What are scholarly articles, and how do I find them?Answered By: Elise Wong
Scholarly articles are articles written by professors (or other researchers) to report on their research.
They're published in scholarly journals, which are kinda like magazines, except they report the latest research in an academic field and their readers are other experts in the field. Here's an example of a scholarly article published in the journal Surgical Endoscopy.
Usually, scholarly sources undergo peer-review, which means other experts review an article for accuracy before it is published. That's why you might hear the terms "peer-reviewed" and "scholarly" used interchangeably.
So how do you find scholarly articles?
One fast way is to use the Library Search to find scholarly articles from across many of the library databases. You can click the "Peer-reviewed Journals" filter on the left to narrow your results to scholarly articles. (That filter isn't perfect, but it mostly gets it right.)
Or, use our Research Guides to see what databases your librarian recommends for finding scholarly articles in your discipline.
Another way is to use Google Scholar, a Google product that only searches (or at least tries to only search) scholarly articles and books. Here's a quick video on the pros and cons of Google Scholar.
Ok, so I've found a scholarly article, but it's...dense. How do I make any sense out of this thing?
It takes practice. Eventually you'll get up to speed with the terminology and research methods in your major. Til then, this quick video has some great tips for sussing out the main points of a scholarly article.
For more info on scholarly articles, see the chart below comparing scholarly sources with "popular" sources (news and magazine articles for everyday folks).
|
|
Popular Sources (news, magazines) |
Scholarly Sources (scholarly journals) |
|---|---|---|
|
WHO is it written by? |
Journalists or professional writers |
Scholars and academics, usually with an advanced degree, usually at universities and other research institutions. Scientific articles may have many co-authors. |
|
WHO is it written for? |
General audiences; people who have interest but may not have advanced degrees |
Other scholars and academics in their field |
|
WHO publishes the publication? |
Could be a large mass media corporation like Condé Nast or Meredith; a small, independent publisher; a membership organization like AARP or NRA; etc. |
Usually an academic publisher (e.g., Taylor & Francis, Springer), a university press (Johns Hopkins), or a scholarly society (American Psychological Association) |
|
WHAT language does it use? |
Everyday language people can understand without an advanced degree; generally has a fluid narrative that tells a story |
Often uses lingo and methods specific to the field of research |
|
WHAT is its structure? |
Could be short or long; may start out with a human-interest anecdote to pull you in to the issue. |
Scientific articles often start with an abstract (summary), introduction with literature review, methods, results, and conclusion. Articles in the humanities may have more of a narrative structure. |
|
WHEN does it come out? |
Daily, weekly, monthly, or quarterly (or constantly, if it has digital-only content too) |
Usually 2, 4, or 6 times a year; some newer digital publications post new articles on a rolling basis |
|
WHERE does it cite sources? |
May or mention the source in the body of the text ("A study by Pew Research found...") or may just make the assertion (15% of pet owners spend...). |
Sources are usually cited at the end (e.g.,Works Cited, References, Bibliography). |
|
WHY is it written? |
To inform, to entertain, to persuade, to enhance writer's reputation, to make money, or for the love of writing |
To inform and share knowledge and discoveries, to advance the field, to enhance writer's reputation, to earn tenure at a college or university |