Reflection 2 / For WIZARD KIM

Credibility of a Source of Information

Casey Lee

American Public University

BUSN410: Critical Thinking for Business Decisions

01/02/2020

There are many sources of information, which are not always easy to assess their credibility. Evaluating which source of information is critical in everyday life; in school, workplaces, or even every aspect of our lives. Analyzing which source is credible is important because it enables one to come up with a source of information that can be trusted (Go, 2016). This is because there are various sources of information which prove to be very complicated, and this makes it quite difficult to evaluate which source to trust. Besides, coming up with a credible research also is dependent on the source of information used. When credible sources are used to support the view of the researcher, the findings are also trustworthy. The availability and accessibility of the internet materials exposes us to various sources of information from various authors and experts, but this does not qualify them to be credible. It is important to possess the necessary technical skills that will make it easy to evaluate the credibility of a source of information. Generally, the credibility of a specific source is highly dependent on the credibility of the author, the organization, or the publishing site. The following criteria may be employed to evaluate the credibility of a source of information.

1. Publisher: The reputation of the organization involved in the publishing the source needs to be determined in order to assess the credibility of the source (Lecheler, 2016). A press that is attached to an academic institution is believed to produce a more credible source.

2. Content: The presented information in a source should not only indicate the opinion of the author but should also recognize other sources of information about the same topic. The source of information should be brief and straight to the point to avoid frustrating the users who want to use the information. The source is considered to be credible if it is possible to get relevant information within the shortest period of time.

3. Time: Another important criterion to consider is the time of publication. A credible source of information should be current. This is because areas of research, especially in the field of research require sources to be current, although the old sources can be used for background searches. However, the area of technology requires the information to be current for it to be classified as current.

4. Authority: The author of the information should have credential in the field which they are writing about. The author of the information needs to have credentials of information in the particular field for it to be credible, and it is possible to be contacted for any clarifications.

5. The Audience: It is also important for the source to determine the intended audience of the information. This helps in determine the tone of the information, the depth to avoid cases of misinterpretation in case the information is too specialized. The audience can be determined by looking at the index, table of content, and preface.

6. Reference List: Another important criterion for determining credibility of a source of information is to look at the list of the work cited. Credible sources that have been used will also result in credible and reliable information.

7. Identification of bias: the source can be biased if the author of the source to be strongly or emotionally attached to the subject matter of the topic. If such a scenario appears to happen the credibility of the source is compromised because it will not present the information in a fair manner.

8. Reviews: What other people say about the source is quite important when determining the credibility of the source. This will help the user of the information determine whether there is controversy with the particular source of information. If it proves to be controversial, it will be important to avoid such a source.

9. Accuracy: A source that presents accurate information is considered to be credible. It is also important to compare the source with some other important information held regarding the same tropic (Sbaffi, 2017). This is important because it shows whether the information under consideration is correct, and hence determines the credibility of the source.

10. Awards and sources of fund: he sources of funds to carry out a given research and the awards won also need to be evaluated to determine the potential of influencing the research outcome of the given subject. The awards won and the organizations presenting these awards need to be determined for the source to be deemed credible.

References

Go, E., You, K. H., Jung, E., & Shim, H. (2016). Why do we use different types of websites and assign them different levels of credibility? Structural relations among users' motives, types of websites, information credibility, and trust in the press. Computers in Human Behavior, 54, 231-239.

Lecheler, S., & Kruikemeier, S. (2016). Re-evaluating journalistic routines in a digital age: A review of research on the use of online sources. ew media & society, 18(1), 156-171.

Sbaffi, L., & Rowley, J. (2017). rust and credibility in web-based health information: a review and agenda for future research. Journal of medical Internet research, 19(6), e218.