BCHM 5784: Evaluating Information

As you decide which resources to include in your research, here are some things to think about:

Authority:  Who wrote it?  What sort of expertise do they have in this area?

Coverage:  Is it relevant to your topic?  

Objectivity:  Is there any bias?  If so, how much?

Accuracy:  Is the information correct?  Is it in alignment with other research findings or articles?  

Currency:  When was your resource produced?  Does this matter for your topic?  

"How to Critically Appraise an Article" (2009) by J. M. Young & M. J. Solomon. Nature Reviews Gastroenterology & Hepatology, 6(2), 82. 

How to Read a Paper: The Basics of Evidence-Based Medicine (2014) by Trisha Greenhalgh. How to Read a Paper demystifies evidence-based medicine and explains how to critically appraise published research and also put the findings into practice. How to Read a Paper explains what to look for in different types of papers and how best to evaluate the literature and then implement the findings in an evidence-based, patient-centred way.

“How to Read and Understand a Scientific Paper: A Guide for Non-Scientists,” (2013) by Jennifer Raff, Assistant Professor, Department of Anthropology, University of Kansas at Lawrence. This post was published August 25, 2013 on her blog titled Violent Metaphors: Thoughts from the Intersection of Science, Pseudoscience, and Conflict."