Which of the following questions can BEST help you evaluate the organization of your written work

Evaluating a source by purpose & objectivity

Evaluating a source by purpose & objectivity means that you are asking: Is there bias or a slant given to the information provided?

When considering the purpose & objectivity of a source, ask yourself the following questions:

• What point of view does the author represent? Is the source arguing for or against something? Does the source contain mostly factual information or is it opinion-based?
• Is the source associated with an organization or institution that is known for promoting a certain point of view or opinion?
• What appears to be the purpose of the information provided -- to inform, teach, sell, entertain, provide public services, or persuade?

Where should you look to determine the purpose & objectivity of a source?

Print & Database Sources

• Read the abstract, summary, or table of contents for the source
• Scan the full text of the source - look for facts, statistics, advertisements, etc.
• Examine or look up the author's and publisher's affiliations
• Examine or look up other works written or published by the author/publisher

Websites

• Read the abstract, summary, or table of contents for the source (if available)
• Scan the full text of the source - look for facts, statistics, advertisements, etc.
• Examine or lookup website's or author's affiliations
• Examine or lookup other works written or published by the author/website
• Examine the domain extension (i.e. .com, .edu)

What to avoid:

• Sources that are primarily opinion-based, with few facts or statistics (unless seeking biased sources)
• Sources that are primarily concerned with selling a product (unless seeking biased sources)
• Sources with affiliations known for promoting a certain viewpoint (unless seeking biased sources)

Note: It's okay to use information from sources that contain strong arguments or opinions, but it's always a good idea to acknowledge the author's view.

Examples & Questions to Ask

• Beef. It's What's For Dinner
  • Who sponsors this web site?
  • Does it promote an agenda or a specific viewpoint?
• Melatonin.com
  • Is this site purely informational, or is it trying to sell a product (advertising)?
• Monsanto - Biotechnology
  • Who sponsors this web site? Does it promote an agenda or a specific viewpoint?

The C.R.A.A.P. Test was created by Sarah Blakeslee (University of California at Chico, Meriam Library). With her permission, this content was based on her original text with some modifications.

Answered By: Jennifer HarrisLast Updated: May 12, 2020     Views: 46538

Evaluating Sources

As you begin your research you will probably find lots of information from many types of sources. When you are college and in most professional settings after college you will be expected to use high quality sources of information for your work. As you gather information for your research projects, you'll find many sources in many formats such as books, articles from databases, Web documents, interviews, videos, and more.

For in-depth help evaluating sources, visit our Evaluating Sources guide. However in brief, here are five criteria you should use to evaluate the sources you find:

Relevancy

Does it answer your question or contribute to your research?

When considering the relevancy of a source, there are several things to ask yourself:

• Is the scope of the source is appropriate for your research? Does the source provide a general overview of your topic or is it focused specifically on a single aspect of your topic?
• Who is the intended audience for the source? Is the information too basic or too technical? Does it assume you have prior knowledge about the topic?
• How many sources have you found? Have you searched thoroughly enough to find the most relevant sources available?

Currency

Is the content presented current enough for your project?

When considering the currency of a source, ask yourself:

• Was this source published recently or is it older? Does your research call for the use of very current sources (e.g. medical research) or can you use older sources (e.g. historical research)?
• If you are evaluating a website or other frequently updated source, does the website list the date it was last updated and is the date current enough for your research?

Accuracy 

Is the information provided correct?

When considering accuracy, ask yourself the following questions:

• Has the source been edited or peer-reviewed?
• Has the author supplied a list of references for their work? Does the list of references include scholarly sources?
• Does the source include spelling or grammatical errors? Is the source logical, well organized, and professional in appearance?

Authoritativeness 

Does the author have expertise on the topic about which he/she is writing?

When considering authoritativeness, ask yourself:

• Who is the author? Is he or she a subject expert on the topic? What are the author's credentials?
• Is the source sponsored or published by a reputable organization or institution?

Objectiveness 

Is there bias or a slant given to the information provided?

When considering the objectiveness of a source, ask yourself the following questions:

• What point of view does the author represent? Is the source arguing for or against something? Does the source contain mostly factual information or is it opinion-based?
• Is the source associated with an organization or institution that is known for promoting a certain point of view or opinion?

Note: It's okay to use information from sources that contain strong arguments or opinions, but it's always a good idea to acknowledge the author's view.

More information:

• Evaluating Sources Using C.R.A.A.P.O.
• Source Evaluation Rubric
• Evaluating Websites

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