Research Unbound: A Library Orientation for Transfer, Upper-Division, and Graduate Students

Information Source: Scholarly Journals

While books are considered monographs because they are printed once, or not on a specific schedule, scholarly journals are a type of periodical - this means they're published in regular, often open-ended, intervals. Some scholarly journals publish issues quarterly (every three months) or biannually (twice a year), and each of these issues contains a number of articles. The term scholarly implies that what is published in these journals is of an academic nature, and each academic field or discipline has its own scholarly journals that focus on appropriate and relevant research. What this research is may differ widely, but all scholarly journals have certain things in common:

• They are published regularly and therefore have more current information than books.
• Articles are written by scholars, researchers, or subject experts in the area; the authors are considered authoritative and credible.
• Articles generally present original research, and some have gone through a peer-review process that has asked other impartial scholars to review and verify this research.
• Articles include a reference list or bibliography of other works that have informed the research, and these lists are often extensive.
• Articles are shorter in length (10-20 pages) than books and so are more focused on a single viewpoint or aspect of a topic.

Since scholarly journal articles are more focused, there are more specific instances when you might want to use such a resource. These include:

• When you need to find specialized information in an academic area of study (literature, nursing, biology, criminal justice, history, business, etc.).
• When you need to find research reports, case studies, or other scholarly information.