Source Evaluation

Source evaluation asks whether a source is credible, traceable, current enough, and relevant for this particular scholarly purpose.

来源评估同时判断它是否值得信、能否追溯、时效是否足够，以及是否适合当前任务。

Evaluation Dimensions

• Authority: author expertise and institutional context
• Publication: publisher, editorial process, and peer review
• Purpose: research, explanation, advocacy, sales, or entertainment
• Evidence: methods, data, references, and traceability
• Currency: whether age matters for the question
• Relevance: fit with the exact claim, audience, genre, and assignment

Central Distinction

Reliability is not the same as relevance.

A reputable news report may be reliable but too general for a technical claim. A rigorous article may be credible but answer a different question. Evaluation therefore ends with a use decision, not merely a quality label.

Connections

• Search and use cycle: Information Literacy
• Finding candidates: Search Strategy
• Reading the argument: Critical Reading
• Evidence trail: Academic Citation
• Source module: AE26 Module 3-Information Literacy