Criteria for assessing the suitability of sources of information

The T.R.A.A.P Test (text based)

The TRAAP Test is a list of questions to help you evaluate the information you find. Different criteria will be more or less important depending on your situation or need.

Evaluation Criteria

Timeliness

• When was the information published?
• Does the age of the information affect the accuracy?
• Is there a more recent version that supports or refutes the original?
• Are the links functional?

Relevance

• Who is the intended audience?
• Is it pitched at a scholarly audience?
• Have you looked at a variety of similar sources before selecting this one?
• Would you be comfortable citing this source?

Authority

• Where did the information come from?
• Is the author / publisher / sponsor identified?
• Can their credentials be verified?
• Has the source been cited in other research?
• Do you trust the source?

Accuracy

• Can the information be verified other in other reliable sourced?
• Does the research contain sufficient evidence to back it up?
• Has it been through a peer-review process?
• Are there spelling or grammatical errors?

Purpose 

• Why was this information created?
• Does it seek to inform, provide facts, to sell, or to persuade you of something?
• Is there evidence of political, religious, institutional, or personal biases?
• Is the information objective and impartial?