This text provides readers with the intellectual tools necessary to evaluate psychological information and to separate research from opinion and reliable evidence from propaganda. Proposing a four-step procedure, the text focuses on helping students evaluate psychological research and evidence from various (and sometimes incomplete or misleading) secondary sources. Step 1 involves identifying the source; Step 2 teaches how to understand the source by analyzing the central idea (Ch. 3); Step 3 teaches how to identify the source; and Step 4 instructs how to evaluate evidence from psychological research (Ch. 4). Each chapter opens with critical thinking questions and includes examples, practice, and feedback'all essential parts of the learning process.