SIFT (The Four Moves)
Learning how to discern whether a source is credible and appropriate for your current needs is an essential part of the research process, for academic work and life alike. The SIFT method gives you four moves when looking at a source to discern whether a source is credible, find the best version of that information, and do it all in a way that makes the most efficient use of your time.
Additional SIFT Resources
- SIFT Blog SeriesThe SIFT method, as explained by its creator, Mike Caufield
- SIFTing throught the PandemicAn example of using the SIFT process to evaluate news about the COVID-19 pandemic
- Web Literacy for Student Fact-CheckersAn ebook by Mike Caufield about research and evaluating web resources
- Check, Please! Starter CourseA free five-lesson course on evaluating sources by Mike Caufield
- The first step is the simplest. Before reading the article or sharing the video, stop and ask yourself, "Do I know this website? Do I know this information source? Do I know it's reputation?" Before moving forward, use the other three moves to evaluate the source.
- If you every feel yourself getting overwhelmed evaluating a source or going off on tangents, stop and pause to remember the purpose behind your search. If you just reading for fun or to get ideas to take to scholarly databases, then verifying the reputation of the publication is enough. If you are using this as an essential source to support your argument, then the effort to verify the claims may be appropriate.
- Know what you're reading before you read it. Use Google or Wikipedia to investigate a news organization or other resource.
- Taking a minute to figure out where the information is from before reading will help you decide if it's worth your time. If it is, it also helps you better understand its significance and trustworthiness.
- Sometimes the particular article or video isn't what you care about, but rather the claim that the is making. The best strategy might be to ignore the source that reached you and look for outside and trusted reporting on that claim.
- You are looking for the best source on the topic. You may also wish to scan multiple sources to see what the expert consensus is.
- Consult some fact-checking websites to determine the veracity of a claim
- Do a reverse image search to find coverage from a trusted source
- Be sure to follow links to their source to check the original context. Was the claim, quote, or media fairly represented?
- Open up the original reporting sources listed in a bibliography if present to verify they are not being taken out of context
Reading Sources
The following guidelines can help you parse articles more quickly and find the information you need more efficiently.
- Identify why you are reading this article
You want to have an idea of how this source might fit into your research so you know what to look out for. - Read the title and abstract
This is the first step towards discerning the author’s main points. - Read the conclusion
At this point, you should be able to judge whether the article is a relevant source or not. - Go through the article and read the section headings
This will give you an idea of the paper’s structure and what to expect. - Using what you learned from the abstract, introduction, and conclusion, go through the article looking for key propositions (statements that the author believes to be true)
Key propositions form the skeleton of the author’s arguments. By focusing on them as you go through the text, you can get to the heart of what the author’s key arguments. - Reread the conclusion
Now that you understand the greater context of the article, how does the conclusion connect to the other parts of the article that support it? Have you gained any other insights or understandings from reading the conclusion a second time? Those might be elements that are important for your own research. - Scan the bibliography
Finally, scan the titles listed in the bibliography. Now that you have a sense of important concepts and keywords, some articles might jump out at you as good sources.
You will hear the distinction between scholarly and popular sources often in your classes. Popular sources are written to inform or entertain a wide general audience and are more informal in tone and scope, while scholarly articles are written by experts in their field and have gone through the peer review process. The most important difference between the two is the levels of evidence they provide, with scholarly sources often providing the best evidence through high-quality citations and the peer review process.
| Scholarly | Popular | |
|---|---|---|
| Contents | Research projects, methodologies, and theories | News and general interest articles |
| Audience | Specialized | General |
| Authors | Subject experts | Journalists and generalists |
| Topics | Highly focused and aimed towards researchers and experts | More general and aimed towards nonexperts |
| References | Bibliographies and citations | Embedded links with no bibliographies |
| Review Process | Usually peer reviewed | Edited but not peer reviewed |
| Examples | Journal of Food Science, Journal of Strength and Conditioning, Journal of Applied Psychology, Annals of Human Genetics | New York Times, Sports Illustrated, New Scientist, Psychology Today |
Research Help
Other Evaluation Methods
The SIFT moves are not the only way to evaluate information. Here are some additional evaluation methods you can use.
RADAR Method
Rationale, Authority, Date, Accuracy, Relevance
CRAAP Test
Currency, Relevancy, Authority, Accuracy, Purpose
5Ws
Ask the five journalistic questions (Who, What, When, Where, Why) to help determine if a source is reliable, credible, and appropriate for your project.