Research Skills

Why Research Skills Matter

Good research is the foundation of strong academic writing. Knowing how to find, evaluate, and use sources properly will help you throughout school, university, and professional life.

Poor research — relying on unreliable sources, copying without attribution, or failing to evaluate what you read — undermines the quality of your work and can constitute academic dishonesty.

Key Terms

Term	Meaning
Source	A document, website, book, or other material providing information
Primary source	An original document or firsthand account (a diary, original research data)
Secondary source	A text that analyses or summarises primary sources (a textbook, review article)
Peer review	The process of expert scrutiny before publication in academic journals
Plagiarism	Using someone else's words or ideas without giving credit
Citation	A reference showing where information came from
Bibliography	A full list of sources consulted or cited
Paraphrase	Restating an idea in your own words

Finding Sources

Use a variety of sources for well-rounded research:

Source type	Strengths
Books and textbooks	Detailed, authoritative, well-edited information
Encyclopaedias (Britannica, World Book)	Reliable overviews; good starting point
Academic / peer-reviewed journals	Rigorous, expert-reviewed research
Government websites (.gov, .gov.uk)	Authoritative data and statistics
University websites (.ac.uk, .edu)	Expert academic content
Established news outlets	Current events and journalism

Use with caution:

• Wikipedia — useful as a starting point to understand a topic; check its sources rather than citing it directly
• Anonymous blogs and forums — no editorial oversight, no accountability
• Social media posts — rarely verified; easy to manipulate or misrepresent

Evaluating Sources: The CRAAP Test

Before using any source, evaluate it against these five criteria:

Letter	Stands for	Questions to ask
C	Currency	When was it published or updated? Is the information still current?
R	Relevance	Does it directly address your topic and research question?
A	Authority	Who wrote it? What are their credentials? Is the publication reputable?
A	Accuracy	Are claims supported by evidence? Are sources cited?
P	Purpose	Why was this written? To inform, to sell, to persuade? Is there obvious bias?

A source that fails on multiple criteria should not be used as a key reference.

Searching Effectively

Getting good search results requires strategy:

• Use specific keywords: "climate change effects on coral reefs" returns better results than "global warming"
• Use quotation marks for exact phrases: "renewable energy policy"
• Filter by domain: add site:.edu or site:.gov to a Google search to limit results to academic or government sites
• Use Boolean operators: AND (both terms), OR (either term), NOT (exclude a term)
• Check the date: add a date filter to ensure results are recent

Taking Notes

Effective note-taking prevents plagiarism and saves time during writing:

• Paraphrase key ideas in your own words as you go — do not copy sentences verbatim
• Mark direct quotes clearly with quotation marks in your notes so you remember to cite them
• Record source details immediately: author, title, date, URL or page number
• Note only what is relevant to your specific argument or question
• Organise notes by theme rather than by source — this helps with planning and writing

Plagiarism

Plagiarism is using someone else's words, ideas, data, or intellectual work without giving them proper credit. It is a serious academic offence with significant consequences.

Forms of plagiarism:

• Copying text directly without quotation marks or citation
• Paraphrasing ideas without acknowledgement
• Using statistics or data without citing where they came from
• Submitting someone else's work as your own

How to avoid it:

1. Always cite the source of any idea that is not your own
2. Use quotation marks for any text copied word for word
3. Paraphrase and cite — do not just rearrange words slightly
4. Keep a clear record of every source you consult

How to Cite Sources

The two most common citation styles:

Harvard (Author-Date):

• In-text: (Smith, 2022, p. 45)
• Bibliography: Smith, J. (2022). Title of Book. Publisher.

MLA:

• In-text: (Smith 45)
• Bibliography: Smith, John. Title of Book. Publisher, 2022.

Always check which style your school or teacher requires, and use it consistently.

Worked Example

Research question: Does regular exercise improve academic performance in teenagers?

Finding sources: Search for peer-reviewed articles using Google Scholar with terms "exercise academic performance adolescents". Look for studies from universities or medical journals.

Evaluating a source: An article published in The Journal of Pediatrics (2023) by named researchers at a UK university — Currency ✓, Relevance ✓, Authority ✓, Accuracy ✓, Purpose: to inform ✓.

Note-taking: "Students who exercised 60 minutes daily scored 15% higher on standardised maths tests (Jones et al., 2023, p. 12)." — clearly paraphrased with citation recorded.

Common Mistakes

• Using Wikipedia as a final citation: Wikipedia is a starting point, not a primary academic source. Use the sources it cites instead.
• Forgetting to record source details: If you cannot find a source again later, you cannot cite it properly.
• Copying and changing a few words: This is still plagiarism — genuine paraphrasing requires understanding and restating the idea in your own structure.
• Using only one source: Good research draws on multiple sources and compares their findings.
• Ignoring publication date: In science, technology, and current affairs, outdated information can be misleading.

Tips and Tricks

• Create a research log: a simple table recording source title, author, date, URL, and a one-line summary of how it is relevant.
• Cross-reference key facts across at least two independent sources before using them.
• When a source uses emotive or one-sided language, treat it critically — it may be opinion rather than evidence.
• Save or bookmark reliable sources as you find them — revisiting good sources is more efficient than searching again.