How to Recognize Pseudo-Science in References

As a professional writer, understanding the validity of your references is key to the quality of your works, especially in non-fiction. Whether you write corporate blogs about what motivates people to keep their online habits or magazine articles on various lesser-known vocations, you’ll need to use references to back up your arguments.

You can use expert references, i.e. people with authoritative knowledge of a specific subject, and a variety of sources that are written, published, or reported by reputable origins. However, it’s crucial to be wary of so-called “pseudoscience.”

In this article, we’ll discuss what pseudoscience is and how to avoid it in favor of reputable references.

The Checklist

1. What’s the source of the claim? And is it “common knowledge”?

Make sure you know the source of the claim. Any statement that’s not “common knowledge” requires a reference. But, first things first, what’s “common knowledge”?

According to Academic Integrity at MIT, common knowledge refers to “information that an average educated reader would accept as reliable without having to look it up.” It covers three conditions.