Excellence in Scholarship, Citations & Avoiding Plagiarism: Evaluate information resources

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?

Accuracy: Is the author an expert? Is the supporting information cited and correct?  Is it in alignment with other research findings or articles?  

Objectivity:  Are multiple viewpoints considered? Is there any bias?  If so, how much? 

Coverage:  Does it present a broad overview of your topic? Is it detailed and well documented? Is it relevant to your topic?  

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

Audience: Is the audience easy to identify? Is the intended audience scholarly or a knowledgable one?