WR122 Schumacher

You are only as credible as your information sources.

When making an argument, or exploring multiple sides of an argument, facts and truth matter. Information needs to be credible. Let's talk about what credible information looks like and I'll add your crowd-sourced ideas below.

• Authorship
  • degrees after their name
  • actually be identifiable, not anonymous
• Publisher
  • .edu, .gov = better
  • .org could be anybody or any organization - not just non-profits
• Information sources
  • facts, cited sources
  • emotion and experience counts, too!
• Purpose/Point of View
  • identifying why someone might be sharing something - is there an ulterior motive?
  • how the information is presented - is it in your face, respectful, presenting multiple sides of an argument...(think campaign ads!)
  • arguments with logical fallacies

^{Image source: owl.excelsior.edu Carl Rogers is judging your Rogerian argument.}

When your instructor says "peer-reviewed article," he mean articles written by a professional in your field of study, intended for other professionals in that field, and published in a venue that professionals in the field use.

What is a peer-reviewed article?

Peer-reviewed articles are published with the intent of sharing new research and information from specialized fields with researchers, practitioners, and students. The process of peer review helps to ensure that each published article is unique, accurate, credible, and objective. Peer-reviewed articles can be published in various venues - print journals, online journals, and academic and research organizations’ websites.

What's the purpose of peer-reviewed articles?

Peer-reviewed articles inform other scholars and students in higher education of new research and findings. They are meant to teach and share information, not entertain or sell things.

Characteristics of a peer-reviewed article

• Information is organized into sections with headings: Abstract, introduction, literature review, methods, results, discussion, and references.
• Long and in-depth; 10-20 pages is normal.
• Includes graphs or tables but few, if any, images or advertisements.
• Includes specialized or field-specific language.
• Information is presented objectively, without bias.
• Includes reference lists and in-text citations.
• Published quarterly or semi-annually.