Scholarly vs Popular
Is it Scholarly or Popular?
You may be asked to use scholarly articles for your research paper. Here are some hints to help you recognize if an article is scholarly or not.
- The terms peer reviewed and refereed mean that experts have evaluated the article. Peer reviewed, refereed articles are scholarly.
- Articles that are not scholarly are considered popular. There are different types of popular publications (see chart below).
- Popular materials can be good sources, but they are not considered scholarly.
If you aren't sure whether an article is scholarly or not, try using Ulrichsweb Global Serials Directory (see instructions below chart).
| SCHOLARLY | POPULAR | |||||
| General Interest | Trade / Professional | Sensational | ||||
| LENGTH | Long; 8 pages or more | Short; 6 pages or less | Short; 6 pages or less | Short | ||
| CONTENT | Original research or experimentation. Format: title, abstract, literature review, methodology, discussion, conclusion, bibliography |
Broad focus topics:culture, politics, etc. | News, trends, developments and products for industry or profession | Celebrity gossip, unusual news stories that may lack credibility | ||
| READERSHIP or AUDIENCE | Academics Students Professionals |
Educated audience but non-specialists | Professionals and experts in the field | Gullible audience, appeal to superstitions and prejudice | ||
| AUTHOR | Specialists and researchers in a subject area | Staff or freelance writers who may have subject expertise | Professionals in the field, and/or staff writers | Often unidentified | ||
| VOCABULARY | Technical vocabulary and specialized jargon | Average level ranging from formal to conversational | Some specialized vocabulary but fairly readable | Elementary and inflammatory, popular language | ||
| ACCOUNTABILITY | Peer reviewed Significant references |
Not peer reviewed Minimal references |
Not peer reviewed Minimal references |
Not peer reviewed Entirely unsubstantiated |
||
| ADVERTISEMENTS | Few or none | Moderate | Moderate (tend to be trade related) | Many | ||
| APPEARANCE | Plain, black/white graphics, charts and figures | Glossy w/ color with photographs and illustrations | Glossy w/ color with photographs and illustrations | Newspaper format, color with many photographs | ||
| EXAMPLES | The Journal of the American Medical Association Journal of Sport and Social Issue |
The Atlantic Monthly Sports Illustrated Time Vogue |
Advertising Age American Teacher Publishers Weekly Supermarket News |
National Examiner Star Weekly World News |
||
| This chart has been adapted from UC Santa Cruz's web page "Distinguish Between Popular and Scholarly Periodicals". | ||||||
Using Ulrichsweb Global Serials Directory
Ulrichsweb Global Serials Directory lists many periodical titles (e.g. journals and magazines) and indicates if they are refereed or peer-reviewed with the following symbol. 
To determine if the periodical you want to use is scholarly or not, follow these steps.
- Visit Ulrichsweb Global Serials Directory found in the Databases A-Z list.
- Type in the title of the periodical you are evaluating. e.g. Modern Fiction Studies
- Look to the left of the title. If this symbol is present (), then the journal is refereed.
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