LIBRARY
Information Literacy Classes
Scholarly vs. Non Scholarly Resources
Peer-Reviewed* vs. Non Peer-Reviewed Publications:
What Is the Difference?
|
Scholarly Journal (Peer-Reviewed*) |
Popular Magazine (Not Peer-Reviewed) |
Trade Magazine/Journal (Not Peer-Reviewed) |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Audience | Researchers and professionals | General public | Members of a specific business, industry, or organization |
| Author(s) | Scholars/professors (usually a required part of their job at 4-year universities-not paid by journals) | Staff writers and journalists (often paid by magazines) | Experts in a field |
| Content | Longer articles Research projects, methodology, and theory Use subject-specific language and terms |
Short articles of general interest, with a focus on current events, news, and personalities. | Short articles with an emphasis on industry trends, new products, techniques, and organizational news. |
| Sources | Sources cited in bibliographies and/or footnotes | Rarely cited Information is usually second or third hand |
Sources mentioned occasionally with bibliographies |
| Purpose | To share facts with other scholars/researchers in that same field of study | To entertain, inform, and evoke an emotional response | To share the latest information and news with others in the same trade |
| Advertisements | Few to None | Heavy | Moderate-Almost all or most are trade-related |
| Examples | American Literature, New England Journal of Medicine, Current History | Glamour, Time, Newsweek | Advertising Age, Chemical Week, Tech Directions |
*Peer-Review Process
Step 1: The author writes and submits the article manuscript to the journal
Step 2: Journal editor sends the manuscript to expert reviewers to evaluate the quality of the research, writing, and conclusions
Step 3: Expert reviewers return the manuscript to the editor with suggested changes, as well as a recommendation to publish or not publish the article
Step 4: The editor reviews suggestions and returns the manuscript to the author for revision
Step 5: The author revises and resubmits the article to the editor
Step 6: The article is published in the journal