Are journals considered scholarly?

Asked by: Rosamond Frami  |  Last update: August 24, 2025
Score: 4.8/5 (19 votes)

'Scholarly' books or journals are those which have been peer reviewed (or refereed). Peer review is the process to ensure that we can trust what's in an article. It will have been read and evaluated by other specialists in the field (the 'peers' or 'referees') before publication.

Is a journal a scholarly source?

However, it is safe to assume that a peer-reviewed journal is also scholarly. In short, “scholarly” means the article was written by an expert for an audience of other experts, researchers or students.

How do I know if a journal is scholarly?

Sometimes the journal's web page will state in several places whether it's a scholarly or peer reviewed journal. A quick trick to assist you in determining if a journal is scholarly is to do a "Crtl F" search of the publisher's website to see if the term scholarly appears on the site.

What qualifies as a scholarly source?

What is a scholarly source? A "scholarly resource" describes a type of resource (usually a journal article or a book) that is written by an expert in a field of study or subject. Many of these resources, particularly journal articles, go through a rigorous process to be published.

What is not considered a scholarly source?

Non-‐scholarly publications either do not include bibliographies or lists of works cited, or such lists are very short. Non-‐scholarly articles may also include badly-‐written articles which contain mistakes in spelling or grammar.

What are Scholarly Journals?

15 related questions found

Which is not an example of a scholarly source?

Book reviews and opinion editorials are NOT scholarly

It differs greatly from the research-centered articles that are also housed in the journal.

How do you know a journal is credible?

The credibility of a journal may be assessed by examining several key factors:
  1. Where is it indexed? Is the journal included or indexed in the major bibliographic databases for the field? ...
  2. What is its publishing history? How long has the journal been available? ...
  3. Is it peer-reviewed? ...
  4. What is its impact factor?

What makes a source scholarly vs non scholarly?

These sources are written by scholars or researchers for other scholars or researchers. The appearance of these sources is usually serious, with few, if any, graphics. The articles are often lengthy and may include the specific language of the discipline. Additionally, sources in these articles are cited.

Is a .org a scholarly source?

Generally, however, . org sites are nonprofit entities with a specific mission. Nonprofit entities with a . org domain might lead you to scholarly sources if they cite studies with a list of authors.

What are examples of scholarly?

Books, articles, and websites can all be scholarly. Remember, there is sometimes a difference between scholarly and peer-reviewed articles; all peer-reviewed sources are scholarly, but not all scholarly sources are peer-reviewed. The information should be based on verifiable facts.

What are some examples of articles that are not considered scholarly?

Examples include general news, business, and entertainment publications such as Time Magazine, Business Weekly, and Vanity Fair. This can also include . edu and . gov sources you've found on the Internet, that have not been verified as a scholarly source.

Is .gov a scholarly source?

Government documents and government websites are generally considered authoritative, credible sources of information. Many are scholarly, and some are even peer-reviewed! But, not all gov docs are scholarly or peer-reviewed.

Is Forbes a scholarly source?

Scholarly sources are usually written by experts in the fields they are writing about. They are usually peer-reviewed and academic articles. They are written in scholarly styles including APA, MLA, Chicago, etc., and include a bibliography or reference page. Forbes Magazine would not be a scholarly source.

How do you know if a journal is scholarly?

You can identify scholarly journal and academic publishers by searching in the Journal Citation Reports database. Ulrichsweb Global Serials Directory also indicates whether a journal is peer-reviewed - the journal entry will be flagged with a black and white striped icon (representing a referee shirt).

What is the difference between articles and journals?

An article is a nonfiction writing that forms an independent part of a publication like a journal. A journal is a collection of articles and is published periodically throughout the year. Examples would be the Journal of the American Medical Association or American Journal of Public Health.

Is JSTOR a scholarly source?

The collections in JSTOR include peer-reviewed scholarly journals, respected literary journals, academic monographs, research reports, and primary sources from libraries' special collections and archives.

What classifies a source as scholarly?

The term scholarly typically means that the source has been “peer-reviewed,” which is a lengthy editing and review process performed by scholars in the field to check for quality and validity. To determine if your source has been peer-reviewed, you can investigate the journal in which the article was published.

Does .org mean credible?

Websites with these domains (the URL ending) generally have reliable information: . org (a registered organisation) . edu (an educational institution)

Are articles considered scholarly?

Scholarly articles are written by researchers or experts in a field in order to share the results of their original research or analysis with other researchers and students. These articles often go through a process known as peer review where the article is reviewed by a group of experts in the field.

What isn't a scholarly source?

Newspapers are not scholarly sources, but some would not properly be termed popular, either. Every source must be questioned for its stake in the material. The New York Post is notoriously inflammatory, for instance, and also seems to love television shows broadcast on the Fox network (owned by the same company).

What are non-academic journals?

Non-academic articles are written for the mass public. They are published quickly and can be written by anyone. Their language is informal, and casual and may contain slang. The author may not be provided and will not have any credentials listed. There will be no reference list.

Which would be considered a scholarly source?

If an article is published in a peer-reviewed journal, it's scholarly. If an article is published in an academic journal that is not peer-reviewed, it may be scholarly, but it may not. It's important to look for clues and use your judgment as a scholar to figure out the difference.

Are all journals credible?

Identify Journal Types

Articles from scholarly, peer-reviewed, academic, and refereed journals are more credible than articles from popular or trade journals ('magazines') because they have gone through the most rigorous review process. They also have the most references or citations.

What is an H index?

The h-index is calculated by counting the number of publications for which an author has been cited by other authors at least that same number of times. For instance, an h-index of 17 means that the scientist has published at least 17 papers that have each been cited at least 17 times.

How to tell if a journal article is good?

Check accuracy: if you suspect that a piece of information presented as "fact" is suspect, check its accuracy using least two other respected sources of information. Follow up references: you could also check an article's references to find out if the author has used reputable sources.