Evaluating the Quality of Resources for Academic Work

With so much information available, it can be difficult to ascertain if the information
you have sourced is appropriate to use at an academic level for your assessments,
assignments, and writing.
To determine if the resources you are using for your academic work are appropriate,
you may need to ask some CRAAP questions!

C – Currency
R – Relevance
A – Authority
A – Accuracy
P – Purpose

 

C – CURRENCY

Refers to the date and time of the information provided

ASK:

  1. When was the information published or posted?
  2. Has the information been revised or updated? Are there more recent
    developments/treatments etc.
  3. Does your topic require the most current and up–to–date information, or will
    older sources work as well?

Consider the following:

  • An article written about the treatment of bipolar disorder written in 2022,
    compared to an article written on the treatment of manic depression from
    1930

R – RELEVANCE

Refers to how valid or applicable information provided is

ASK:

  1. Does the information relate to your topic, or answer your question?
  2. Who is the intended audience? General public, teacher/academics, students?
  3. Is the information at an appropriate level – is it too basic, or too advanced, for
    your topic?
  4. Have you looked at a variety of sources before determining this is best and
    most relevant one you will use?

Consider the following:

  • The first five results from a Google search compared with the first five results
    from a SAGE Journals Psychology collection search

A – AUTHORITY

Refers to the source of the information and where it comes from

ASK:

  1. Who is the author/publisher/source/sponsor?
  2. What are the author’s credentials or organizational affiliations and are they
    qualified to write on the topic?
  3. Is there contact information, such as a publisher or email address?
  4. What can be determined by looking at the URL or domain?

Please Note – Website domains or a URL (Universal Resource Locator), can assist
in determining the source of the information provided. For example, to have an .edu
you have to be a university/college/school. To have a .gov you have to be a
government entity. Other website domains like .com, .org, and .net, should be
assessed and reviewed, as these domains may be purchased.

Consider the following:

  • A tweet from a celebrity discussing anxiety
  • Australian Government Department of Health website on anxiety disorders find the link here

A – ACCURACY

Refers to how reliable, trustworthy, and correct the information provided is

ASK:

  1. Where does the information come from?
  2. Is the information supported by evidence, can this be verified from other
    sources?
  3. Are there multiple citations, from multiple sources throughout?
  4. Is the information peer–reviewed?
  5. What is the language or tone of the writing and information, is it unbiased,
    professional, or emotive?
  6. Are there spelling, grammar, or typographical errors?
  7. Is there a biography or reference list?

P – PURPOSE

Refers to why the information was produced or created

ASK:

  1. Is it to educate, teach, sell, entertain, or persuade?
  2. Is the purpose of the information made clear by the authors/creators?
  3. Is the information fact, opinion, propaganda or other?
  4. Does the author’s/creator’s point of view appear to be objective, professional
    and impartial?
  5. Are there political, ideological, cultural, religious, institutional or personal
    biases throughout?

Consider the following:

  • A research paper funded by Coke–a–Cola on the relationship between sugar
    and anxiety
  • A peer–reviewed paper, published in a peer–reviewed, scholarly journal
    located through the library catalogue on the relationship between sugar and
    anxiety

Academic Resources at Cairnmillar Library Include:

  • Books and Resources held within the Library
  • Online Library Databases & Library Journal subscriptions:

✓ EBSCOhost Databases
✓ ProQuest Databases
✓ GALE OneFile Psychology Databases
✓ Psychotherapy.net
✓ Sage Journals Psychology Collection
✓ Taylor & Francis Journals Psychology Collection
✓ Elsevier Science Direct Journals
✓ Springer Journals
✓ Springer eBook collection
✓ OverDrive eBooks & Audio Books

Please Remember:

Wikipedia is NOT an appropriate academic resource.
Social Media is not an appropriate academic resource unless it is the subject of your
inquiry.
For example, The impact of Instagram on the mental health of teenagers.