How to score a perfect 10: to evaluate research and sources of information, consider the answers to these 10 questions.

• Author: Mejeur, Jeanne
• Position: TOOLS OF THE TRADE

In any job, your credibility depends on the quality of your work. Nowhere is that more important than in the halls of the capitol, working for a legislature.

One of the most important roles of legislative staff is to inform the public debate with the research they conduct for members and committees. To do that effectively, staff need accurate, up-to-date information from credible, reliable sources.

But in this age of information overload, with a plethora of material available within seconds, sorting the good from the bad can be difficult, especially during the fast pace of a legislative session. With short deadlines and a demanding workload, sometimes just finding any relevant information becomes the primary focus.

Staff shouldn't, however, lose sight of the need to evaluate research and sources carefully. Having a framework to use improves the quality of work staff do for legislatures and lessens the chances of making an avoidable mistake. Many articles are available on evaluating resources, with a wide variety of criteria, but almost all of them include five basic elements: authority, reliability, currency, purpose and scope.

1 Authority: Who's behind it?

Research is only as good as the authors. Are they qualified to be writing about the subject, by either education or experience? Are they well-respected in their field? Were they paid for their research? By whom? That "someone" just might have a perspective on the issue, which might color the results of the research. The publisher matters, too. Is it a recognized mainstream publisher or a respected university press? Or is the material self-published or put out by a publisher that has a reputation for a particular perspective in its products?

2 Reliability: Is it accurate?

Accuracy is the stock-in-trade of legislative research, so learn to evaluate the quality of resources. Does the information make sense and appear to be accurate in comparison with other resources on the same issue? Is it presented logically? Is it well-written? Was the material edited or peer-reviewed? Does it contain references, sources or a bibliography? Data sources should be provided for all charts, graphs and statistics. That allows you to evaluate the reliability of the original sources and the method used for gathering the data. A healthy skepticism will serve you well, because even trusted sources can sometimes let you down. Misinformation and disinformation are growing problems. The number of retractions and...