What is a peer reviewed/scholarly article?
Answer
Scholarly and Peer-Reviewed Articles What does it mean?
Scholarly articles are written by professionals in a given field of study. They are written for an academic audience rather than a general audience. Oftentimes, scholarly articles go through a peer-review process, which means the articles are examined prior to being published to ensure that the research contained within the article conforms to standards for that particular discipline. This editorial process helps ensure high standards and academic quality.
- ‘Scholarly’ means written by and for academics.
- ‘Peer-reviewed’ or ‘juried’ means the article was reviewed by other experts in the discipline to ensure it contains sound research practices. These articles are highly credible.
- Not all scholarly articles are peer-reviewed. All peer-reviewed articles are scholarly though. Not every article in a peer-reviewed journal is necessarily peer-reviewed. Book reviews and editorials, for example, might not be. Look for clues (like a list of references in addition to information about the journal) to help you decide.
This handout explains what scholarly or peer-reviewed articles are and how to find them: Scholarly or Peer-Reviewed Articles.
This tutorial contains examples of a popular source of information and a scholarly or peer-reviewed source, will help you understand the characteristics of each source, and help you locate a peer-reviewed article in the NAU Online Library: Scholarly or Peer-reviewed vs. Popular Articles Tutorial.