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Evaluating Images with the DIG Method

Introduction: What is the DIG Method?

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Time needed to complete this module: 15 minutes

Learning Objectives: 

  • Apply the DIG method to images in order to evaluate and analyze them
  • Differentiate between shallow images and deep images
  • Define each step of the DIG method

The ability to read and analyze an image for its purpose, reliability, and effectiveness is an important skill for a scholar, especially when considering the evolution of AI and the spread of misinformation on the internet. This skill will help you develop visual literacy, which enables you to find, use, understand, and create visual images in an informed, ethical, and effective way. 

Using the digital image guide (DIG) method is a good way to practice visual literacy. The DIG method consists of four steps: analyze, interpret, evaluate, and comprehend. Watch the video below to understand how these steps can help you think critically about the images you see and share online.


Source: Dana Statton Thompson (2019) Teaching students to critically read digital images: a visual literacy approach using the DIG method, Journal of Visual Literacy, 38:1-2, 110-119, DOI: 10.1080/1051144X.2018.1564604

Using the DIG Method to Minimize Visual Misinformation from UCF Libraries on Vimeo.

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