Finding and Evaluating Sources

1. Finding and Evaluating Sources

2. A system of thinking about the types of evidence is as follows: Hard Evidence • Facts • Statistics • Surveys/Polls • TestimoniesNarrativesInterviews • Experiments • Textual Evidence Rational Appeals • Anecdote • Analogy • Consequences • Effects • Contrasts • Categories • Comparisons • Examples • Quotes

3. Evaluating Evidence

4. Corroborate important evidence • It’s not as easy as just sticking in evidence. Sometimes evidence needs to be corroborated or supported by other types of evidence. • Interviews and testimonies are far more valuable if there is corroborating evidence. • Hard evidence such as surveys and polls require tests for mathematical significance and error; they also require large and diverse samples. • Evidence also needs to be from a reliable and credible source, and there are mechanisms to suggest reliability and credibility

5. Reliability • Reliability means that the evidence is consistent. Reliability is often shown in scientific studies through a literature review that shows that similar research has asked similar questions and gained similar answers. The same can be said of testimonies and interviews – if corroborating interviews or testimonies are similar to the original evidence, we can say that evidence is reliable.

6. Credibility • Credibility means that the evidence has had some means confirming its trustworthiness. For example, we might rely on expert opinion in an interview about global warming from a scientist (in which we are looking for his or her credentials such as academic degrees, years experience on the topic, and past accomplishments), or an article published in an academic journal (which is peer-reviewed; other specialists on the topic review the article for its plausibility and accurateness)

7. Primary versus secondary sources • A Primary source is one in which the information that is being reported was actually tested and collected by the person reporting it. Academic journals, investigative reporting in newspapers, and organizations that conduct polls are primary source sources. • Primary source research is also that which you, the writer have conducted through observation, survey, or interview. • A Secondary source is one in which some primary source is reinterpreted for another audience or purpose. Magazines, television newscasts, and some reporting in newspapers is secondary source.

8. What’s the big deal? • If you use lots of secondary sources as evidence, it is not as credible or reliable since the secondary source has already “reinterpreted” the data for its argument (and thus, has left some information out). • So, no secondary sources ever? Not so fast. Secondary sources can be useful as corroborating evidence in some cases, and they can be useful for critique and analysis.

9. To tell when a source is a reliable, credible and primary, ask these questions: • What does it look like? • Where did you find it? • What is its purpose? • Who are its authors? • Who published it? • Was it documented? • Was it reviewed?

10. It can be trickyLet’s look at some examples. • Scholarly Book / Scholarly Book of Articles Scholarly books are often written and edited by academics (e.g. university professors, teachers and administrators). They document their evidence using mostly primary source research, so there is often not a lot of newspaper or magazines cited. Sometimes there are footnotes, or in-text citation, but there will always be a Works Cited/Reference section. Scholarly books are most often found in university libraries and they are published by university presses (e.g. MIT, Cambridge, Harvard) and academic publishers (e.g. Bedford, Routledge). They are not often bestsellers, although they will have occasionally won an award or two.

11. vs. • Popular Book Popular books can be written by academics, but they are often not. They will sometimes document their sources, but most often will not, or they will use secondary sources. Popular books are found in bookstores more than in university libraries. They are published usually by mainstream presses (Penguin, Harper, Random House), although they can also be published by divisions of academic publishers. If they are a bestseller, they will say so.

12. So, which one is which?

13. So, which one is which?

14. And what else… • Academic Journal Academic journals are often published by academic publishers (Routledge, Taylor and Francis, SAGE) or by organizations that usually have an association with universities. The articles take up almost the entire amount of the journals, with occasional advertisements for textbooks and conferences. The authors are almost always associated with a university as a professor, teacher or administrator. Articles will always be documented.

15. vs. • Magazines Popular magazines are found in the grocery store and bookstore, and they are often published monthly or biweekly. They have a lot of advertising for mass-market products and this advertising takes up a significant amount of space in the magazine. The articles usually are written from a narrative or advice perspective, and they often include many pictures, often taken by a person other than the author. The articles almost never document sources.

16. Online Sources • The difficult part is that given the traditions of print, telling an academic source from a popular source is pretty consistent. On the Internet, the sources may be a bit difficult to determine as to their validity. • However, you can use the same questions on an online source as you can to a print source, with the answers telling you much about the reliability of the source. • The biggest problem is that the traditional review process is often eliminated in online environments. This holds true for both academic and non-academic sources. • For example, http://arxiv.org/ allows any science researcher to publish his or her research without a formal peer-review process. Arxiv was originally not associated with anything, but now it is clearly hosted by Cornell University.

17. The following questions are still relevant for Online Sources • What does it look like? • Where did you find it? • What is its purpose? • Who are its authors? • Who published it? • Is it documented? • Is it reviewed?

18. But we might also need to make sure of the following in order that the website be credible and reliable: • The authors’ names are clearly shown • The argument is logically believable • They acknowledge conflicting data or sources (they have a counterargument) • They cite and reference other credible sources • Their research methods are reliable and appropriately explained • They attempt to be objective • They aren’t trying to sell you anything

19. Pick three websites to evaluate as to whether they are reliable and credible sources or not and describe why. Here are the websites: • http://www.buzzle.com/articles/great-ways-to-teach-math-to-your-child.html • http://chestjournal.chestpubs.org/content/118/4/1150.long • http://www.squidoo.com/arevideogamesbadforyou • http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/57606/2/skonrath_2.pdf • http://www.timecube.com • http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2009-12-08-school-lunch-standards_N.htm • http://www.anomalies-unlimited.com/Denver_Airport.html • http://www.apfn.org/apfn/moon.htm • http://www.dhmo.org • http://www.fluorideresearch.org/ • http://www.netaddictionrecovery.com/the-problem/gaming-addiction/188-frequency-of-video-gaming.html • http://www.projectcensored.org/top-stories/articles/category/top-stories/top-25-of-2011/

20. Finding Evidence

21. Online Databases • Online databases offer electronic versions of print sources. The general databases will allow you to access magazines, newspapers, and academic journals. Sometimes, the databases offer books as well. • Online databases should be your primary stop while doing research once you have a topic. They offer you the reliability and credibility of sources that the Internet can’t offer.

22. To get to the databases from the library • Select Database from the front page:

23. The major DBs • Penrose library subscribes to many online databases. The ones that you should be most familiar depend on your major, but a useful, general database to begin with is: • Academic Search Premier (EBSCOHost) • There are two more that you may need to rely on at DU, and they are • ScienceDirect • Jstor • You will learn more in WRIT 1133

24. Some More Library Advice • Not all the articles in a given journal will be in electronic format. Academic Search Premier may offer only the option“FIND THIS ITEM IN PENROSE LIBRARY” By selecting the link, it will show you whether Penrose has the item or not, and where you can find it

25. Research Hints and Tips • The following slides are designed to walk you through some hints and tips for finding sources. • These research strategies apply not only to this assignment but to future assignments as well (and assignments you have in other classes). • Searching using the filters: • Peer-Reviewed • Full Text • Referenced

26. Browse • Sometimes when you don’t know what to write about, it’s good to start browsing the web to see what is going on. You might start by typing in some preliminary topics in the news search of Google or Yahoo. • If you are in need of primary source research, you can also browse academic journals.

27. Ask • Ask a Librarian – Most librarians will be very helpful in finding information for your topics. The Penrose library has a Reference Librarian whose job it is to sit at a desk in the middle and help students. Finding obscure sources is their job—they are the pros. But note, they are there to help you not do it for you. • Ask a Professor – Most professors, especially those who are in the field of your topic, will help you not only find an issue but suggest some sources as well. Depending on how well the professor knows you, he or she may also let you borrow articles or books on the topic.

28. Follow text trails (references/works cited in journal articles, bibliographies, news stories) • If you find a good source, you should be able to find many more relevant sources. • Academic journal articles will usually triangulate and synthesize past research on an issue. Use the Reference/Works Cited page as a way to get more sources. • Newspaper articles, although secondary, often dumb-down primary source articles for a mass audience. If a news story interests you, follow the trail to the primary source. • Search the Internet for bibliographies on your topic

29. Follow authors • Most authors are experts on their topics, so they have written multiple articles on that topic. • You might even Google the author to see if he/she has a webpage that has their résumé or CV (the academic version of a résumé)

30. The most important advice Find the best sources rather than the easy sources.