Thrift Library: Kinesiology Research Guide: Websites

Evaluating Websites

When Googling for helpful websites, be sure that what you are using is reputable and well-suited for your task at hand. Here are some basic things to look for that can help you evalute a website.

Author - Can you identify who created the site? Any credentials? Affililiation with an organization? Are there ways to make contact?
Source - Look at the URL. Typically, .edu and .gov sites are trustworthy. Use care with .com, .org and .net sites.
Currency - If working on a recent topic, event, etc., is the infomation up-to-date?
Purpose - Why was the cite created? Who is the target audience? (For example, is the site trying to inform you or sell you something?)
Scope - Is there balanced coverage (bias vs. objectivity)? Objective sites give equal attention to all sides/facets of a topic. Subjective sites can be useful, but be aware that the presented information is opinionated (and often one-sided).

Recommended Websites

American Kinesiology Association
Useful information about an academic discipline which involves the study of physical activity and its impact on health, society, and quality of life.
PE Central
Assist teachers, parents, and others who work with youngsters to guide them in the process of becoming physically active and healthy for a lifetime
NCAA official website
National Collegiate Athletic Association public home page
NATA website
National Athletic Trainers' Association official website with links to helpful information on athletic training issues
Sportscience
A Peer-Reviewed Journal and Site for Exercise and Sport Research
CDCP Website
Search specific terms for information on injury prevention and control
Physical Therapy
Overview of physical therapy and its use specific to type of injury and rehabilitation technique.
Office of Dietary Supplements
CARDS stands for Computer Access to Research on Dietary Supplements. It is a database of federally funded research projects pertaining to dietary supplements. Currently, CARDS contains projects funded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Department of Defense (DOD) and the Institutes and Centers (ICs) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) beginning with fiscal year 1999, the first year that NIH ICs began reporting research related to dietary supplements.
PEDro-Physiotherapy Evidence Database
A free database of over 33,000 randomised trials, systematic reviews and clinical practice guidelines in physiotherapy. For each trial, review or guideline, PEDro provides the citation details, the abstract and a link to the full text, where possible. All trials on PEDro are independently assessed for quality. These quality ratings are used to quickly guide users to trials that are more likely to be valid and to contain sufficient information to guide clinical practice. PEDro is produced by the Centre for Evidence-Based Physiotherapy at The George Institute for Global Health and is affiliated with the University of Sydney in Australia.