Finding Supporting Material for Your Speech

The purpose of this lesson is to discuss the different sources to gather material for your speech and to make you aware of what to look out for in terms of non-credible sources.

Primary Sources

Primary sources of research are considered to be the research that you gather through interviews or surveys. It's you going out and talking to people about the subject you are researching.

Interviewing
Interviewing deals with face-to-face, telephone, or email communication. The biggest mistake I see during the interview process is there are no prepared questions. Your job in conducting an interview is to get specific information. Here are some techniques that will help you.

1. Know your purpose/intent for the interview. What is it you are trying to find out?
2. Write down specific questions you would like to know. Word of caution though. You want to keep the questions "neutral" as in they don't direct the answer to a wanted response.
3. Forewarn the person you are interviewing by giving him or her a list of the questions you would like to ask at least 48 hrs in advance (email it to them).
4. Make sure the person you are interviewing know why you are interviewing them.
5. During the interview process, if you feel an answer given to you needs expanding, use the phrase (or something similar), "that's interesting, can you tell me more about _______?" or simply use a why, how, when, where, question to get additional information.
6. Don't be pushy.
7. Actively listen and restate what the interviewee stated to make sure you (and they) understood what was said.
8. Record the interview, but MAKE SURE THE INTERVIEWEE KNOWS IT'S BEING RECORDED!

Surveys
Surveys are similar to an interviews. You are gathering information from many individuals but you are not directly interacting with them. Just like an interview question is "neutral" so should your survey questions be neutral. Let the respondents be able to respond however they please. There are plenty of online services out there to help you with survey questions.

One tool that I use often is SurveyMonkey.com. It's a free tool that I can used to send out online surveys and gather information easily.

Secondary Sources

Secondary sources of information include the vast knowledge that is already out out there that has been gathered by someone else rather than yourself.

Internet. We live in a time that there is more information available at our fingertips than ever before. REMEMBER, just because it's on the Web, doesn't mean it is true.

Library. Nothing like some "old school" research and a crazy looking librarian that just got out of jail.

• Reference Desk. This is where you go and ask a Librarian to help you find a "unique mix" of print  works and database subscriptions.
• Databases. Think of a database as an online room with specific material/resources. There are often full text articles from credible resources. Your local library, school, or college should have access to a variety of databases.
• Preferred List of Databases
1. ERIC (Education Resources Information Center) www.eric.ed.gov
2. Scirus (Science specific) www.douglassarchives.org/
3. PsycINFO (Psychology/Psychiatry) http://www.apa.org/
4. American Rhetoric (Speeches, Sermons, Lectures, etc.) www.americanrhetoric.com
5. PubMed (Medicine Database) www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
6. FedStats (Government Statistics) www.fedstats.gov
• Books. Just make sure the author is credible and it helps if the material is researched based that is well documented. There are a lot of books out there that are not worth the paper they are printed on.
• Newspapers and Periodicals. Again credibility is the key here. Unfortunately, the media has been getting a bad rap on much of their reporting practices (just making stuff up). Be careful and be critical of articles written in any newspaper and periodical. Use common sense. If something sounds outrageous, it probably is.
• Government Publications. Most government publications are pretty safe. It's hard to say if what the government puts out is actually true or not or what crazy formula they used to come up with their numbers and statistics. I for one am not that trusting of what the government puts out.

SIDE NOTE AND PERSONAL OPINION. I have and MBA and I have taken courses in Economics. The formulas that the government uses to keep track of GDP and the National Debt or somewhat skewed. I just know if I ran a private business the way the government runs, I would be thrown in prison for illegal practices. 

With that said, "we the people" use the data that the government provides as a "reliable" and "credible" source. It's what we have to work with, so do as you see fit.

• Encyclopedias. As noted in an earlier lesson, the online encyclopedia Wikipedia is NOT considered a credible source because ANYONE can add to it. Personally, I think it's great and use it all the time. To get around the "Academia" issue of not being credible, I just trace the information back to it's root sources that are often documented and supply that information.
• Other secondary resources include Almanacs, Fact Books, Biography/Genealogy references, Books of Quotations, Poetry Collections (often speakers use lines of poetry to support or enhance a speech), and Atlases.

Your Plan of Action

The old saying, "If you fail to plan, you plan to fail" fits appropriately here. You need to have a plan on how you will begin your research for your speech topic.

A general outline of a plan may look like this:

1. What is my General Speech Purpose? (Informative, Persuasive, Special Occasion)
2. What is my Specific Speech Purpose? What do I want to accomplish with my speech? How will I know that I have been a success? (Measurable Outcome)
3. What is my thesis statement?
4. Who is my audience and what do they already know?
5. What do I already know about the topic?
6. What type of supporting material does my topic call for?
1. Interviews or surveys?
2. Facts and statistics?
3. Examples that will clarify?
4. Stories that will capture attention and make a point?
5. Testimony that will support my argument/material?
7. What type of supporting material will have the greatest affect/impact on my audience (NEED TO KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE)
1. Interviews or surveys?
2. Facts and statistics?
3. Examples that will clarify?
4. Stories that will capture attention and make a point?
5. Testimony that will support my argument/material?

Documenting Your Sources

A credible resource becomes credible if it can be verified. Here is a site I use to reference my material when I write papers or when I give speeches.
BOOKMARK THIS SITE!!!

http://www.citationmachine.net/

I prefer to use APA citation rather than MLA.

Evaluating Credibility of Your Sources

I have discussed this in previous lessons, but evaluating the credibility of your sources comes down to using common sense and looking to see if the information being used is well documented itself. Well known and name-brand sources will also help you (i.e. The Wall Street Journal as compared to The Muskrat High Gazette). Going through a database or library reference desk will help you with finding credible and reliable resources.