Government Documents Librarian
One UTSA Circle
San Antonio, Texas 78249
Is it a Peer-Reviewed Journal?
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Ulrich's Periodicals Directory (ulrichsweb.com)The online version of the well-known reference title, this database provides bibliographic information on journals, newspapers, magazines, newsletters, and other periodical publications published in the U.S. and internationally. Includes information on active and ceased periodicals, annual publications, irregular publications, and monographic (book) series. Also includes contact information for over 80,000 publishers, as well as reviews of selected periodicals.
Look for a referee’s jersey icon (
) next to the journal’s title on the search results screen.
What is a scholarly article?
An important part of any research project is evaluating your resources and knowing the difference among articles published in Scholarly, Popular and Trade Publications. Many of your professors will require that you use scholarly, peer reviewed sources.
Scholarly journals - contain in-depth articles on original research written by experts in a particular field for scholars and researchers. Articles contain specialized vocabulary, extensive citations, graphs, charts & tables, and are usually peer-reviewed by experts in the field.
Popular magazines - contain articles and are typically written by a staff writer or journalist for a general audience. The magazine includes many photos and ads. Reference to sources are uncommon.
Trade publications - contain articles on current news and trends for a specific industry or profession and are written by authors with knowledge in the field for practitioners. Articles report general news, trends, and opinions, rather than advanced research, and are not peer-reviewed.
UTSA Tutorials for Finding Scholarly Articles
Properties of Scholarly, Popular and Trade Journals
|
Scholarly / Academic Journals |
Popular |
Trade Publications |
|
 |
 |
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|
| Examples |
American Anthropologist |
Time |
Public Management |
| Content |
Research results/reports |
Current events |
Articles on a certain business or industry |
| Purpose |
Share original research or |
Entertainment |
Inform about business or industry news, trends, or products |
| Audience |
Scholars, researchers, students |
General public |
Business/industry professionals and practitioners |
| Authorship |
Expert or specialist in the field. |
Staff writers, journalists, freelancers. |
Staff writers, business/industry professionals. |
| Review Policy |
Peer reviewed (refereed) |
Staff editor. |
Business/industry professionals and practitioners |
| Cites Sources | Research thoroughly documented by: Bibliographies / Works Cited Footnotes References Endnotes |
None. May refer to other studies |
Few, if any. |
| Format/Structure |
Structured articles typically contain: |
No specific format |
No specific format |
|
Pagination |
Page numbers consecutive through all issues in a single volume | Individual issues begin with Page 1 | Each issue usually begins with Page 1 |
| Special Features |
Illustrations that support text |
Glossy photos & illustrations. |
Ads geared toward specific industry |