publishing industry does a fairly good job of regulating itself. Even so, caution should be exercised when evaluating information from printed sources.

Web pages, as already alluded to, generally have no review process. Hate pages, fantasy, and commercial ventures abound on the Internet with no regulation. For this reason, Web pages need special attention when assessing their content. The steps involved in critically evaluating material can and should be applied to all mediums including books and journal articles, but the list given here is geared more toward evaluation of Web pages. If several of the major points from this list cannot be answered to your satisfaction, or cannot be answered at all, you may want to keep looking for other pages.
 

Author*

• Who is the author?
• What are the author's credentials?
• What is the sponsoring site/URL (.com, .gov, .edu, etc.)?
• Is the author affiliated with this or any other organization?

Purpose

• Is the purpose of this page to inform?
• To explain?
•  To sell or persuade?
• To entertain?

Accuracy

• Can you verify this data in another source?
• Has anyone besides the author reviewed or refereed this page?
•  What point-of-view or bias is evident in this page?
• Where does this information come from?
• Are references given?

Currency *

• When was this page created?
• When was it updated or revised?
• Is timeliness important for this information topic?

Audience

• Who is the intended audience for this page?
•  Is this audience relevant to my research topic?

*Sometimes it is difficult to ascertain the date of creation of the website.  Here is one suggestion to use if the date is not evident on the pages you are viewing.  In Netscape, go to the VIEW option from the toolbar.  Select Page Source. (In Explorer it is VIEW/Source). This will bring up a screen that looks like computer-eze, but it is the language used to create the page you are viewing.  There should be a date and perhaps even the author on that page.  If it isn’t, then you should really question the validity of that page and whether it should be used as a research source.
 
 

For additional information on evaluating web sites see the following URL’s:

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