Assignment and all work in this course you must provide all your references and follow APA format. Failure to do so will result in incomplete marks, and a risk of failing the work on the basis of suspected plagiarism. On page 56 of your textbook, review the section on "Psychology in Everyday Life: Critically Evaluating the Validity of Websites". Then do the following:
Find a psychology website that you would like to evaluate. Any website that you consider to be psychology-based is fine. Include the website domain into your assignment.
Answer Stangor's questions, as noted below, which help you to evaluate the website:
- "What is the purpose of the website?
- Determine where the website information or data is coming from. Is the data being summarized from objective sources, such as journal articles or academic or government agencies?
- Does it seem that the author is interpreting the information as objectively as possible, or is the data being interpreted to support a particular point of view? Consider what groups, individuals, and political or commercial interests stand to gain from the site. Is the website potentially part of an advocacy group whose web pages reflect the particular positions of the group? Material from any group's site may be useful, but try to be aware of the group's purposes and potential biases.
- Ask whether or not the authors themselves appear to be a trustworthy source of information. Do they hold positions in an academic institution? Do they have peer-reviewed publications in scientific journals?
- Many useful web pages appear as part of organizational sites and reflect the work of that organization. You can be more certain of the validity of the information if it is sponsored by a professional organization, such as the American Psychological Association or the American Psychological Society.
Check on the accuracy of the material and discern whether the sources of information seem current. Is the information cited such that you can read it in its original form? Reputable websites will probably link to other reputable sources, such as journal articles and scholarly books. Try to check the accuracy of the information by reading at least some of these sources yourself."