Scholarly Journals
- Articles tend to be lengthy
- Reading the articles requires your undivided attention
- The author provides a complete list (bibliography) of the sources used
- The entire issue is devoted to one topic, such as biology
- Articles contain few pictures and advertisements
- Often there are illustrations or graphs supporting the authors research
- Articles usually are located by using a subject-oriented database such as PsycINFO, Historical Abstracts, Biological Abstracts, etc.
- The authors credentials are provided
- The periodical is published or sponsored by a scholarly or a professional association or an academic press
Examples: Psychological Bulletin, Journal of Physical Chemistry, Modern Fiction Studies
Popular Magazines
- Articles tend to be short
- Articles are easy to read
- There may be no indication of where the author got the information used in the article
- The issue may be devoted to one or many topics
- There often are many pictures
- There are many advertisements
- Articles are found using a general database such as Academic Search Complete
- You may not know who wrote the article or the author's credentials
- Periodical is published by commercial publisher
Examples: Popular Mechanics, Newsweek, Ebony, Sports Illustrated
