Evaluating Information Sources: Articles

How to evaluate a source based on the authority and credibility of the author:

• look for biographical detail in the publication itself
• search relevant research databases for other articles by this author
• search sources for biographical information, such as authors' address/affiliation in research databases, websites, etc.
• search citation databases for the impact of the author's work on subsequent research
  • e.g. Researchers Search in Web of Science will find other articles/books that cite or review a person's work
  • e.g. Authors Search in Scopus which will find other publication information that cite or review a person's work

How to evaluate a source for scholarly value:

• Is the journal scholarly or popular?
  • To understand the difference, visit Peer-reviewed journal articles page
• Are the journal articles peer reviewed (or refereed)?
  • Peer reviewed (or refereed) journals are scholarly journals whose articles are reviewed by other experts in the field, prior to acceptance for publication.
  • To learn about peer-reviewed articles, check the video Peer Review in Three Minutes
• Many research databases allow limiting your search to refereed/peer reviewed articles.
  • Tip: to confirm that a specific journal title is scholarly, search the title in ULRICHSWEB directory. Look for the Refereed icon or find the Refereed/Peer-reviewed information listed beside the journal search results.

• Evaluating Journal Articles: Colorado State University Libraries
• How to Evaluate Articles: Concordia University Library