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Gender, women, sexuality, masculinity and feminism: Websites and online archives

Library resources for researching gender, women, sexuality, masculinity and feminism related topics

Finding information online

There is a huge amount of information on the Internet but the quality is sometimes variable. Some reliable sources are suggested below. See also the tips and suggestions to help you evaluate what's good and what's not!

Websites and online archives and collections

Tips on evaluating websites

Success

Before believing the information given on a web site, or quoting it in your essay or project, think about the following:

Authority

  • Who is responsible for the page/site?
  • Is it a reliable organisation (eg a well known university) or a subject expert?
  • Can you trust them?

Accuracy and reliability

  • Is the information correct?
  • Is the grammar and spelling correct?
  • Is it complete, or are they just giving one point of view?
  • Do they have their own agenda eg political organisations?
  • Is the information fact or opinion?

Currency

  • Can you tell how up-to-date it is?
  • Is it regularly updated?
  • You don't want to quote out-of-date information

Audience / relevance

  • Is the information of the right level to be quoted in your project? If it is aimed at the general public or school children it might not be!

Feel!

  • Is the site well structured and easy to navigate?
  • Are the links from the page up-to-date and valid?
  • If it is well designed and maintained then you can feel more confident about the information it provides