Step 5: Evaluating Information
In your search for literature and other sources you will find all sorts of information, but this information is not all of the same quality. It is important to develop a critical approach that will enable you to evaluate the material properly. The two main criteria for evaluating the information you find are relevance and reliability. In this context, ‘relevance’ means the extent to which the information helps you to answer the research question. And in this context, ‘reliability’ means the extent to which you can rely on the information being correct.
In this part of the toolbox you will learn how to assess information resources on relevancy and reliability.