Communication Studies: Research Process

Use bibliographies

Note any useful sources (books, journal or magazine articles, etc.) listed in the bibliography at the end of the encyclopedia article or dictionary entry. The sources cited in the bibliography are good starting points for further research. Many of the books and articles you find in the course of your research will themselves have bibliographies. Check these bibliographies for additional relevant resources for your research. Consistently following up on sources cited in bibliographies can generate a large list of books and articles on your research topic in a relatively short time.

Another test of the reliability of information is to look for the sources used to substantiate the item you have. Ask yourself:

• are there footnotes and a bibliography?
• are sources cited for specific facts and statements?
• are sources cited for any quotations used?
• are the sources cited ones you recognize to be reputable?
• does your instructor or other knowledgeable person recognize them as reputable?
• are people, organizations, or institutions referenced in the work ones you recognize as reputable?
• does your instructor or other knowledgeable person recognize these people, organizations, or institutions as reputable?

If most of the sources cited by the information you have are generally considered reliable then the information you have is probably reliable.

If most or all of the sources are not generally considered to be reliable, then the information you have may not be reliable.

If no sources are given for the information you have, then the reliability of that information is open to question.

There is a difference between subject headings and keywords, despite the fact that these terms are sometimes used as though they were they same thing. They are not the same and they function differently in a search for information. Understanding this difference will help you structure a more effective search for information on your topic.

Key Question: Is the person, organization, or institution responsible for the intellectual content of the information knowledgeable in that subject?

Determining the knowledge and expertise of the author of information is an important aspect of evaluating the reliability of information. Anyone can make an assertion or a statement about some thing, event, or idea, but only someone who knows or understands what that thing, event, or idea is can make a reasonably reliable statement or assertion about it.

Some external indications of knowledge of or expertise are:

• a formal academic degree in a subject area
• professional or work-related experience- businessmen, government agency personnel, sports figures, etc. have expertise on their area of work
• active involvement in a subject or organization by serious amateurs who spend substantial amounts of personal time researching and studying that subject area.
• organizations, agencies, institutions, corporations with active involvement or work in a particular subject area.

HINT: Be careful of opinions stated by professionals outside of their area of work expertise.