What is considered ‘scholarly’ varies from one field to another. The terms ‘authoritative,’ ‘factual,’ and ‘scholarly’ are all used for reliable information sources but do not necessarily mean the same thing. Check with your professor for specific criteria for acceptable sources for your assignment.
One key characteristic of scholarly articles is the review process: before the article is published, it is reviewed by other experts in the field. However, even journals that publish peer-reviewed articles also include some short reports, editorials, commentaries, or other pieces that have not been included in the peer-review process. Look at the article itself, not just the publication it comes out of, to determine whether it meets the criteria of a scholarly source.
Scholarly Journals
Titles often start with Journal of … or a variation.
The authors have direct knowledge about the subject. Their credentials are usually given.
The article is reviewed by other experts in the field before it is accepted for publication. This is why scholarly articles are also called “Peer reviewed” or “Refereed” articles.
Articles are written to advance the knowledge of the field. While they may also be useful to those who are new to the field, they are written in the language of someone who knows the subject.
Graphics tend to be charts and graphs and highly specific illustrations. Most academic journals do not accept advertising.
Articles tend to be at least several pages and may be very long. Research articles follow a specific format, discussed below.
There is a delay between research and publication so the information can be confirmed.
Research articles begin with an abstract, a brief overview of the article. Other scholarly publications may include an abstract. Abstracts are often available in databases even if there is not full text. They may be helpful in deciding whether to pursue finding the full article.
Scholarly articles usually have a list of references with full citation information. It may be called “Works Cited” or “Bibliography,” or the citations may be included in footnotes or endnotes.
Popular press—magazine articles
Examples of titles: Field and Stream, People, Popular Science.
Staff writers interview other people for information.
The editors of the magazine look at articles for accuracy, length, etc.
Articles are written for a very broad audience and do not need any background knowledge. Coverage of material is based on audience interest.
There may be interpretation and synthesis of information from several sources, but usually little evaluation.
There are often interesting pictures with the article, and the magazine has advertising.
Articles are usually only a few pages.
Magazines usually try to publish articles that are current.
Magazine articles usually give the name of someone who is quoted but typically do not give detailed information on how to find the source material used.
Choosing Scholarly Journals or Magazine Articles
Scholarly journal articles are usually the best for college-level papers, depending on the type of project. Some assignments specify using only scholarly sources.
Magazine articles may be useful when only basic information is needed, or if you want to discuss popular opinion about a subject.
An option limiting search retrieval to scholarly or peer-reviewed publications is available in some databases. You may need to use advanced search or guided search to find this option. Even with this limit in place, you need to evaluate each article to decide if it fits your criteria for a scholarly source.
Format of Research Articles
Research articles follow a specific format with slight variations from one field to another.
Abstract: A brief overview of the article.
Introduction:A statement of the purpose of the research, and background of what is already known on the subject. Sometimes Research Statement and Background are separate sections.
Methods, sometimes Materials and Methods: information about exactly how the research was conducted.
Results: The data as they were reported, usually with statistical analysis. Note: “data” is a collective noun; correct scientific usage would be: “These data are significant.”
Discussion or Conclusions: Analysis of what has been learned and the possible implications for further research or use of the new knowledge. Sometimes two separate sections.
References: Citations of previous publications to which the author refers. Sometimes there is also an Acknowledgements section naming other people or organizations contributing to the research.
Articles in humanities not based on research follow a related pattern stating the specific topic, what has been written previously, the analysis, and conclusions. There may or may not be printed headings.
In all fields, the pattern of showing what went before and then adding something new is a fundamental part of building up the body of knowledge available. An article that brings out a key piece of research or analysis that others build on will be cited in many other articles in later years. Some databases will show how often an article has been cited as a way to help identify the most important articles on a subject, or you may start to notice the same author name in the bibliographies of many other articles.
Additional Publication Types (Some publications will not fit neatly into any one of these categories.)
Trade Journals for practitioners in a field, such as JAMA for doctors. Some are for highly specific industry groups, such as Aircraft Economics. Trade journals are more serious than magazines for general readers and may be considered scholarly in some contexts and not in others. Some trade journals in scientific fields include a few major articles that have had a peer review process. Many trade journals include articles with analysis of trends. Many of the articles will be shorter pieces reporting on events related to the industry or sector, plus editorials, information about specific people or companies, and often some type of readers' forum. Many trade journals do have advertising.
Review articles go over the current knowledge of a field instead of presenting new research results. These are often very useful for student inquiries on a subject. They are in the same journals as research articles and are usually considered scholarly unless the assignment requires using only original research articles.
Conference proceedings compile research results as presented to a gathering of professionals. These papers are in the format described above but are usually in the middle of the peer review process. The same research results often show up in a somewhat changed paper later accepted for regular publication.
Discipline-specific types of publications. Law Review journals, for example, present analysis articles that are often written by law students. These may be considered scholarly sources in some situations and not others.
News sources—newspapers and news magazines, such as Time and Newsweek—are a special type of popular press source. Articles may be very brief or up to a few pages and may not have an author given. News sources may be valuable for some projects as a record what was known and thought about events at the time.
Sensational press publications, such as National Enquirer and Star are written to be outrageous. Also called “Tabloids,” they are usually in newspaper format. They are not usually considered credible sources of information.
Many journal articles originally published in print form are available online, linking from a database to the text of the article or to reproduction of the print pages (pdf.) There are other journals that are published only online, a growing trend. In addition, some publications have an online edition that may have live links or other enhancements not available in print.
An entirely online publication may be popular press, a trade journal, a peer-reviewed scholarly journal, or any of the other types mentioned above. Look carefully at the explanation of the review process and the credentials of the authors before citing an online journal as a scholarly source.
Examples of online publications:
Open Directory: Science Publications is a listing of many sources of online journals in science fields. Directories are also available for online journals and magazines in most other subject areas.
Additional Information: Popular vs. Scholarly Articles Examples with pictures and a link to a tutorial, from the University of Arizona.
A brief version of this information is also available in the print "Finding
Journal Articles" handout in the library.
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