Who?
Can you trust your sources? You will need to establish their credibility, reliability and authority.
Authors, publishers, sponsors and developers will all impact on the reliability and credibility of the content of the information.
It's important to identify who is providing the information and to consider whether they can be relied on to provide the information you need.
Quality warning!
Remember, your search results might list:
Scholarly journals next to tabloid news.
Peer-reviewed articles next to vanity publishing.
The site of a Nobel prize winning scientist next to that of an Internet quack.
Detective work on sources
You need to identify and verify your sources.
Ask questions
- Who is the author?
- Who is the publisher?
- Who sponsored or funded the site?
- Do you recognise them as an authoritative source?
- What are their credentials, qualifications, background and experience?
- Has the information been edited or peer reviewed?
- Are the sources trustworthy?
- What are their motives for publishing the information?
- What standpoint do they take: impartial? Biased?
- Do other Internet sources that you trust link to this site?
Look for clues
To gather evidence look for:
- Author details is there a biographical statement that lists their job title, contact details, qualifications and publications? Is this on the Web site of their employer or is it their own personal web site?
- Details about the publisher, sponsor or developer of the site.
- The About Us section, Mission Statement or Help - these might help establish their history, affiliations and standpoint.
- The Contact Details - is there a physical address which verifies claims of authorship?
- Photographs of the author or offices of the organisation.
- A Copyright Statement to help establish the owner.
- Consider how you came by the site- was it a link from a trusted source?
- The URL (more on this later in this section).
Tips on checking your sources
- On the Internet the source of the information may not always be made explicit but in academic work you must be able to cite your sources. Always look for statements of authorship. Is there any information about their qualifications, their position or who they work for?
- If you've never heard of the sources try doing a quick Internet search on their name. Does Google tell you more about their credentials?
- You can check to see if the author has published anything else by conducting a search on a relevant bibliographic database.
- If you are quoting information taken from the web site of an organisation, always check that it is a reputable body. Look to see if it is listed in any of the directories of associations or organisations that you will find in your local library. Check if it quotes support or sponsorship from any other established bodies.
- Be wary of contact details that give you a PO number as an address or which offer a premium rate phone number - these are common tactics used by Internet fraudsters.
If the sources are not disclosed - consider rejecting the information.
