institutional affiliation (where he or she works), educational background, past writings, or experience? Is the book or article written on a topic in the author's area of expertise? Use the various Who's Who publications or use online sources to help determine the author's affiliation and credentials.

Search catalogs or databases. Have you seen the author's name cited in other sources or bibliographies? Respected authors are cited frequently by other scholars. For this reason, always note those names that appear in many different sources.

What are the basic values or goals of the organization or institution?

Google is good for finding author information. Try searching by the author's full name.

If the source is published by a university press, it is likely to be scholarly. Although the fact that the publisher is reputable does not necessarily guarantee quality, it does show that the publisher may have high regard for the source being published.