BUS 105: Exploring Business

Video from NC State University Libraries 

The internet has made finding the information easy, but the influx of information at your fingertips makes your job of evaluating resources that much more important. You need to make sure that you are only using the most reliable information for your research. The CARS method of evaluating Sources (Credibility, Accuracy, Reasonableness, and Support) is a good tool to help you decide if the article you just found is worth of your paper. For each source, you want to answer the following questions. 

Credibility

You want to ensure that your source is authoritative and credible.

• What can you find out about the author? Can you find their credentials? 
• Who produces the journal, website or book? Do you trust that organization? 
• Is the piece free from grammatical errors or other indicators of low-quality controls? 

Accuracy

You want to ensure that your source is presenting information that is correct, up-to-date, detailed, exact, and comprehensive. 

• When was the piece published? How does the date influence its usefulness?
• Does the piece present information from both sides of a debate? 
• Does the information agree with other sources you have found?
• Does the piece contradict itself? 

Reasonableness

You will want to ensure that your source's approach to the information is fair, objective, moderate, and consistent. 

• Why is the author writing this piece? To inform? To sell? To Persuade?
• Can you discern if the author has a particular bias?
• Does the article present facts in a calm manner, or does it use emotional language. 

Support

You want to use sources that are supported by evidence and clearly cites the evidence they use. 

• Is there a bibliography or links to sources? 
• Does the author use credible sources to support their claims?