When conducting your research, it is important for you to distinguish between journal articles and magazine articles. Databases are used to find and identify articles from peer-reviewed journals and other types of documents.
Journal articles are usually referred to as "scholarly," while magazine articles are commonly considered "popular." Consider these points when differentiating between journals and magazines.
|
Criteria |
Scholarly Journal |
Popular Magazine |
|
Audience |
Academics/researchers and professionals |
General public |
|
Authors |
Experts and/or specialists |
Journalists and/or freelance writers |
|
Editorial Review/Peer Review |
Journal editorial board and peer reviewers. |
Professional editors |
|
References/ Works cited |
Yes |
Not necessary |
Found a good article? Now you need to know whether you can get the full text at the Priddy Library
or at UMBC Library Find Journals at UMBC
If you've run a database search, the article's record may have a "Full Text" or "PDF" link - that's great: click to get the full text. If not, click on any of these links to find out if we have access to the journal.
If you have found the article in Google Scholar: click a library link, e.g., "FindIt@UMCP" or "FindIt@UMBC" to the right of the search result.
Did you find a relevant article for your research? Can't get access to the full text? Try to use the Document Delivery Illiad service, the librarians will be eager to find it for you and you will get the scan article in your mailbox.
Peer review is an indicator of quality scholarship. It is the process by which after an author submits its manuscript for publication, a number of recognized researchers in the field (their peers) will evaluate the manuscript and recommend its publication, revision, or rejection. Articles accepted for publication through a peer review process implicitly meet the discipline's expected standards of expertise.
If you have found an interesting article in Google Scholar and want to gain access to it click on the library link, "FindIt@UMCP" or "FindIt@UMBC" to the right of the search result.