LibGuides: Organizing Your Social Sciences Research Paper: What Is Scholarly vs. Popular?

Types of Sources

There are three types of publications that may appear in the search results of many social and behavioral sciences databases. These are:

Scholarly sources -- intended for use in support of conducting in-depth research, often containing specialized vocabulary and extensive references to sources. The content has been reviewed by academic peers to ensure the reliability of methods used and the validity of findings. Scholarly sources help answer the "So What?" question in academic writing and lay the foundation for discovering connections between variables, issues, or events.
Popular sources -- intended for a general audience of readers, they are written typically to entertain, inform, or persuade. Popular sources help you answer who, what, when, and where questions and are essential for finding information about current events or issues. Popular sources range from research-oriented [but lacking complete citations to sources] to special interest, agenda-driven publications.
Trade publications -- intended to share general news, trends, and opinions among practitioners in a certain industry or profession. Although generally written by experts, they are not considered scholarly because they are not peer-reviewed and do not focus on advancing new knowledge discovery or reporting research results. Trade journals, however, are an essential source of information in the field of business and specialized industries [e.g., tourism, environmental studies, agriculture, manufacturing, etc.].

Adapted from text originally created by Holly Burt, USC Libraries, April 2018. Thank you, Holly!

Scholarly Journals versus Popular Publications

Below is a chart developed by the USC Libraries instruction team that can help you distinguish between a scholarly [a.k.a., peer-reviewed or academic] journal article and a popular, general interest publication.

	Scholarly/Academic	Popular Magazines	Trade Journals	Newspapers
Author	Scholar or researcher in field with stated credentials and affiliations	Staff writer, journalist, often a generalist	Staff writer, journalist often with expertise in field	Staff writer, journalist, columnist
Sources and Documentation	All sources cited; extensive bibliographies, list of references, or notes	No formal citations; original sources may be obscure	No formal citations; may refer to reports; may include a bibliography	May refer to sources in text; no formal list of references
Editorial Process	Blind peer-reviewed [i.e., refereed] by multiple experts in the field	Reviewed by a single editor	Reviewed by a single editor	Reviewed by a single editor
Purpose	To present research findings and expand knowledge in a discipline or specific field of study	To inform about current or popular events, issues or popular culture; to entertain	To inform those working in the profession of events, products, techniques, and other professional issues.	To inform about current events and issues internationally, domestically, and locally
Structure of Articles	Lengthy (10+ pages) articles divided into specific sections, such as, literature review, methodology, results, discussion, and conclusion	Mix of short articles with in-depth articles on a variety of subjects	Industry specific articles of varying length; report news and trends but no original research	Brief articles, unless feature; may include original research written in a journalistic, investigative style
Frequency of Publication	Annually, semi-annually, quarterly, or monthly	Monthly or weekly	Monthly or weekly	Weekly or daily
Titles	May contain the words "Journal of", "Review of" or "Annals"; may contain the name of a discipline or subject area; may be lengthy	Straightforward; may address a general theme or subject; may be one word	Usually short and catchy; may contain the name of a trade or industry [e.g., Grocery Store News]	Simple; usually reflects a city or geographic location
Print Appearance	Plain covers that vary little from issue to issue; primarily black and white; mostly dense text with few graphics; pages consecutive throughout each volume	Very glossy and colorful; high impact visuals and design; some feature columns; many full page advertisements	Glossy with high impact graphics; regularly scheduled featured columns; pictorials of industry events; industry-related advertisements	Newsprint; lengthy and brief articles; regularly scheduled featured columns
Language	Complex and academic; includes discipline-specific jargon or technical terms	Simple and non-technical	Mix of jargon and technical terminology	Mix of simple and sophisticated
Illustrations	Complex tables or graphs to display research data; may have appendices	Photos and colorful graphics for visual impact or entertainment	Colorful graphics and photos for emphasis	Photos and graphics for emphasis
Advertisements	None, or limited to books, other journals, and professional meetings	Very frequent	Frequent, targeting a specific trade or industry	Very frequent
Intended Audience	Scholars, researchers, scientists, advanced students	General public	Industry members, professionals, and associated stakeholders	General public, some with specialization (e.g., Wall Street Journal for readers in business)
Value and Usefulness in Research	Critical to understanding and analyzing a topic in detail and to design a coherent, well-organized original research study	Limited; news magazines, such as, Time are useful for following current events	Limited to understanding news and trends in specific industries and professions	Essential to following current events; provides local coverage of issues

Chapmana, Julie M., Charlcie K. Pettway, and Steven A. Scheuler. “Teaching Journal and Serials Information to Undergraduates: Challenges, Problems and Recommended Instructional Approaches.” The Reference Librarian 38 (2002): 363-382; Cockrella, Barbara J. and Elaine Anderson Jayneb. “How Do I Find an Article? Insights from a Web Usability Study.” Journal of Academic Librarianship 28 (May-June 2002): 122-132; Usdansky, Margaret L. “A Weak Embrace: Popular and Scholarly Depictions of Single-Parent Families, 1900 - 1998.” Journal of Marriage and Family 71 (May 2009): 209-225.