Social Work Research Guide (old)

Timeliness:

   When was this content produced/written?

Must this information be current and/or up to date to be useful to you?

Reliability

Is this source making extraordinary claims?

Are the source’s claims supported by other, external sources?

 Are there spelling errors? If there are links, are they functional?

 Is there a list of sources or links to references throughout?

Author(ity)

Who wrote this?

Are there any connections/credentials that make this person or group

an expert?

Are there any connections/credentials that make this person or group

biased?

Purpose

  Is this information relevant to the question you are trying to answer?

  Why was this information published?

  What opinions, if any, are expressed?

  Is the language strong or emotional, such that it suggests bias?

   Is the source trying to sell you something: a product, a service, even

     an idea? Are there ads?