REFERENCE: ENCYCLOPEDIAS : RESEARCH RESOURCES: Wikipedia: Researching with Wikipedia

[David P. Dillard]

REFERENCE: ENCYCLOPEDIAS :
RESEARCH RESOURCES:
Wikipedia: Researching with Wikipedia

Wikipedia: Researching with Wikipedia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Researching_with_Wikipedia>

Wikipedia can be a great tool for learning and researching information.
However, like all sources, not everything in Wikipedia is accurate,
comprehensive, or unbiased. Many of the general rules of thumb for
conducting research apply to Wikipedia, including:

Always be wary of any one single source (in any mediumweb, print,
television or radio), or of multiple works that derive from a single
source.

Where articles have references to external sources (whether online or not)
read the references and check whether they really do support what the
article says.

In all academic institutions, Wikipedia, along with most encyclopedias, is
unacceptable as a major source for a research paper. Other encyclopedias,
such as Britannica, have notable authors working for them and may be cited
as a secondary source in most cases. For example, Cornell University has a
guide on how to cite encyclopedias.

However, because of Wikipedia's unique nature, there are also some rules
for conducting research that are special to Wikipedia, and some general
rules that do not apply to Wikipedia.

Article Table of Contents

1 Background knowledge for researchers about Wikipedia

1.1 Overview of Wikipedia

1.2 Notable strengths of Wikipedia

1.3 Notable weaknesses of Wikipedia

1.4 Article quality in Wikipedia

1.5 Editorial administration, oversight and management

2 Special research considerations concerning Wikipedia

2.1 Use multiple independent sources

2.2 Examine an article's history

2.3 Internal links

2.4 Categories

2.5 Take advantage of "what links here"

2.6 Take advantage of "printable version"

2.7 Understand Wikipedia's biases

2.8 Use Wikipedia's social process

2.9 Look for comprehensive review

3 Citing Wikipedia

4 Further help

4.1 Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

4.2 Other help and feedback

5 References

6 See also

7 External links

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The complete article may be read at the URL above.

Thanks to Bernie Sloan for sharing the link to this article on the DIG_REF
discussion group.

Sincerely,
David Dillard
Temple University
(215) 204 - 4584
jw...@temple.edu
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