Answered By: LibraryResearchTeam Lebanon Last Updated: Jan 02, 2020 Views: 234
Unlike books and scholarly databases, it's easy for anyone to create a website or edit a Wikipedia entry. Websites can provide quick and up-to-the-minute information, but not all of it is true, trustworthy, or appropriate for college-level research. So, it's important to ask a few questions to make sure the sites we're using are reliable for research.
The CRAAP Test
- Currency - Is it recent?
- Relevance - How closely does it relate to my topic?
- Authority - Who created this?
- Accuracy - Where did the author get their information?
- Purpose - Why does this information exist?
Evaluate websites using the questions below. If you can say “yes” to all of the questions, you have a trustworthy source. If you say “no” to any of these questions, this may not be the best source to use in your research.
Currency |
||
The original date of publication or the last updated date is within the last five years (or within the date range assigned by your professor). (If you can’t find a date, choose no.) |
yes |
no |
Relevance |
||
The content is closely related to the topic of my research. |
yes |
no |
The information seems neither too simple nor too difficult for me to understand. |
yes |
no |
Authority |
||
The author, publisher, source, or sponsor of the site is named. |
yes |
no |
The author or publisher is an expert on this topic. (If you can’t tell what the author’s job or the publisher’s purpose is, choose no.) |
yes |
no |
Accuracy |
||
References are given for where your source got their information. OR The source is a researcher or government agency responsible for collecting and creating the information |
yes |
no |
Information is clear with no spelling or grammar mistakes. On websites there are no broken links. |
yes |
no |
Purpose |
||
On websites (not databases), the address ends in .edu, or .gov. |
yes |
no |
The source has no advertisements and is not trying to sell you anything. |
yes |
no |
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