While Google is a powerful search engine, it doesn't usually provide access to the articles in Library Databases. Using the Library databases, you can filter your results to only include certain types of resources: scholarly or peer-reviewed, magazines/popular or trade publications.
Scholarly journals are also called academic, peer-reviewed, or refereed journals. Strictly speaking, peer-reviewed (or refereed) journals refer only to those scholarly journals that submit articles to several other scholars, experts, or academics (peers) in the field for review and comment. These reviewers must agree that the article represents properly conducted original research or writing before it can be published.
Library databases will often tell you if an article is scholarly. But you can also look for:
- Scholarly journal articles often have an abstract, a descriptive summary of the article's contents, before the main text of the article.
- Scholarly journals generally have a sober, serious look. They often contain many graphs and charts but few glossy pages or exciting pictures.
- Scholarly journals always cite their sources in the form of footnotes or bibliographies. These bibliographies are generally lengthy and cite other scholarly writings.
- Articles are written by a scholar in the field or by someone who has done research in the field. The affiliations of the authors are listed, usually, at the bottom of the first page or at the end of the article--universities, research institutions, think tanks, and the like.
- The language of scholarly journals is that of the discipline covered. It assumes some technical background on the part of the reader.
- The main purpose of a scholarly journal is to report on original research or experimentation in order to make such information available to the rest of the scholarly world.
- Many scholarly journals, though by no means all, are published by a specific professional organization.
Magazines are not peer-reviewed. Magazines are intended for a general audience.
- Magazines do not cite their sources.
- Magazines contain glossy images, photos, and advertisements.
- Magazines exist to make money.
Trade Publications provide information to use in a particular industry or field. Trade publications may have short bibliographies.
- May have a bright cover.
- No specific format.
- Articles sometimes unsigned.
- General Editors of the magazine review the articles.
- Advertising is used to appeal to those in the field.
