Who created the source? Can you identify an author or organization? Does the author have credentials or advanced degrees in the subject they're writing about? Can you Google their name to find out more about them?
What exactly is being said? What are the main claims, and what evidence/support is given? Is the information supported with references? Can its accuracy be verified with additional sources?
When was the information created? Is it outdated or no longer relevant? Are you researching a topic where more current information is essential such as technology or medicine?
Where was the information published? In an academic source such a scholarly journal, or a popular source like a magazine or newspaper? What do you know about the website or publisher, and can you Google it to find out more?
Why was the information created, or what is the author's main purpose? Is it to inform, to persuade, to entertain, or something else? Are there any biases that come into play with the intended purpose?
You can use the rhetorical triangle to evaluate information.
Look at the competence and expertise of the author in the area they are writing.
Consider who the information is written for and whether you fit into that group.
Use the context of where the information is found as well as the context within which it was written.
We can see that the article is published by Brown University's Health blog, Be Well. Googling it, we can see that Brown University is a research institution, and if you search the author's name you can see that she's been a clinical social worker for over 20 years. We can see that the blog post links numerous references but many of these are to other Be Well blog posts. The information they link from the Pew Research Center is slightly out of date--from 2018.
Conclusion: I would not use this blog post for an academic paper. The references are weak and it would make more sense to track down the original studies to see what they have to say and use them as your citations. This article might be appropriate to share on
What type of source would you use for each scenario? Keep these types of sources in mind:
· Scholarly Journal Articles
· Trade or Professional Journal Articles
· News or Magazine Articles
· Social Media Posts
· Encyclopedia Articles
· Books
· Textbooks
Scenarios:
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