Scholarly vs. Popular Articles

When embarking upon a research project, college students may be required to use a wide variety of sources, depending on the professor's requirements.  Often students must use only scholarly journal articles. Other times, news and other popular periodical articles may be appropriate.  Determining whether or not an article is scholarly or popular can be challenging. This guide includes examples, images, and a video to help students learn to differentiate between types of periodicals. See the short video below by the Oregon School Library Information System for a brief overview.

A periodical is a publication that is usually issued on a regular schedule, e.g. daily, weekly, monthly, or quarterly. Periodicals usually have dates and volumes/issue numbers.  Examples of periodicals include newspapers, popular magazines, and scholarly journals.