Using Scholarly Sources for Academic Research

Importance of Scholarly Sources

• College assignments often require the use of scholarly sources.
• Terms like "academic journal articles" or "peer-reviewed articles" refer to scholarly sources.
• Scholarly articles can be more time-efficient for research compared to books.

Differences Between Scholarly and Popular Articles

Scholarly Articles

• Authors: Written by scholars, researchers, and experts.
• Purpose: Report research processes and findings.
• Review Process: Information is peer-reviewed by other field researchers.
• Content Features:
  • Include reference lists or bibliographies.
  • Contain tables or graphs to visualize raw data.
• Intended Audience: Scholars, researchers, scholars in training, and students.
• Writing Style: Formal with technical language.

Popular Articles

• Authors: Written by staff members, journalists, or freelance writers.
• Purpose: Summarize scholarly research for the general public.
• Content Features:
  • Rarely include references or bibliographies.
  • Feature colorful images and text about current events, celebrities, or opinions.
• Intended Audience: General public.
• Writing Style: Casual with language for non-experts.

Examples

• Popular Article Example:
  • A Time Magazine article on distracted driving with a big color image.
  • Written by a freelance author, includes information from a scholarly article but lacks a reference list.
• Scholarly Article Example:
  • Written by university researchers, published in a peer-reviewed journal.
  • Contains graphs for data visualization and a long list of references.

Additional Resources

• If you have questions about scholarly and popular sources, visit libraries.ou.edu or reach out for assistance.