An extremely important part of the research process is evaluating your sources. With each source, you want to answer questions to check the credibility of the information.
What to look for:
WEBSITE: The website should provide information about their mission, goals, funding, services and qualifications.
What are their qualifications (education, experience, etc.)?
Do they provide enough information to demonstrate their credibility?
Do they list the members of the organization? Do they include their contact information?
RELIABLE: The information should be accurate with documentation and evidence to show that it is true.
What information does the website provide?
Are their claims supported by evidence? How do you know?
PURPOSE: Decide the purpose of the website by looking closely at the information.
What is the purpose of the article and website?
How can you tell who the information is intended for and what missing information do you need?
It is extremely important to evaluate the sources of the information you find on the Internet, especially medical information.
Because anyone can put information on the web, so you need to be able to verify the credibility of the source and the information provided on the web sites you use for your research and studies.
Here is a short 16 minute tutorial on how to evaluate the health related information you will find on the web.
Source:
NIH: National Library of Medicine
