Gingrich Library: Your Success Is Why We're Here!
For much of your research in college, your professors will require you to use scholarly, academic sources. These sources are written by experts and researchers in a particular field of study. Many are peer reviewed, meaning that before publication they have been sent to other experts to verify the value and accuracy of the article. Below is a table to help you decide if a resource is scholarly.
|
Characteristics |
Scholarly Journal |
Popular Magazine |
|
Length |
Articles are usually 10 pages or more in length; providing in-depth analysis of topics |
Shorter articles (less than 10 pages), providing broader overview of topics |
|
Written by |
Author usually an expert or specialist in the field, name and credentials always provided |
Author usually a journalist or a staff writer, name and credentials often not provided |
|
Language/Written for |
Written in technical language for professors, researchers, students of the field |
Written at high school level for the general public |
|
Coverage |
Original research results and scholarship |
Popular topics and current events |
|
Slant |
Supposed to present objective/neutral viewpoint; |
May reflect the editorial bias/slant of the magazine |
|
Frequency |
Usually quarterly |
Usually weekly |
|
Format/Structure |
Articles usually structured, may include: abstract, literature review, methodology, results, conclusion, bibliography |
Articles do not necessarily follow a specific format or structure |
|
Special Features |
Illustrations that support the text, such as, tables of statistics, graphs, diagrams, maps, or photographs |
Illustrations with glossy paper or color photographs |
|
Appearance |
Serious and sober, with few colors and few or no advertisements |
Glossy, with pictures and advertisements |
|
Editors |
Articles usually reviewed and critically evaluated by a board of experts in the field (known as refereed or peer-reviewed) |
Articles are not reviewed by experts in the field, but by editors on staff |
|
References Cited |
Usually includes a bibliography and/or footnotes |
Usually has no bibliography or footnotes |
|
Examples |
Ecology Social Science Quarterly American Political Science Review
|
Time Newsweek Sports Illustrated Scientific American |
A multidisciplinary database of more than 8,500 fulltext periodicals with pdf content going back as far as 1887. Includes indexing and abstracting for more than 12,500 periodicals.
A scholarly business database providing both bibliographic and fulltext items with indexing and abstracts going back as far as 1886.
JSTOR is a shared digital library that includes the fulltext of more than 2,000 academic journals, dating back to the first volume published. Coverage varies depending on the journal title.
A renowned resource for abstracts of scholarly journal articles, book chapters, books, and dissertations, it is the largest resource devoted to peer-reviewed literature in behavioral science and mental health. Coverage: citations to journals, 1887-present; book citations 1997-present
World's most comprehensive and highest quality sociology research database. Its extensive scope and content provide users with a wealth of extremely useful information encompassing the broad spectrum of sociological study. Coverage: Full text coverage spans from 1904 to present for 777 of the journals, indexing from 1895 to present for other sources