FP Bibliography and Source Evaluation Library Assignment

This assignment requires that you evaluate each source in your bibliography by answering the following questions: 

1. What is the author's main point of the work?
2. Who is the source’s intended audience? How do you know?
3. Do you think this is a credible source? Why or why not?
   1. What type of source is this? (scholarly, popular, etc.)
   2. Who is the author and what are their credentials and/or expertise?
4. How is this source relevant to your research topic?

This page breaks down these questions and gives some suggestions on how you can answer each one.

We understand that with two weeks to complete this assignment, you may not have time to carefully read each source you find in order to determine the author's main point -- especially if you are using books and/or long articles as sources. Here are some other strategies you can use to identify the author's main point for longer works:

• Closely read the abstract (if there is one). An abstract is a summary of the work that should include the author's main points, methods, and conclusions.
• Read the introduction and conclusion. Authors will often state their main point in their introductions and then repeat this idea with their findings in the conclusion.
• For books, use book reviews, which will include a description of the work's key points. For help finding book reviews, check out our Find Book Reviews research guide!

The source's intended audience is who the author created the source for. To answer this question, you need to have an understanding of who the author is, what type of source they created, and what is the purpose of the source. Who a source is intended for will shape the content and style of the source.

In evaluating the source's credibility, you have been specifically asked to answer:

1. What is the source type?
2. Who is the author and what are their credentials and/or expertise?

Open the Types of Sources page of this guide for assistance determining the source type.

Source credibility goes beyond source type and the author's credentials! To learn more about how to evaluate a source's credibility, view the resources on Source Credibility page of this guide.

Your answer to this question should go beyond the source being a search result. Try to find a source that directly relates to your specific research topic or question. You can best answer this question by detailing that direct connection. This connection can be a piece of information that address a main point of your research topic or question, details that support your argument, a contradicting viewpoint on your topic, etc. 

Essentially, how does this source meet your research needs?