Should you use Wikipedia as a credible source? – Module 6
I am sure that most college students have heard of Wikipedia. Wikipedia is a “free online encyclopedia” that gives everyone the right to add or edit the information. When students search for a topic on Google, Wikipedia is always one of the first results. However, knowing that everyone can access to the “edit” button, should you trust Wikipedia?
The quality of your research paper depends significantly on the quality of your sources. Wikipedia is not a trusted academic source, nor considered scholarly. Although Wikipedia is now known as a bad source to use for your paper, you can use Wikipedia as a starting point to gather a general understanding of a subject, then organize your ideas and start looking for detailed sources to support your research. Indeed, sometimes Wikipedia might have even better information than the ones you find elsewhere, however, the fact that everyone can be a contributor of Wikipedia makes the information you obtained from Wikipedia less credible.
Other resources that you can use to obtain credible sources include the library research databases and Google Scholar. Both platforms offer in-depth research on complex topics written by professionals. In addition, they often include accurate publication information that allows you to check the reliability of the source.
References:
https://library.educause.edu/~/media/files/library/2007/6/eli7026-pdf.pdf
https://apuedge.com/why-you-shouldnt-use-wikipedia-for-research/