Popular vs Scholarly Articles
Depending on the nature of your assignment, your instructor may require you to find scholarly articles. It's important to understand the difference between popular magazines and scholarly journal sources.
You are probably familiar with magazines like Time, People, Car and Driver, Sports Illustrated, Ebony, etc. These magazines are referred to as
"popular" magazines.
In a nutshell, popular magazines contain:
- Provide general information on topics of interest to a wide audience.
- Are written by journalists or writers who may or may not have any background or expertise in the subject about which they are writing.
- Are written for the general public who are interested in a subject.
- Use language that is easily understood by the general public.
- Rarely provide citations to source materials.
- Undergo a limited editorial review process.
- Often include glossy photos.
While popular magazines can be a good source for general information on current topics, they may not be the most appropriate source for your research.
In a nutshell, scholarly journals contain:
- Lengthy articles, typically more than 7 pages and often over 20 pages.
- Contain original research, experimentation, or in-depth studies in the field.
- Are written by an authority or expert in the field whose credentials are prominently stated.
- The language includes specialized terms and the jargon of the discipline.
- Advertising is minimal or non-existent (if you are looking at the print or PDF version).
- Always cite their sources in the form of footnotes or bibliographies.
- Often have a formal appearance with tables, graphs, and diagrams.
Scholarly journals will provide the most authoritative information for your research needs and will meet very specific information inquiries.
"popular" magazines.