Scholarly vs. Non-Scholarly Sources

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DISTINGUISHING BETWEEN SCHOLARLY AND NON-SCHOLARLY SOURCES

Throughout this tutorial, hover over the info buttons to learn about common characteristics of scholarly and non-scholarly articles. Try it!

HOW CAN YOU TELL?

THIS IS A SCHOLARLY ARTICLE

Vonshay Sharpe, Rhonda, and Omari H. Swinton. “Beyond Anecdotes: A Quantitative Examination of Black Women in Academe.” The Review of Black Political Economy, vol. 39, no. 3, 2012, pp. 341–52, doi:10.1007/s12114-012-9134-6.

Link

HOW CAN YOU TELL?

THIS IS A NON-SCHOLARLY ARTICLE

Link

Reilly, Katie. “Depression on Campus.” Time, vol. 191, no. 13, Apr. 2018, p. 38–42.

• Intended for a general readership
• Share previously published research; may report on multiple studies and give background information
• Include eye-catching images designed to draw in readers
• Written by journalists, columnists, magazine staff writers, or freelance writers
• Feature interviews or quotes from one or more people affected by or involved with the topic
• May include data or statistics but might not indicate how the data was collected or interpreted
• Refer to published sources but rarely contain in-text citations or footnotes

Examples:

Time Magazine; The Atlantic; Newsweek; Vogue; Sports Illustrated

• Present researchers' findings and conclusions based on original research
• Charts and graphs show original data analysis conducted by the researchers
• Peer reviewed
• Written by specialists and researchers with expertise in the subject area
• Intended for a specialist readership of researchers, academics, students, and professionals
• Citations and references indicate an ongoing scholarly conversation on the topic
• Standard format with few or no ads or images
• Include a bibliography of sources

Examples:

Quarterly Journal of Economics; Journal of Musicology; Nature; Journal of Black Studies

Sometimes called "popular" or general interest sources, journalists report on interviews and/or research done by others.

Scholars share findings from their original research in journals specific to their subject area.

SCHOLARLY SOURCES

NON-SCHOLARLY SOURCES

Now that you have learned about distinguishing characteristics of scholarly and non-scholarly sources, you may be wondering: When do I use each type of source?

The good news is that there is a time and place to use both types of sources. Be sure you know which sources are scholarly and which are not so that you can use each appropriately! Your professor or assignment might have specific requirements for which sources to use, so be sure to check first.

When you are ready, check your answers!

1. Scholarly articles are peer reviewed by other scholars for content, scholarly soundness, and academic value. 2. Scholarly articles are written by journalists. 3. Non-scholarly articles typically have a bibliography of sources referenced in the article. 4. Both scholarly and non-scholarly articles can be useful for conducting research.

True or False?

Check Your Understanding