Applying the SIFT Method
A Practical Guide to Critical Thinking and Fact-Checking
One of the most powerful tools in a scientifically literate toolkit is an understanding of how to apply a fact checking technique. They have their different use cases and aren’t just for scientific topics - any claims should be put to this test. Why? Because of something known as the primacy effect where the first thing you are exposed to becomes what you believe as being factual, even if presented with information to the contrary. This is a huge factor in why combating misinformation feels almost impossible - once someone forms a belief, confirmation bias can kick in further solidifying that belief. Now anything that challenges your belief feels like misinformation since we all want to believe we are the knower of the truth.
The best way to combat the primacy effect is to learn to apply a fact checking technique. Several variations exist, but the one I personally use and recommend is the SIFT method. But before diving directly into how to apply it, I think it is important to acknowledge that fact checking can be time consuming. There’s a reason most people don’t do it - spending minutes to hours confirming 1 article or social media post is not the most efficient use of time and is a struggle given how many of our attention spans have been negatively impacted by short form content. More on this another day, but I think you’ll thank me someday if you decide to consume less and fact check more.
The SIFT method was developed by Mike Caulfield and involves 4 steps:
STOP
Before you do anything, including reading or sharing something, check in with how a headline or introduction make you feel. Ask yourself what the author is hoping to accomplish - are they trying to appeal to an emotion such as anger, sadness, fear, or something else? Why might they be doing this?
INVESTIGATE THE SOURCE
See what you can find on the author and the publication. This can start with their qualifications, but I also like looking to see if they are trying to sell me something or are making claims that they have secret knowledge.
FIND BETTER COVERAGE
Check to see what other sources are covering the same topic. Is there scientific consensus? Do other sources agree, disagree, cite other experts?
TRACE CLAIMS, QUOTES, AND MEDIA TO THEIR ORIGINAL SOURCE
It’s important to check for missing context, if claim is correctly attributed, or any other anomalies. When you find something is taken out of context, misquoted, or something else, ask yourself why might the author have done this? How does the correction change your understanding or the meaning?
When performing these checks, it’s important to take a step back on occasion. If this is an author you frequently read, what is the general trend you find? Every writer will make mistakes or misinterpret something, but how frequently or how egregious are the mistakes? Do they offer corrections? Do they change their perspective when provided new information? These are things a credible writer or publication will do because they care more about the truth and presenting facts than their ego.
Even if it’s just 1 article, 1 post, or 1 claim, I encourage putting the SIFT method to the test and seeing what you find. The final thought I will add is this can also be incredibly uncomfortable at first because of what you might learn about your preferred sources. That’s ok! Start small and do your best to have an open mind. Building this muscle helps to start approaching things with curiosity and trains you to be receptive to new information while also giving you the protection of not taking something at face value. And that’s when the real fun of science literacy begins!
Question more. Be scientifically literate.
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