Research Sources: Books, Databases, Internet searching, credibility, bias
BooksSearch for books in our school library, the local public library, and libraries all over central Illinois.
Keep in mind, you may need to expand your topic to find a book. For example, instead of searching for an entire book on "women in Shakespeare", look for a book on "Shakespeare" and check the index for the narrower topic. |
Internet searching
Once you have a topic selected, do not type in the whole question. Use keywords instead. For example:
Topic: Is popular culture too violent? Keywords: "popular culture" "violen*
Combining Terms: You can combine your keywords using AND or OR. "Popular culture" AND "violen*"
Quotation Marks: Use quotation marks to limit your search to an exact phrase.
Example: "Antebellum South" limits your search to the topic.
Wildcard: A wildcard lets you search for different letters in a word. This can be useful to search for plurals and alternate spellings. A question mark is used in place of the letter.
Example: "wom?n" searches for "woman," "women," and "womyn."
Truncation: You can use truncation to search for all the endings of a word in one search. Most search tools use the asterisk (*), but some use an exclamation point (!) or dollar sign ($). Check the help function if your search isn't working.
Example: Shakespear* searches for Shakespear, Shakespeare, Shakespearean, Shakespeare's, etc.
Topic: Is popular culture too violent? Keywords: "popular culture" "violen*
Combining Terms: You can combine your keywords using AND or OR. "Popular culture" AND "violen*"
- Shakespeare AND women gestures AND "okay sign" "Mark Twain" OR "Samuel Clemens" AND dialect
Quotation Marks: Use quotation marks to limit your search to an exact phrase.
Example: "Antebellum South" limits your search to the topic.
Wildcard: A wildcard lets you search for different letters in a word. This can be useful to search for plurals and alternate spellings. A question mark is used in place of the letter.
Example: "wom?n" searches for "woman," "women," and "womyn."
Truncation: You can use truncation to search for all the endings of a word in one search. Most search tools use the asterisk (*), but some use an exclamation point (!) or dollar sign ($). Check the help function if your search isn't working.
Example: Shakespear* searches for Shakespear, Shakespeare, Shakespearean, Shakespeare's, etc.
credibility
It is very important to search for credible sources. How do you know if something is credible? Apply the CARS criteria.
Keep in mind that a site might be somewhat truthful, but not exactly academic. Example: history.com or Wikipedia. |
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For many students, their first impulse when they get a research assignment is to search Google.Although websites can give you valuable information about the nature of your topic, in most cases, they should be cited sparingly in your final research paper. At the college level, most of your cited sources should come from journals, magazines, and books. As you progress in your academic career, you will be using journals more and more. It's best to start getting familiar with library research now, and break yourself of the habit of relying only on the open web.
Bias
Most of us have biases, and we can easily fool ourselves if we don’t make a conscious effort to keep our minds open to new information. Psychologists have shown over and over again that humans naturally tend to accept any information that supports what they already believe, even if the information isn’t very reliable. And humans also naturally tend to reject information that conflicts with those beliefs, even if the information is solid. These predilections are powerful. Unless we make an active effort to listen to all sides we can become trapped into believing something that isn’t so, and won’t even know it. — A Process for Avoiding Deception, Annenberg Classroom
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Signs That You're Looking At A Biased Source:
Game: Factitious. Check your ability to spot fake news. Read an article, swipe right if you think it's real, left for fake.
- If its purpose is to persuade, endorse, promote, market, sell or entertain. If you're not sure, check the organization/publisher/magazine website for an "about" or "mission" link. If the site has motives beyond simply teaching or informing, then you need to be on guard for bias and inaccuracies in any information that you find there.
- If it presents a one-sided view of a controversial issue, or the author dwells on his or her opinion without giving equal time to opposing viewpoints.
- If it uses negative language to describe opposing viewpoints, products, candidates, etc.
- Ad Fontes Media -- interactive media bias chart
- AllSides: "AllSides exposes bias and provides multiple angles on the same story so you can quickly get the full picture, not just one slant."
- Media Bias/Fact Check: "We are the most comprehensive media bias resource on the internet. There are currently 900+ media sources listed in our database and growing every day. Don’t be fooled by Fake News sources."
- False, Misleading, Clickbait-y, and Satirical “News” Sources: a list of sites to avoid when you need unbiased/accurate news. Compiled by a communication and media professor at Merrimack College.
Game: Factitious. Check your ability to spot fake news. Read an article, swipe right if you think it's real, left for fake.