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Scholarly and Popular Sources

Learn to distinguish between scholarly and popular sources

Scholarly Journals & Popular Magazines

How can you easily know the differences between a scholarly journal and a popular magazine? 
AUTHORITY

SCHOLARLY

  • Research articles list authors clearly and prominently and include author credentials (degrees, job titles, etc.)
  • Authors of scholarly articles are often affiliated with academic or research institutions
  • Research articles typically give a way for readers to contact authors at their institution or academic department
  • Scholarly journals are often published by an academic institution or scholarly association

POPULAR

  • Popular magazine articles rarely indicate author credentials
  • Almost never include a specific address for contacting the author

CITATIONS & REFERENCES

 

SCHOLARLY

  • Scholarly journal articles indicate sources of information used within the article with footnotes, endnotes, or citations

POPULAR

  • Popular magazine articles rarely use formal reference lists or citations
  • They may attribute sources in a more indirect or less formal manner, or not at all

CONTENT
 

SCHOLARLY

  • Scholarly articles are typically written for experts in the field who already know quite a bit about the topic
  • The writing style of scholarly articles may be technical, detailed, and use specialized vocabulary
  • Scholarly research articles are often long
  • Scholarly publications do not include a lot of advertisements for consumer products; ads are limited to scholarly or academic products and services

POPULAR

  • Popular articles usually focus on entertainment, news, or general awareness of an issue
  • Writing style is often, but not always, direct and easy to understand
  • Length can vary greatly
  • Ads may be numerous and feature wide-ranging products and services

REVIEW PROCESS

SCHOLARLY

  • Scholarly journals prominently list their editors or editorial board and the academic or institutional affiliations of those people
  • Most scholarly publications are "peer reviewed," meaning other experts in the field review and critique each article before it's accepted for publication

POPULAR

  • Popular magazines may list an editor or editorial board
  • Popular magazines rarely highlight or comment on their editorial review process

DISTRIBUTION
 

SCHOLARLY

  • Scholarly journals are typically found in research library collections
  • They may sometimes be found for sale in larger academic bookstores

POPULAR

  • Popular magazines may be found for sale in grocery stores, newsstands, and bookstores
  • Public libraries often collect a variety of popular magazines and typically collect fewer scholarly research journals

PUBLICATION FREQUENCY

 

SCHOLARLY

  • Scholarly journals are typically released only a few times per year
  • The peer-review editorial process slows the publication timeline of scholarly journals 

POPULAR

  • Popular magazines are typically published frequently, as often as weekly or monthly 

VISUAL DESIGN

 

SCHOLARLY

  • Scholarly journals tend to be text-based (except fields such as art and design). May include images, graphs, and charts relevant to the articles
  • Front covers of scholarly journals often list contents, authors, or may feature a simple design repeated for each issue

POPULAR

  • Popular magazines often feature images and illustrations to embellish the written content
  • Popular magazine covers usually feature eye-catching glossy photographs or illustrations
  • Contents may be described in a commercial or exaggerated manner

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