I have a few articles, but I'm not sure they'll work

Your assignment requires peer-reviewed (or scholarly) articles. This page will help you make sure the sources you have are sources you can use.

We review:

• what a scholarly article is
• a few false positives to be aware of in your search for articles
• how to recognize a scholarly article

What is a peer-reviewed (scholarly) article?

This video explains the peer-review process and where to find peer-reviewed articles.

Non-scholarly sources in scholarly journals

Even if your article is published in a peer-reviewed journal, it still might not be a source you can use in your assignment. For example, scholarly journals include other sources like the ones shown below. You might have to look closely to see that they're not actually scholarly articles.

Click on each source type to see an example.

Recognizing a scholarly article

This video explains the difference between a scholarly article and a trade publication. It also outlines the different features of a scholarly article, so you can be sure the source you're looking at is one you can use.

Now that you understand the different features of a scholarly article, you can use the interactive image below to explore each section more closely.

If you have questions about an article you've chosen or if you're not sure it will be acceptable for your assignment, check with your professor or chat with the Libraries!