Using and Evaluating Online Sources for Research
This paper examines the growing role of online information in everyday life and academic research. It discusses how the internet has transformed access to knowledge across virtually every profession, and how social media platforms and search engines have become primary tools for finding information. The paper outlines strategies for conducting effective online searches, proper citation of web-based sources, and methods for evaluating source credibility. It also weighs the advantages and limitations of online information, addresses privacy concerns, and highlights the ethical problem of online plagiarism. The paper concludes that, with appropriate critical skills, online sources offer tremendous research value despite their inherent risks.
- The Online Information Environment: How the internet transformed information access across professions
- Web Citations and Search Strategies: Search techniques, citation practices, and reliable source types
- Evaluating the Credibility of Online Sources: Assessing source validity, funding bias, and retraction status
- Advantages and Limitations of Online Sources: Weighing accessibility benefits against misinformation risks
- Privacy and Ethics in the Online Environment: Email privacy strategies and the problem of online plagiarism
- Conclusion: Critical evaluation skills maximize online information value
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What makes this paper effective
- Uses a relatable hypothetical example (searching for the cause of morning high blood pressure) to concretely illustrate abstract concepts like search strategy and source evaluation.
- Balances breadth and focus by moving logically from the general landscape of online information to specific, actionable guidance on searching, citing, and evaluating sources.
- Acknowledges both sides of the argument — celebrating the accessibility of online information while honestly cataloguing its risks, such as misinformation, plagiarism, and outdated links.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper consistently grounds its claims in citations, using a mix of scholarly articles (Metzger, 2007; Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010), professional sources (WebMD, PubMed), and practitioner resources (Harris, 2007). This layering of source types itself models the information-literacy behavior the paper advocates, reinforcing the argument through demonstration rather than assertion alone.
Structure breakdown
The paper opens with a broad overview of how online information has changed daily life and professional practice, then narrows progressively: from how to search effectively, to how to cite correctly, to how to assess credibility, to a structured comparison of advantages and limitations. Privacy and ethics form a penultimate section before a synthesizing conclusion. This funnel structure — wide to specific, then back to broad implications — suits an introductory-level survey paper well.
The Online Information Environment
The availability of online information has made a tremendous difference in many fields of endeavor, including daily interactions. Many journals now have articles that are "online first" before print; others comment on and critique these online articles before the print issue even exists. Online access also broadens the ease of accessing materials without a nearby extensive library. This is true in nearly every profession: science, economics, finance, business, nursing, medicine, hairdressing, and more (Leiner et al., 2003). Access to online information has changed the information paradigm, and there is now a necessity and obligation to understand what appropriate online information consists of.
Use of social media and online tools for information-searching and access has increased considerably in recent years. Information is not only proliferating but is being shared more quickly than when print was the only medium available. The use of online media is a revolution comparable to the societal transformation caused by the printing press. Individuals can communicate in real time with others across international datelines and search for information using online platforms such as chat rooms, WebMD, Twitter, Wikipedia, Facebook, and YouTube (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010, p. 59).
Online businesses are thriving, with some — like Amazon — moving from being book sellers to include movie and grocery businesses; others like Walmart may sell as much online as they do in a brick-and-mortar store. Individuals start their own businesses with merely an online presence. The "information highway" provides businesses with details of customer preferences from Facebook "likes," and many corporations now maintain a Facebook presence, while corporate consultants write online articles on using Twitter and Facebook to grow their businesses (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010, p. 60). Individuals meet, become friends, and even marry others whom they have met online, and dating sites match up individuals; specialized niche markets are arising in all directions. However, the glut of information means an individual can fall prey to false or misleading information if they do not know how to investigate and verify online sources, business reputations, and the veracity of personal details from a new acquaintance who might be a predator.
References
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CWP, Corporate Writing Pro. (2010). The power of collaboration. Retrieved January 24, 2015, from http://corporatewritingpro.com/2010/11/23/the-power-of-collaboration/
Harris, R. (2007). Evaluating internet resources. VirtualSalt. Retrieved January 24, 2015, from http://www.virtualsalt.com/evalu8it.htm
HLN, Holistic Learning Network. (2004). Metacognition — Thinking about thinking — Learning to learn. Retrieved January 24, 2015, from http://www.hent.org/world/rss/files/metacognition.htm
Kaplan, A. M., & Haenlein, M. (2010). Users of the world, unite! The challenges and opportunities of social media. Business Horizons, 53(1), 59–68.
Leiner, B. M., Cerf, V. G., Clark, D. D., Kahn, R. E., Kleinrock, L., Lynch, C., Postel, J., Roberts, L. G., & Wolff, S. (n.d.). A brief history of the Internet. Internet Society. Retrieved January 24, 2015, from http://www.isoc.org/internet/history/brief.shtml
Loutzenhiser, K., Pita, A., & Reed, J. M. (2006). Revisiting plagiarism in an internet era: How modern technology contributes to the problem and solutions. Journal of College Teaching & Learning, 3(8).
Macaulay, R. (n.d.). Critical use of the internet. University of Essex. Retrieved January 24, 2015, from
Metzger, M. (2007). Models for evaluating online information and recommendations for future research. Retrieved January 24, 2015, from
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WebMD. (2015). Hypertension/high blood pressure health center. Retrieved January 24, 2015, from http://www.webmd.com/hypertension-high-blood-pressure/news/20030303/mornings-raise-stroke-risk
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