General Nursing Research Guide

 

 

STOP

When you encounter a piece of information, stop and ask yourself what you know about the source of the information or about the claim itself.

• Why does this information exist?
• What do you know about the author, website, or organization?
• What do others have to say about them?

 

INVESTIGATE the source

It's important to know the expertise and agenda of your source. Try performing a lateral reading in a search engine by looking for the author or publisher to find out what others say about them. Open multiple tabs. Ask yourself:

• What is the purpose of this information? Why does it exist?
• Who is publishing this information?
• Can you verify facts through a lateral reading?

 

FIND better coverage

Look for the best information on a topic or scan multiple sources to see what the consensus is.No information exists within a vacuum, so it's a good idea to think about:

• Who else is writing about your topic? What do other sources say on the subject?
• Does the information in front of you represent a consensus opinion, or is it controversial?

 

TRACE claims, quotes & media to their original context

When an article references a quote from an expert, or results of a research study, it is good practice to attempt to locate the original source of the information.​ Click through the links to follow the claims to the original source of information. Open up the original reporting sources listed in a bibliography if present

• Was the claim, quote, or media fairly represented?
• Does the extracted information support the original claims in the research? ​
• Is the information being taken out of context?​

 

Note: This SIFT method guide was adapted from Michael Caulfield's "Check, Please!" course. The canonical version of this course exists at http://lessons.checkplease.cc, and Wayne State University Library System https://guides.lib.wayne.edu/sift . The SIFT image at the top of the page is from Sifting Through the Pandemic.