Choosing sources

• Source


  Any reference containing information
• Types of sources


  • Books and encyclopedias
  • Websites, web pages, and blogs
  • Magazine, journal, and newspaper articles
  • Research reports and conference papers
  • Field notes and diaries
  • Photographs, paintings, cartoons, and other art works
  • Government documents
• Primary source


  Information in its original form, which is not translated by anyone else and has not been published elsewhere
• Secondary source


  Repackaged, a restatement, or interpretation of primary information
• Tertiary source


  An index or something that condenses or summarises information
• Source quality


  • High quality
  • Varied quality
  • Questionable
• High quality sources


  Written by experts, reviewed carefully, and provide in-depth information about the topics based on the research
• Varied quality sources


  Often applicable and useful, but do not provide in-depth information, are not reviewed, and are not based on research works
• Questionable sources


  Usually based on the writers' opinion or aim to attract a large volume of readers and are not reviewed
• Scholarly sources


  Written by academics and other experts and contribute to knowledge in a particular field by sharing new research findings, theories, analyses, insights, news, or summaries of current knowledge
• Scholarly articles


  • Present new research on specific research questions, making them primary sources
  • Review existing research in a field, making them valuable secondary sources
• Criteria to evaluate scholarly articles

  • Accuracy
  • Authority
  • Bias
  • Audience
  • Currency
• Peer-reviewed sources


  Scholarly journals where other experts in the field check each article before it can be published
• Information needs for a research project

  • Learning the background of the study
  • Answering the research question
  • Convincing the audience about the answers
  • Describing the importance of different situations surrounding the research question
• Process of searching and selecting sources

  1. Identify research questions

  2. Identify main concepts

  3. Consider related terms

  4. Apply interactive searching strategy

  5. Avoid too narrow or too broad search statements
• Criteria for evaluating sources

  • Authority
  • Purpose
  • Publication and format
  • Date of publication
  • Relevance
  • Documentation
• The ASAP method can also be used to evaluate sources, considering authority, sources, age, and publisher
• Choosing resources


  Evaluating the resources used
• Correctness


  Accuracy of information
• Authority


  Whether the author is qualified and an authority on the topic
• Bias


  Whether the information is one-sided or taking sides on an argument
• Audience


  The targeted readers the author is writing for
• Currency


  How updated or relevant the information is
• Source


  Any reference containing information
• Types of sources


  • Books and encyclopedias
  • Websites, web pages, and blogs
  • Magazine, journal, and newspaper articles
  • Research reports and conference papers
  • Field notes and diaries
  • Photographs, paintings, cartoons, and other art works
  • Government documents
• Primary source


  Information in its original form, which is not translated by anyone else and has not been published elsewhere
• Secondary source


  Repackaged, a restatement, or interpretation of primary information
• Tertiary source


  An index or something that condenses or summarises information
• Source quality


  • High quality
  • Varied quality
  • Questionable
• High quality sources


  Written by experts, reviewed carefully, and provide in-depth information about the topics based on the research
• Varied quality sources


  Often applicable and useful, but do not provide in-depth information, are not reviewed, and are not based on research works
• Questionable sources


  Usually based on the writers' opinion or aim to attract a large volume of readers and are not reviewed
• Scholarly sources


  Written by academics and other experts and contribute to knowledge in a particular field by sharing new research findings, theories, analyses, insights, news, or summaries of current knowledge
• Scholarly articles


  • Present new research on specific research questions, making them primary sources
  • Review existing research in a field, making them valuable secondary sources
• Criteria to evaluate scholarly articles

  • Accuracy
  • Authority
  • Bias
  • Audience
  • Currency
• Peer-reviewed sources


  Scholarly journals where other experts in the field check each article before it can be published
• Information needs for a research project

  • Learning the background of the study
  • Answering the research question
  • Convincing the audience about the answers
  • Describing the importance of different situations which surround the research question
• Process of searching and selecting sources

  1. Identify research questions

  2. Identify main concepts

  3. Consider related terms

  4. Apply interactive searching strategy

  5. Use neither too narrow nor too broad search statements
• Criteria for evaluating sources

  • Authority
  • Purpose
  • Publication and format
  • Date of publication
  • Relevance
  • Documentation
• ASAP method for evaluating sources

  • Authority
  • Sources
  • Age
  • Publisher