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CHARACTERISTICS |
SCHOLARLY/PEER REVIEWED JOURNALS |
GENERAL MAGAZINES |
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How to tell the difference between these two types of periodicals: |
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Content |
Reports on original research; in-depth analysis of topics; statistical information; academic level book reviews; refereed or peer-reviewed |
Current events and news; hot topics; brief, factual information; interviews |
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Length |
Longer articles providing in-depth analysis of topics |
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Authorship |
Author usually an expert or specialist in the field; name and credentials always provided - researchers, academics, professors, scholars |
Author usually a staff writer or a journalist; name and credentials often not provided |
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Language |
Academic level writing & vocabulary; specialized language of the discipline; can be highly technical |
Non-technical vocabulary; often simple language |
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Format/Structure |
Articles usually more structured; may include these sections: abstract, literature review, methodology, results, conclusion, bibliography |
Articles do not necessarily follow a specific format or structure |
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Editors |
Editors/reviewers are experts in the same field as author(s); many participate in peer-review process prior to publication; rigorous publication standards; articles checked for content, format and style |
Editors not academic experts in subject field of article; article topics often assigned or contracted; articles usually only edited for style and format |
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Publishers |
Professional organizations; Universities, research institutes and scholarly presses |
Commercial/trade publishers; corporate ownership |
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Special Features |
Illustrations that support the text, such as tables of statistics, graphs, maps, or photographs |
Illustrations with glossy or color photographs, usually for advertising purposes |
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Credits |
A bibliography (works cited) and/or footnotes are always provided to document research thoroughly |
A bibliography (works cited) is usually not provided; names of reports or references may be mentioned in the text; sources, when used, are rarely cited in full |
Use journal articles to find in-depth information on a specific topic. They are usually more current than books. Articles from academic journals are often peer reviewed.
Databases let you search for articles on your topic and will tell you in which volume of which journal it's published.
Sometimes a database will actually have a copy of the article for you to view online. This is called full-text, and it's a beautiful thing.
Other databases just tell you where to find the article, but don't have a digital copy to give you.
Newspaper Articles generally:
North Carolina State University Libraries explains the peer review process and its significance in research.
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