Finding Scholarly Journals
Journal and magazines in particular are often classified as either scholarly (also called "academic" or "peer-reviewed") or
popular. Usually, your professor will want you to use scholarly information sources but there are equally useful popular source available as well.
Refereed materials, also sometimes referred to as Peer Reviewed, are publications reviewed by "expert readers" or referees prior to the publication of the material. After
reading and evaluating the material, the referee informs the publisher if the document should be published
or if any changes should be made prior to publication. Refereed materials are
significant to your research because they assure readers that the information conveyed
is reliable and timely. The editorial board is listed (generally at the beginning of the journal)
along with the organizations they are affiliated with. You will also find information about what types of papers are chosen for publication, the selection process, the length of papers accepted, and how to
submit a paper.
Non-refereed materials such as trade journals or magazines
may have a less intense screening process prior to publication. In some
publications, each article may be only screened by the publication's editor, who is not necessarily an expert on the topic. Other non-refereed materials accept almost anything submitted in order to have something to print.
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Scholarly Journals |
Trade Magazines |
Popular Magazines |
| Author |
Is an "expert" or noted professional in the field. Has
"authority" on the topic and in the field. |
Often written by a single author, specialist in
a field or industry. |
Article may not be signed. May be a freelance journalist,
student, etc. |
| Advertising |
Very little: if any, will be highly specialized and aimed at
professionals in the field. |
Moderate: all or most are trade related. |
Slick, glossy, significant amount; general, aimed at mass
audience. |
| Audience |
The target audience is other researchers, colleagues,
students and specialists in the same field. Research articles are written
for the scholarly community, rather than a general audience. |
Members of a specific business, industry or
organization, the content assumes a certain level of specialized knowledge. |
Basic reading level for general interest readers. |
| Availability/Frequency of
issue |
Issues less frequently) monthly,
quarterly, semi-annually). |
Issued frequently (weekly,
bi-weekly, monthly). |
Issues frequently (weekly,
bi-weekly, monthly). Likely found on a newsstand or in a magazine store. |
| Indexing |
Articles are listed in specialized databases and indexes, such as
PsycInfo or BIOSIS. |
Articles are listed in specialized databases and indexes such as
ABI/Inform and general indexes such as ProQuest. |
Articles are listed in general databases or indexes such as
Readers' Guide or ProQuest. |
| Purpose |
Research articles are written to contribute to the knowledge
base of the discipline. |
Examines the problems or trends of
a particular industry, new products or techniques. |
Current events, popular culture, general interest. |
| Method of Review |
Articles must be submitted and reviewed anonymously by
peers; editorial board composed of scholars in the field |
Editorial review, not peer
reviewed. |
Editor(s) or editorial board are members of the magazine’s
staff. |
| Sources |
A list of references is included at the end of each article. |
May have short bibliography.
Usually does not have footnotes. |
References are generally not included or may be very brief. |
| Length |
Research articles can vary in length, but average between
five to fifty pages. |
Generally short. |
Varies, but usually five pages or less. |
| Language |
Generally more formal, does not use the first person, and
includes terminology used in the field. |
Authors tend to use jargon of the
industry. |
Written for the layman or non-professional. Tends to be a
lees formal style of writing. |
Examples
- Scholarly Journals: Nature, Journal of the American Medical Association, Botany, Critical Inquiry
- Trade Magazines: APA Monitor, Advertising Age, Beverage World
- Popular Journals: People, Newsweek, Sports Illustrated, Ladies Home Journal.
Finding Articles in Scholarly Journals
Your best option for finding scholarly sources is to use one of the databases. While there are scholarly sources on the free web, in many
cases, scholarly materials are only published in journals and are not freely available. Using the databases can help you locate articles that
have been published in an academic or professional journal.
Some databases, such as ProQuest or Education Abstracts allow you to restrict your search to only academic or refereed journals.
You may find that most or all of the journals included in a particular database are scholarly, refereed journals, so that proper
selection of the database may automatically eliminate the less scholarly sources. A few examples, available from the Western Libraries database page are:
- Annual Reviews (on 29 different topics)
- JSTOR
- Any of the Cambridge Scientific Abstracts databases (PsycInfo, LLBA, ERIC, Social Services Abstracts, Sociological Abstracts)
- Web of Science citation databases
Please see the Evaluating Journals guide for suggested resources for finding out additional information about a journal.
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