Tests of Historical Evidence
- Relevance: Is the evidence presented really relevant to the claim being made?
- Recency: Has the situation described by the evidence changed? Just being old isn't enough to disqualify evidence: The situation must have changed since the evidence was published.
- Validity: Is the source what it appears to be or is it a fraud or forgery?
- Identification: Is the source clearly identified? Historians do not rely on "anonymous."
- Expertise: Is the source qualified to provide this evidence? Sources may be qualified by training/education or by experience with the topic of the evidence.
- Bias: Does the source have an interest in the topic of the evidence that might distort the evidence? Reluctant testimony, in which the source testifies against self-interest (e.g., a Republican blaming the Republican Party) is very persuasive. Biased sources do not always distort their evidence.
- Internal Consistency: Does the information consist with itself or does the evidence contradict itself?
- External Consistency: Is the evidence consistent with outside qualified sources?
Apply these tests of evidence. That's what an intellectual inquirer does. That's the goal we have for you in this course.
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