Running head: Website Review

Website Review and Evaluation Michelle M. Rutherford Louisiana State University

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For this assignment, I found three websites to review on a scale of good, better, and best. I am rating these websites based on five criteria: the accuracy of the web documents, the authority of the web documents, the objectivity of the web documents, the currency of the web documents, and the coverage of the web documents. These websites are all focused on reaching parents of children who have been diagnosed with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). These documents want to specifically provide techniques and tools for making living with this diagnosis as easy and functional as possible. Findings The first webpage that was evaluated with the criteria was from Helpguide. The purpose of the document is to provide parents with tips and tools they can utilize to help their children who have been diagnosed with ADHD succeed. The document also provides parents with information about how to make a family system that includes a child with ADHD function more harmoniously. Melinda Smith, M.A., and Jeanne Segal, Ph.D., are the authors of the webpage. The authors contact addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses are not readily available through helpguide.org. However, the website provides a question and comments contact form that can be filled out to obtain additional information. Jeanne Segal, Ph.D., the co-creator and editorial director of helpguide.org, can be contacted at her personal website, JeanneSegal.com. Both of the authors, Jeanne Segal, Ph.D., and Melinda Smith, M.A., are qualified to write this document. Segal is a sociologist, psychologist and author with over 37 years of experience in the emotional health field. Smith has a masters degree in psychology and has over ten years of experience as a health writer and editor. The websites webmaster is Adrian Tarango (http://www.helpguide.org/mental/adhd_add_parenting_strategies.htm).

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In conjunction with Harvard Health Publications, The Rotary Club of Santa Monica, and WISE and Healthy Aging, this document was published by Helpguide. Helpguide is a non-profit resource. Helpguides founders and publishers are Robert and Jeanne Segal. Robert has a masters degree in educational psychology. Jeanne is a sociologist, psychologist, and author. This page assumes that children with ADHD need parents to maintain a level of structure and compassion with their parenting strategies. The documents goals are to promote this information for parents to better their relationships with their children. The website authors do not contribute their own opinions at any point. They have a section of the website referencing why they find the information important in relation to their own life experience, but their information is completely research based throughout. One of the authors of this website is an author and has various books and publications available; with this in mind, the website is not encouraging readers to purchase any items (http://www.helpguide.org/mental/adhd_add_parenting_strategies.htm). The website was last updated in June 2011. The original publication date is not listed on the website. None of the information on the webpage is outdated. The website offers links to various other resources for parents and children; these links have been updated as recently as February 2012. All the links included on the website are current and valid and have been edited and evaluated by members of Helpguides staff. The website is primarily text, but it is balanced with appropriate images. No citations appear on this website. The webpage does not require any special software to view information; it is set up to be easily accessible for all interested viewers. The information on this website is completely free and available without having to create a username and password. This website does not offer a text-only layout or suggestions for what

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browser is better for viewing (http://www.helpguide.org/mental/adhd_add_parenting_strategies.htm). The second website that was reviewed with the criteria was written by the National Resource Center on ADHD Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. The organization does supply their physical address and a phone number for further contact information. The purpose of the website is to provide parents of children diagnosed with ADHD with advice about ensuring school success, making home life easier, and how to boost selfconfidence for the child. The organizations director, Timothy J. MacGeorge, has his masters of social work and would be qualified to write this type of resource. However, it is unclear who wrote this document; therefore, it is unknown whether their qualifications are sufficient. The webmaster is not provided for this document. This organizations website is published by CHADD, Children and Adults with Attention-deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. The information on the webpage was reviewed and accepted by CHADDs Professional Review Board (http://www.help4adhd.org/en/living/parenting/WWK2). The website promotes parental involvement in making a diagnosis of ADHD easier on the child. The goals of the website are to teach parents various techniques to making the transition from home life to school and interacting with peers a seamless one. The information on the website is specific and detailed. The tips are categorized and broken down into smaller, more specific areas of life that children with ADHD need more help with. The authors do not share any of their own opinions; all of the tips are based on findings from previous research. This website is not a mask for advertising. The only outside information that the website addresses is suggested reading for the parents. These additional readings are cited on the webpage, but are not

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necessarily available for free. The website does not appear to be getting any additional funding or benefits from readers purchasing the alternative reading choices (http://www.help4adhd.org/en/living/parenting/WWK2). The website was originally produced and copyrighted in 2004. The most recent documented update is March 22, 2012. The websites links are up to date and current. There is one dead link on the website; the link goes to a domain name that is for sale. Sections of the website are updated on a weekly basis. The website does not specify whether the links are evaluated, but these links are complimentary to the theme of the website. The website is mostly text, and offers minimal graphics. The information on the website is cited correctly and extensively. The authors have provided all of the references for the research they are using. This particular website does not require any special software for viewing, as it has a very simple layout. There is no fee for obtaining information from this document; it is not required to set up a username or password. This website does not suggest a particular browser for better viewing, and does not offer a text only option (http://www.help4adhd.org/en/living/parenting/WWK2). The third website that was reviewed and evaluated is a document that encourages parents of children with ADHD to join support groups to connect and network with other parents in similar situations. The author of this website is Samantha Gluck. Gluck has a Bachelors of Science in Nursing and worked for many years as a research nurse at the University of Texas Health Science Center in the Mental Sciences Institute. Gluck provides ways to contact her through her Facebook, Twitter, and her own personal website, medtopicwriter.com. Her email is provided through her personal website, but the author does not disclose her address or phone number. The webmaster for this document is Patricia Avila; she also manages and edits the

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website regularly. The document is published by Healthy Place, Americas Mental Health Channel. The president of Healthy Place is Gary Koplin; he oversees the day-to-day operations of the webpage. Koplin has a Bachelors of Science in journalism. Harry Croft is a medical doctor and the medical director for Healthy Place. Croft is triple board certified in Psychiatry, Addiction Medicine, and Sex Therapy and is a private practice psychiatrist. The objective of this document is to provide parents of children with ADHD with the support they need to overcome the challenges associated with ADHD. The information that the author provides on the webpage is very detailed and outlines specific steps for parents to take. This page is not a mask for any type of advertisements. The website offers information based on thorough research and is not making a profit off of the sales of any products (http://www.healthyplace.com/adhd/adhd-children/adhd-support-for-parents-of-add-adhdchildren/). The website was originally established and produced in 1999. The most recent significant update was January 31, 2012. The information on this website is not outdated and is regularly updated. The websites links are updated as recently as January 18, 2012 and there are no dead links on this website. The links are very relevant to the information the author is providing. All of the links are evaluated and approved by employees of Healthy Place, specifically Harry Croft. The information that is cited on the webpage is done correctly and copyrighted through Healthy Place. The website does not provide a text-only option or suggests a specific browser for better viewing. The website is completely free to access and does not require a username or password for obtaining information. There is no special software required to view the website, which makes the information accessible to everyone who is interested

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(http://www.healthyplace.com/adhd/adhd-children/adhd-support-for-parents-of-add-adhdchildren/). Discussion These websites all provide information for parents who are struggling with how to help their children with ADHD. The three websites, Helpguide, The National Research Center on ADHD, and Healthy Place, are all similar in the type of information they present and how all of the information is based on research finding done through the organizations and authors. Helpguide, the first website that was evaluated, was by far the best website. It had the most of the criteria and provided the most extensive research. This website could be improved by making the references for the information for clearly cited and updating more frequently. The second website that was reviewed was by the National Research Center on ADHD. This document had a numerous helpful tips and techniques that were detailed and organized well, but overall, it lacked visual appeal and was more difficult to utilize than helpguide.org. The layout was simple and could use more regular updates particularly to the links. The third and final website that was reviewed was Healthy Place. This website was the least informative, but still provided up to date and relevant information. The website would be more helpful for parents if it provided more tips and techniques, since the general theme of the document is for parents to find support through others in similar situations. This website offered an easy way to contact the author through social media websites, but did not disclose her direct contact information. All three of these websites were fairly informative, easily to maneuver around, research based, and evaluated and updated regularly. It is clear that these websites serve the purpose they intended and cover all of the basics of effective and working internet web pages.

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References Healthy Place - ADHD Support for Parents of ADD, ADHD Children. Retrieved on Tuesday, March 27, 2012 from: http://www.healthyplace.com/adhd/adhd-children/adhd-support for-parents-of-add-adhd-children/ Helpguide - ADD/ADHD Parenting Tips Helping Children with Attention Deficit Disorder. Retrieved on Tuesday, March 27, 2012 from: http://www.helpguide.org/mental/adhd_add_parenting_strategies.htm National Resource Center on ADHD - Parenting a Child with AD/HD. Retrieved on Tuesday, March 27, 2012 from: http://www.help4adhd.org/en/living/parenting/WWK2