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What makes a source credible?
A credible source can be identified by some of the following characteristics:
- Is the source in-depth or suitable for the level of research that you need?
- Is it longer than a page? Does it have an abstract, a reference list, documented research or data? Maybe you just need an overview?
- Who is the audience?
- Academic, for an audience of college students, professors, and professionals OR is it popular, for a general audience?
- What is the purpose of the source?
- To provide information, original research, entertainment, to give or sway an opinion, to sell you something, to provide news or specific information for trade or industry?
- Who are the authors/creators/supporters?
- Are they a respected entity, well-known in the field? Are they easily identifiable? Have they written about other similar topics? What are their credentials? Would they be considered "experts" on the topic?
- Is it easy to identify that it is written or created by a person?
- Is the source reputable?
- Is it from a library database, a scholarly journal, or an authoritative web site?
- Is the source adequate for your topic?
- Does it fulfill at least some of your criteria or provide some relevant information that you need?
- Is there supporting documentation?
- Are there links or credit given to outside or referenced resources (these include hyperlinks, graphs, charts, illustrations, statistics, references, a list of consulted outside sources, or other supporting documentation)
