scholarly articles are

What is a Scholarly Article: What is a scholarly article

Determineif a source is scholarly, determine if a source is scholarly, what is a scholarly source.

Scholarly sources (also referred to as academic, peer-reviewed, or refereed sources) are written by experts in a particular field and serve to keep others interested in that field up to date on the most recent research, findings, and news. These resources will provide the most substantial information for your research and papers.

What is peer-review?

When a source has been peer-reviewed, it has undergone the review and scrutiny of a review board of colleagues in the author’s field. They evaluate this source as part of the body of research for a particular discipline and make recommendations regarding its publication in a journal, revisions prior to publication, or, in some cases, reject its publication.

Why use scholarly sources?

Scholarly sources’ authority and credibility improve the quality of your own paper or research project.

How can I tell if a source is scholarly?

The following characteristics can help you differentiate scholarly sources from those that are not. Be sure to look at the criteria in each category when making your determination, rather than basing your decision on only one piece of information.

• Are author names provided?
• Are the authors’ credentials provided?
• Are the credentials relevant to the information provided?
• Who is the publisher of the information?
• Is the publisher an academic institution, scholarly, or professional organization?
• Is their purpose for publishing this information evident?
• Who is the intended audience of this source?
• Is the language geared toward those with knowledge of a specific discipline rather than the general public?
• Why is the information being provided?
• Are sources cited?
• Are there charts, graphs, tables, and bibliographies included?
• Are research claims documented?
• Are conclusions based on evidence provided?
• How long is the source?

Currency/Timeliness

• Is the date of publication evident?

Additional Tips for Specific Scholarly Source Types

Each resource type below will also have unique criteria that can be applied to it to determine if it is scholarly.

• Books published by a University Press are likely to be scholarly.
• Professional organizations and the U.S. Government Printing Office can also be indicators that a book is scholarly.
• Book reviews can provide clues as to if a source is scholarly and highlight the intended audience. See our  Find Reviews  guide to locate reviews on titles of interest.
• Are the author’s professional affiliations provided?
• Who is the publisher?
• How frequently is the periodical published?
• How many and what kinds of advertisements are present? For example, is the advertising clearly geared towards readers in a specific discipline or occupation?
• For more information about different periodical types, see our  Selecting Sources  guide.
• What is the domain of the page (for example: .gov, .edu, etc.)?
• Who is publishing or sponsoring the page?
• Is contact information for the author/publisher provided?
• How recently was the page updated?
• Is the information biased? Scholarly materials published online should not have any evidence of bias.

Is My Source Scholarly? (Accessible View)

Step 1: Source

The article is most likely scholarly if:

• You found the article in a library database or Google Scholar
• The journal the article appears in is peer-reviewed

Move to Step 2: Authors

Step 2: Authors

The source is most likely scholarly if:

• The authors’ credentials are provided
• The authors are affiliated with a university or other research institute

Move to Step 3: Content

Step 3: Content

• The source is longer than 10 pages
• Has a works cited or bibliography
• It does not attempt to persuade or bias the reader
• It attempts to persuade or bias the reader, but treats the topic objectively, the information is well-supported, and it includes a works cited or bibliography

If the article meets the criteria in Steps 1-3 it is most likely scholarly.

Common Characteristics of a Scholarly Article

Common characteristics of scholarly (research) articles.

Articles in scholarly journals may also be called research journals, peer reviewed journals, or refereed journals. These types of articles share many common features, including:

• articles always provide the name of the author or multiple authors
• author(s) always have academic credentials (e.g. biologist, chemist, anthropologist, lawyer)
• articles often have a sober, serious look
• articles may contain many graphs and charts; few glossy pages or color pictures
• author(s) write in the language of the discipline (e.g. biology, chemistry, anthropology, law, etc.)
• authors write for other scholars, and emerging scholars
• authors always cite their sources in footnotes, bibliographies, notes, etc.
• often (but not always) associated with universities or professional organizations

Types of Scholarly Articles

Peer Review in 3 Minutes

North Carolina State University (NCSU) Libraries (3:15)

• What do peer reviewers do?  How are they similar to or different from editors?
• Who are the primary customers of scholarly journals?
• Do databases only include peer-reviewed articles?  How do you know?

Is my source scholarly

Is My Source Scholarly?: INFOGRAPHIC

This infographic is part of the Illinois Library's Determine if a source is scholarly.

"Is my source scholarly" by Illinois Library  https://www.library.illinois.edu/ugl/howdoi/scholarly/

Anatomy of a Scholarly Article: Interactive Tutorial

Typical Sections of a Peer-Reviewed Research Article

Typical sections of peer-reviewed research articles.

Research articles in many disciplines are organized into standard sections. Although these sections may vary by discipline, common sections include:

• Introduction
• Materials and Methods

It's not hard to spot these sections; just look for bold headings in the article, as shown in these illustrations:

• Last Updated: Oct 22, 2020 11:31 AM
• URL: https://libguides.mccd.edu/WhatisaScholarlyArticle

Finding Scholarly Articles: Home

What's a Scholarly Article?

Your professor has specified that you are to use scholarly (or primary research or peer-reviewed or refereed or academic) articles only in your paper. What does that mean?

Scholarly or primary research articles are peer-reviewed , which means that they have gone through the process of being read by reviewers or referees  before being accepted for publication. When a scholar submits an article to a scholarly journal, the manuscript is sent to experts in that field to read and decide if the research is valid and the article should be published. Typically the reviewers indicate to the journal editors whether they think the article should be accepted, sent back for revisions, or rejected.

To decide whether an article is a primary research article, look for the following:

• The author’s (or authors') credentials and academic affiliation(s) should be given;
• There should be an abstract summarizing the research;
• The methods and materials used should be given, often in a separate section;
• There are citations within the text or footnotes referencing sources used;
• Results of the research are given;
• There should be discussion   and  conclusion ;
• With a bibliography or list of references at the end.

Caution: even though a journal may be peer-reviewed, not all the items in it will be. For instance, there might be editorials, book reviews, news reports, etc. Check for the parts of the article to be sure.   

You can limit your search results to primary research, peer-reviewed or refereed articles in many databases. To search for scholarly articles in  HOLLIS , type your keywords in the box at the top, and select  Catalog&Articles  from the choices that appear next.   On the search results screen, look for the  Show Only section on the right and click on  Peer-reviewed articles . (Make sure to  login in with your HarvardKey to get full-text of the articles that Harvard has purchased.)

Many of the databases that Harvard offers have similar features to limit to peer-reviewed or scholarly articles.  For example in Academic Search Premier , click on the box for Scholarly (Peer Reviewed) Journals  on the search screen.

Review articles are another great way to find scholarly primary research articles.   Review articles are not considered "primary research", but they pull together primary research articles on a topic, summarize and analyze them.  In Google Scholar , click on Review Articles  at the left of the search results screen. Ask your professor whether review articles can be cited for an assignment.

A note about Google searching.  A regular Google search turns up a broad variety of results, which can include scholarly articles but Google results also contain commercial and popular sources which may be misleading, outdated, etc.  Use Google Scholar  through the Harvard Library instead.

About Wikipedia .  W ikipedia is not considered scholarly, and should not be cited, but it frequently includes references to scholarly articles. Before using those references for an assignment, double check by finding them in Hollis or a more specific subject  database .

Still not sure about a source? Consult the course syllabus for guidance, contact your professor or teaching fellow, or use the Ask A Librarian service.

• Last Updated: Oct 3, 2023 3:37 PM
• URL: https://guides.library.harvard.edu/FindingScholarlyArticles

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Guide to Scholarly Articles

• What is a Scholarly Article?
• Scholarly vs. Popular vs. Trade Articles

Types of Scholarly Articles

Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-methods articles, why does this matter.

• Anatomy of Scholarly Articles
• Tips for Reading Scholarly Articles

Scholarly articles come in many different formats each with their own function in the scholarly conversation. The following are a few of the major types of scholarly articles you are likely to encounter as you become a part of the conversation. Identifying the different types of scholarly articles and knowing their function will help you become a better researcher.

Original/Empirical Studies

• Note: Empirical studies can be subdivided into qualitative studies, quantitative studies, or mixed methods studies. See below for more information  
• Usefulness for research:  Empirical studies are useful because they provide current original research on a topic which may contain a hypothesis or interpretation to advance or to disprove. 

Literature Reviews

• Distinguishing characteristic:  Literature reviews survey and analyze a clearly delaminated body of scholarly literature.  
• Usefulness for research: Literature reviews are useful as a way to quickly get up to date on a particular topic of research.

Theoretical Articles

• Distinguishing characteristic:  Theoretical articles draw on existing scholarship to improve upon or offer a new theoretical perspective on a given topic.
• Usefulness for research:  Theoretical articles are useful because they provide a theoretical framework you can apply to your own research.

Methodological Articles

• Distinguishing characteristic:  Methodological articles draw on existing scholarship to improve or offer new methodologies for exploring a given topic.
• Usefulness for research:  Methodological articles are useful because they provide a methodologies you can apply to your own research.

Case Studies

• Distinguishing characteristic:  Case studies focus on individual examples or instances of a phenomenon to illustrate a research problem or a a solution to a research problem.
• Usefulness for research:  Case studies are useful because they provide information about a research problem or data for analysis.

Book Reviews

• Distinguishing characteristic:  Book reviews provide summaries and evaluations of individual books.
• Usefulness for research:  Book reviews are useful because they provide summaries and evaluations of individual books relevant to your research.

Adapted from the Publication manual of the American Psychological Association : the official guide to APA style. (Sixth edition.). (2013). American Psychological Association.

Qualitative articles  ask "why" questions where as  quantitative  articles  ask "how many/how much?" questions. These approaches are are not mutually exclusive. In fact, many articles combine the two in a  mixed-methods  approach. 

We can think of these different kinds of scholarly articles as different tools designed for different tasks. What research task do you need to accomplish? Do you need to get up to date on a give topic? Find a literature review. Do you need to find a hypothesis to test or to extend? Find an empirical study. Do you need to explore methodologies? Find a methodological article.

• << Previous: Scholarly vs. Popular vs. Trade Articles
• Next: Anatomy of Scholarly Articles >>
• Last Updated: Aug 23, 2023 8:53 AM
• URL: https://researchguides.library.tufts.edu/scholarly-articles

Research Strategies

• Reference Resources
• News Articles
• Scholarly Sources
• Search Strategy
• OneSearch Tips
• Evaluating Information
• Revising & Polishing
• Presentations & Media
• MLA 9th Citation Style
• APA 7th Citation Style
• Other Citation Styles
• Citation Managers
• Annotated Bibliography
• Literature Review How to

What are Scholarly Sources?

Scholarly sources (also referred to as academic, peer-reviewed, or refereed sources) are written by subject experts with systems in place to ensure the quality and accuracy of information. 

Scholarly sources include books from academic publishers, peer-reviewed  journal articles , and reports from research institutes.

What is peer review?  When a source has been peer-reviewed, it has undergone the review and scrutiny of a review board of colleagues in the author’s field. They evaluate this source as part of the body of research for a particular discipline and make recommendations regarding its publication in a journal, revisions prior to publication, or, in some cases, reject its publication.

How to Read a Scholarly Article

Scholarly sources often have a particular writing style and can be challenging to read compared to other types of sources. When reading scholarly literature, read strategically. Don't start by reading the article from start to finish but rather focus on the sections that will give you the information you need first. This will quickly let you know what the article is about and its relevancy for your research. It will also prepare you for when you’re ready to read the full article, giving you a mental map of its structure and purpose.

Here is a suggestion on how to read a scholarly article and which sections to focus on first. 

Show/Hide Infographic Text

• Read the abstract An abstract is a summary of the article, and will give you an idea of what the article is about and how it will be written. If there are lots of complicated subject-specific words in the abstract, the article will be just as hard to read.
• Read the conclusion This is where the author will repeat all of their ideas and their findings. Some authors even use this section to compare their study to others. By reading this, you will notice a few things you missed, and will get another overview of the content.
• Read the first paragraph or the introduction This is usually where the author will lay out their plan for the article and describe the steps they will take to talk about their topic. By reading this, you will know what parts of the article will be most relevant to your topic!
• Read the first sentence of every paragraph These are called topic sentences, and will usually introduce the idea for the paragraph that follows. By reading this, you can make sure that the paragraph has information relevant to your topic before you read the entire thing.
• The rest of the article Now that you have gathered the idea of the article through the abstract, conclusion, introduction, and topic sentences, you can read the rest of the article!
• To review: Abstract, Conclusion,  Introduction, Topic Sentences, Entire Article

How can I tell if an article is scholarly?

There are several ways to determine whether an article qualifies as "scholarly" or "peer-reviewed". First it depends on how you found the source. If you are using library resources such as OneSearch or databases such as Academic Search Premier - you can limit the search to peer-reviewed journals. Many databases will have this feature to allow you to limit searches for scholarly, peer-reviewed, or academic sources.  

Here are some qualities that set them apart from "popular" sources such as newspapers, magazines, etc.

• Purpose : is to communicate research and scholarly ideas.
• Author(s):  are researchers, scholars, and/or faculty, and they will typically have an institutional affiliation listed.
• Citations: should have a works cited/references/bibliography with full citations.
• Length:  usually long, typically range between 8 and 30+ pages. 
• Audience: is other researchers, scholars, and/or faculty.
• Coverage:  tends to be focused and narrow. 
• Publisher:  are usually university presses, professional associations, academic institutions, and commercial publishers.
• Peer-review process can take months if not years--from the time that an article is submitted for review and ultimate publication.
• What it is NOT:  some parts of scholarly journals are not peer-reviewed. These include book reviews and letters/responses to the editor.

Ulrich's Periodicals Directory  (often referred to as  UlrichsWeb ) is a database that the University Library subscribes to. You may be told to "check Ulrich's," but what does that mean? Ulrich's will tell you if a journal is still in print, available online, where it is indexed, and most critically, what  type  of journal it is (scholarly, trade, popular, etc.). This is useful for students being asked to find specific types of sources.

Search using the name of the journal and then look for the black and white referee jacket. This indicates that the journals content is peer-reviewed. 

How can I tell if a book is scholarly?

Look for several things to determine if a book is scholarly:

• Publisher:  who is the publisher? University presses (e.g. Stanford University Press, University of Pittsburgh Press, University of Washington press) publish scholarly, academic books.
• Author:  what are the author's credentials? Typically written by a scholar/researcher with academic credentials listed. 
• Content:  scholarly books always have information cited in the text, in footnotes, and have a bibliography or references. Scholarly books also often contain a combination of primary and secondary sources.
• Style:  Language is formal and technical; usually contains discipline-specific jargon.

Where to find Scholarly Sources?

The library subscribes to over 250 databases! You can browse databases by Subject Area and read the description for the different types of resources you can find searching that particular database. Otherwise, here are some general multisubject databases and a good place to get started. 

• Academic Search Premier (EBSCO) This link opens in a new window Multi-disciplinary database provides full text for more than 4,600 journals, including full text for nearly 3,900 peer-reviewed titles.
• JSTOR This link opens in a new window Archive of back issues of core scholarly journals across a wide range of subjects, with an emphasis on arts, humanities, and social sciences. Also includes current content for select journals and a large collection of University Press books.
• OneSearch Here you can search for books and e-books, videos, articles, digital media, and more. Make sure to use the limiter on the left hand side and limit to Peer-Reviewed Journals.
• Project MUSE This link opens in a new window Full text of over 300 peer-reviewed journals published by university presses and scholarly societies with emphasis on humanities and social sciences.
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• Last Updated: Mar 11, 2024 10:04 AM
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How to Read Scholarly Articles: What is Scholarly?

• What is Scholarly?
• The Anatomy of a Scholarly Article
• Strategies for Reading
• Where to Find Scholarly Articles

Popular vs. Scholarly

The assignment you have for class states that you need to use SCHOLARLY sources, mainly articles from journals.

What does Scholarly mean, though?

Before you get into the content of the article you found, let's compare the basics of Popular and Scholarly articles.

• Are written for a general audience, even when included in a discipline specific magazine (ex. Psychology Today )
• Written by the employees of the periodical who may or may not have experience or credentials on the topic
• Language is not technical and does not have a lot of jargon; easier to read and understand
• Little to no actual citations, and no bibliography/works cited list
• Contain advertisements and/or pictures
• Come out more frequently: daily, weekly, or monthly 

Good and Bad

You look up information all the time on your phones and computers at home using Google. Knowing that there are different types of information can help you find credible sources that answer your questions. It is also important to remember the context in which you are doing your own research. The Popular vs. Scholarly comparison is not a Bad vs. Good comparison. Popular sources are not inherently "bad", and scholarly sources are not inherently "good".

Scholarly articles present peer-reviewed research about specific topics. When your assignment calls for scholarly sources, you need to know what those look like in order to complete the assignment successfully. This applies even when a grade is not on the line.

However, when doing research there are many occasions where it would be appropriate to use a "popular" or non-scholarly source. You might need background information or want to see what people's opinion are on the topic you are researching for class. Turning to a popular source like a magazine, newspaper, or reputable website (i.e. Time Magazine, The Atlantic, The New York Times, NPR, etc.) would all be good options in those cases. 

• Longer articles, typically at least 7 pages, multiple columns on each page
• Are written by experts in their field, for other experts
• Authors have credentials to be considered experts, such as a PhD, MD, MA/MS. 
• Language can be very technical, and varies based on discipline. This can make these articles difficult to understand for students and others new to the field
• In the Sciences, scholarly articles include visual representations of data in charts, graphs, and tables
• Include many citations and a long list of references and works cited at the end
• A panel of experts reads each article submitted to a scholarly journal and provides feedback to the author(s) anonymously. The panel can accept submissions, ask for revisions, or outright reject the article. The articles included in an issue of the journal went through the whole process, including revisions and final acceptance.
• For more information about Peer Review, watch the video from NCSU Libraries embedded below. 
• Are published less less frequently, generally no more than four times/year

• Next: The Anatomy of a Scholarly Article >>
• Last Updated: Feb 12, 2024 7:23 AM
• URL: https://researchguides.ccc.edu/hw/scholarlyarticles

What is a Scholarly Article and How Do I Find One?

• The Basics of Academic/Scholarly Resources
• Database Essentials
• How To Read a Scholarly Article
• Library 101: Useful Information

Information Literacy Instruction Coordinator

All About Scholarly Resources

• The Basics of Scholarly Resources
• Anatomy of a Scholarly Article
• Popular Resources
• What is a Scholarly Article Chart

At some point in your academic career you will probably be asked to locate and use a scholarly or academic resource.  As an academic library, Meriam Library collects mostly scholarly resources. What does this mean? Scholarly resources have the following features:

1. They are  written by experts -  look for an author's credentials or affiliations.

2. They are written for other experts or people in academia. Think of each scholarly work as a voice in an ongoing conversation to which you will add your voice when you write a paper. 

3. They use scholarly language with technical, discipline specific vocabulary.

4.   They provide verifiable and reliable evidence for claims. Even if the resource is a general history/overview it will contain well researched information that the reader can verify.

5. They may be peer reviewed. Many journals go through an editorial process where other experts review and assess the information. 

How do you know if a journal is peer reviewed? Some databases will let you check a box to limit to peer reviewed articles. You can also look at the journal's website which will explain the editorial process including whether or not the journal is peer reviewed. 

For more comprehensive journal publication information see below:

• Ulrich's Periodicals Directory Call Number: Z6941 U5 2015 vol.1 - 4 Use this directory to look up information about periodicals including whether the publication is peer-reviewed.

Scholarly articles are published in scholarly journals. Most of these journals are discipline specific. For example if you study microbiology you might want to look in the Journal of Bacteriology. If you study Shakespeare you might look at Shakespeare Quarterly. Scholarly articles have certain things in common.

What to look for :

• Bibliographic information  (author, title, publisher, date, volume and issue number)
• Author credentials and affiliations  (what and where of  expertise ) 
• An  abstract  stating a summary of the article
• Science and social science articles will most likely have an  introduction, methodology  (how research was conducted),  results, discussion , and  conclusion
• Notes, references, or works cited ; This information is provided so readers know where the information was obtained, can verify sources, and/or use information for their own research. 

Sometimes you will encounter popular resources. Not only will you need to learn how to differentiate scholarly and popular resources but you will need to know when it is appropriate to use a popular resource. Here is some information about popular resources: 

Features of popular resources such as magazines :

Glossy pictures Written for general audiences most likely by non-experts such as journalists Easy to locate and purchase Catchy headlines and titles Articles tend to be short Lots of color images and advertisements Little or no reference to where the information was obtained Examples: Time, Oprah, National Geographic, People, Sports Illustrated

• More Information Use this chart for more information about scholarly vs. popular resources.

Click the image or use the below PDF for more information.

• What is a Scholarly Article?
• What is a Scholarly Article? (COVID Impact 2020)
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• Last Updated: Oct 14, 2020 9:25 AM
• URL: https://libguides.csuchico.edu/scholarly

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14.9: What are Scholarly Articles?

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Learning Objectives

• Describe types of academic sources, including scholarly, peer-reviewed, primary, and secondary sources

The first step in finding good resources is to know what to look for. Sites like Google, Yahoo, and Wikipedia may be good for general searches, but if you want something you can cite in a scholarly paper, you need to find academic sources.

Scholarly and Peer-Reviewed Articles

A scholarly source is an article or book that was written by an expert in the academic field. Most are written by professors or doctoral students for publication in peer-reviewed academic journals.

The terms “scholarly article” and “peer-reviewed” articles are often used interchangeably, but there is a distinction.

Scholarly articles are written by subject-matter experts, often appear in journals, and include bibliographies, but may be passed off by a review board instead of undergoing the same amount of scrutiny as peer-reviewed articles. Databases typically have a checkbox you can click to search only for peer-reviewed content.

Understanding the peer-review process gives insight as to why your instructors want you to focus on these resources. First, hopeful authors send their article manuscript to the journal editor, a role filled by some prominent scholar in the field. The editor reads over the manuscript and decides whether it seems worthy of peer-review. If it’s not rejected and looks appropriate and of sufficiently high quality, the editor will recruit a few other experts in the field to act as anonymous peer reviewers. The editor will send the manuscript (scrubbed of identifying information) to the reviewers who will read it closely and provide a thorough critique. Reviewers send their comments to the editor who then decides whether to (1) reject the manuscript, (2) ask the author(s) to revise and resubmit the manuscript or (3) accept it for publication. Editors send the reviewers’ comments to authors along with their decisions. A manuscript that has been revised and resubmitted usually goes out for peer-review again; editors often try to get reviews from one or two first-round reviewers as well as a new reviewer. The whole process, from start to finish, can easily take a year, and it is often another year before the paper appears in print.

Walking to Sources

Let’s revisit Marvin’s situation and see what the online professor has to say about finding peer-reviewed articles.

Marvin: My professor said something about using peer-reviewed articles in scholarly journals.

O-Prof: Professors will often want you to use such sources. Articles in scholarly journals are written by experts; and if a journal’s peer-reviewed, its articles have been screened by other experts (the authors’ peers) before being published.

Marvin: So that would make peer-reviewed articles pretty reliable. Where do I find them?

O-Prof: Google’s got a specialized search engine, Google Scholar, that will search for scholarly articles that might be useful (www. googlescholar.com). But often the best place is the college library’s bibliographic databases. A database is a collection of related data, usually electronic, set up for easy access to items in the collection. Library bibliographic databases contain articles from newspapers, magazines, scholarly journals, and other publications. They can be very large, but they’re a lot smaller than the whole Internet, and they generally contain reliable information. The Internet, on the other hand, contains both good and bad information.

Marvin looks down at his feet.

Marvin: Sounds sort of like looking for shoes. When I was buying my running shoes, I went to a specialty running shop instead of a regular shoe store. The specialty shop had all the brands I was looking for, and I didn’t have to weed through sandals and dress shoes. Is that kind of like a library’s bibliographic database?

O-Prof: Exactly. But remember, a database search engine can only find what’s actually in the database. If you’re looking for information on drinking water, you won’t find much in a database full of art history publications. The library has some subject guides that can tell you the best databases to use for your topic.

Marvin: What about books? I did check out the library catalog and found a couple of good books on my topic.

O-Prof: Yes, don’t forget about books. You generally have to walk physically to get information that’s only in print form, or have someone else bring it to you. Even though Google has now scanned many of the world’s books into its database, they won’t give you access to the entire book if the book is still under copyright.

Marvin: So I’m back to real walking again.

O-Prof: Yes. Don’t forget to ask for help when you’re looking around for sources. Reference librarians make very good guides; it’s their job to keep up on where various kinds of knowledge are located and help people find that knowledge. Professors also make good guides, but they’re most familiar with where to find knowledge in their own fields.

Marvin: I could ask my health and environment professor for help, of course, and maybe my geology and chemistry professors. I’m guessing my music teacher would be less helpful.

O-Prof: One last hint about finding sources. If you find an article or book that’s helpful for your paper, look at its reference list. There might be some useful sources listed there.

https://assessments.lumenlearning.co...essments/20300

Primary and Secondary Sources

While most scholarly sources are secondary sources, you will sometimes be asked to find primary sources in your research. For this reason, you should understand the differences between primary, secondary, and tertiary sources.

• Primary sources allow researchers to get as close as possible to original ideas, events, and empirical research as possible. Such sources may include creative works, first hand or contemporary accounts of events, and the publication of the results of empirical observations or research. These include diaries, interviews, speeches, photographs, etc.
• Secondary sources analyze, review, or summarize information in primary resources or other secondary resources. Even sources presenting facts or descriptions about events are secondary unless they are based on direct participation or observation. These include biographies, journal articles, books, and dissertations.
• Tertiary sources provide overviews of topics by synthesizing information gathered from other resources. Tertiary resources often provide data in a convenient form or provide information with context by which to interpret it. These are often grouped together with secondary sources. They include encyclopedias and dictionaries.

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Contributors and Attributions

• Primary, secondary, and tertiary sources. Provided by : Virginia Tech University Libraries. Located at : www.lib.vt.edu/help/research/primary-secondary-tertiary.html. License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
• Revision and Adaptation. Provided by : Lumen Learning. License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
• Finding sources image. Authored by : Kim Louie for Lumen Learning. License : CC BY: Attribution
• Scholarly Sources. Provided by : Boundless. Located at : www.boundless.com/writing/textbooks/boundless-writing-textbook/the-research-process-2/understanding-the-academic-context-of-your-topic-261/understanding-the-academic-context-of-your-topic-34-1667/. Project : Boundless Writing. License : CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
• Peer-review process image and ProQuest image. Provided by : Bond University Library. Located at : bond.libguides.com/internet-research/peer-review. License : CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
• Secondary Sources in Their Natural Habitats. Authored by : Amy Guptill. Provided by : SUNY. Located at : pressbooks.opensuny.org/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence/chapter/4/. Project : Writing in College. License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
• Walk, Talk, Cook, Eat: A Guide to Using Sources. Authored by : Cynthia R. Haller. Located at : http://www.saylor.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/writing-spaces-readings-on-writing-vol-2.pdf . Project : Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing Vol. 2. License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike

• Request Info
• Iona University
• Research Guides

Research Essentials

• What is a Scholarly Article?
• Choosing a Research Topic
• Find Books and Articles in WorldCat
• Find eBooks
• Find Articles in Research Databases
• Effective Database Searching

Introduction

Scholarly vs. popular sources, the peer review process, how to read a scholarly article.

• Misinformation, Disinformation, and Malinformation
• Citing Sources This link opens in a new window
• Library Workshops and Events
• Database Access Troubleshooting

From vocabulary to form, all writing is tailored to reach an intended audience for a particular purpose. Your tone, vocabulary, and purpose in a research paper is likely not the same as when you write a note to your friend. When evaluating sources and choosing research sources, it is crucial to differentiate between scholarly and popular sources, and understand how these different kinds of sources can be strategically used to build a strong research paper.

• Information Cycles
• Popular Magazines
• Scholarly Journals

Scholarly sources and popular sources serve different purposes. Popular sources typically provide an overview of events or subjects. Even when popular articles are written by scholars about their field of expertise, popular articles are still written to be understood by a general audience.

Because popular sources are topical they are typically published at a faster rate than scholarly work to pace with popular conversation. If you are looking for a scholarly peer-reviewed article about something that happened yesterday, you will likely not find anything because scholarly publication cycles are slower.

This timeline of the Information Cycle from University of Florida librarian Lisa Campbell uses a timeline of content about the 2017 Women’s March to illustrate the publication process. Tweets and newspaper articles precede magazine articles by a week or more; academic articles about the march were published as early as 9 months after the event, while a chapter in a book took roughly two years to publish. Each form of media has a different audience, form, and purpose, and the publication pace reflects all of those considerations.

Popular magazines are often written by journalists or professional writers for a general audience. They contain shorter articles than scholarly journals, use language easily understood by the general public, and often have glossy colored photos and advertisements. They rarely give full citations for sources. Time Magazine, Bloomberg Businessweek, and Sports Illustrated are examples of popular magazines.

Scholarly journals are written by and for faculty, researchers, or scholars, and are often peer-reviewed. They use scholarly or technical language and tend to be longer articles, detailing the research process and findings. The abstract, a summary of the article, is found at the beginning of a scholarly article and can be quickly skimmed so busy researchers can move past articles not relevant to their research. Scholarly journals may contain charts and graphs, and they include the full citations of sources.

Many articles in scholarly journals are peer-reviewed. Peer Review is the process of subjecting an author's scholarly work or research to a panel of experts in the same field to scrutinize the paper for accuracy and relevancy before the article is accepted and published. 

This process is generally considered necessary for academic quality and is used in most major scholarly journals. Many of our research databases allow you to limit your search to peer reviewed and/or scholarly journals. In the WorldCat database, you can limit your search to peer reviewed articles by using the "Limit To" filter on the left, illustrated in the screenshot below:

The following resources explain how to strategically read scholarly articles: 

Credo Video: How to Read a Scholarly Article

UBC i School How to Read and Academic Paper  (video)

University of Illinois Video How to Read Scholarly Articles  (video)

Tutorial from University of Oregon Libraries Anatomy of a Scholarly Article

Interactive Tutorial from Purdue University Libraries How to Read a Scientific Paper

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• URL: https://guides.iona.edu/researchessentials

Thursday, February 23: The Clark Library is closed today.

Identifying, Finding & Reading Scholarly Sources: What is a Scholarly Article?

What is a scholarly article.

• Identifying
• What is a Scholarly Book?

A scholarly article introduces new knowledge based on original research or experimentation. Many scholarly articles undergo a process called peer review. In this process, experts in the field scrutinize articles before they are published, resulting in a body of quality scholarly information. This guide will teach you to identify and read scholarly articles like a scholar!

This short video from Cornell University provides a nice introduction to identifying a scholarly article. 

Another short video, this time from Lincoln Memorial University, that explains the difference between popular and scholarly sources.

Primary or Secondary?

Both primary and secondary sources can be useful to you in your research, but you need to be able to distinguish which is which. Both types of information sources can be found using library databases, and both may even be peer-reviewed sources. So how do you tell which is which? Refer to the table below for some quick ways to determine if the source you've found is a primary source or a secondary source.

Primary Sources

• Describe original research, or original analysis of someone else's data
• Articles and papers by the researcher(s) presenting data and research findings
• Describe methodology and findings
• Terminology: Often scientific terminology and jargon; authors assume familiarity with the subject

Secondary Sources

• Discuss research done by others
• News, magazine articles, books, and review articles explaining, analyzing, or commenting on research
• Published AFTER primary sources (“second”)
• Terminology: May use less jargon and/or assume less familiarity with subject

What is Peer Review?

What's a DOI?

DOI = Digital Object Identifier

This is a unique alphanumeric identifier assigned to journal articles and book chapters. It's becoming more common for journal articles in the sciences and social sciences. If you find a source that has a DOI, include that in the citation.

No DOI? No sweat! Just cite it without a DOI. 

• Resolve a DOI Use this tool to look up an article using its DOI.
• CrossRef Use this tool to search by a specific article title, author, etc. in order to find its DOI.
• Next: Identifying >>
• Last Updated: Aug 27, 2023 9:33 PM
• URL: https://libguides.up.edu/scholarlysources

Scholarly Articles

• Scholarly article sections
• What is peer review?
• Reading scholarly articles practice
• Handouts: Reading & Evaluating
• How do I summarize a scholarly article?
• How do I find scholarly articles?
• Wrapping up scholarly articles

Scholarly, Popular, and Professional Sources

Scholarly, or Academic, articles are typically written by researchers or experts in a specific field of study (i.e. Sociology, Psychology, Biology, Epidemiology, etc.) and often present original research to their peers. Consider the purpose, authors, and audience as shown in the table below:

License information

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Research Guides

Eastern Washington University Libraries

Distinguishing Scholarly Articles

Scholarly articles.

• Where Can I Find Scholarly Articles?
• Types of Scholarly Articles
• Primary Sources
• Glossary of Specialized Terms

EWU Libraries offer a wide range of article databases. These sources index popular magazines, newspapers, academic journals, trade publications and other materials. In research assignments, students are often required to use primary research articles, literature reviews or book reviews appearing in academic or professional journals with an established reputation, written by credentialed "scholars" with an established subject background.

To determine which articles are scholarly, consider the following:

Periodical Titles

Popular magazines like Discover , Fortune , Newsweek , and Psychology Today don't publish scholarly or research articles; journals like Nature , Journal of the American Medical Association , Media Studies Journal , and Behavioral Science do.

General Appearance

Scholarly articles tend to be long, use an advanced or technical vocabulary, and sometimes contain raw data tables. Magazine articles are shorter and often have color illustrations.

Article Abstracts

Scholarly journal articles usually include one-paragraph abstracts written by the author, while citation databases often feature third-party abstracts for their scholarly content.

Author Credentials

Professional degrees or affiliations with research institutions are sometimes indicated at the beginning of scholarly articles. Articles written by general reporters, or with no authors listed, are considered less authoritative.

Bibliographic Citations

Complete notes and references within articles are strictly required in scholarly publishing to allow readers to consult the author's source materials for verification and expansion. Magazines and newspapers rarely cite their sources completely.

Peer Review or Refereed Journals

The highest level of authority, especially in scientific articles, involves independent review before publication by one or more experts in the field. These "referees" look for valid research methodology and accurate data, but do not necessarily support the conclusions of the author(s). Ulrich's Periodicals Directory is a database that can be used to identify refereed journals, but be aware that only the scholarly content in these journals is peer-reviewed - news items and opinion pieces might also be included, but not reviewed.

• Next: Where Can I Find Scholarly Articles? >>
• Last Updated: Mar 11, 2024 4:56 PM
• URL: https://research.ewu.edu/scholarly_articles

Scholarly Journals and Popular Magazines

Distinguishing features, your subject librarian.

Journal publications are designed for different audiences and purposes.

Journals may be divided into two categories, scholarly and popular.

Scholarly journals are appropriate for academic research whereas popular magazines provide information for the general public.

Scholarly journals are usually published by academic presses, research institutions, or professional associations and have specific submission criteria. Articles submitted to scholarly publications are often reviewed by an independent panel of experts and are referred to as peer reviewed or refereed. Increasingly, general databases like Expanded Academic Index, Infotrac, and Wilson Omnifile allow the user to limit searches to peer reviewed articles or at least differentiate the popular from the scholarly resources in their databases.

Popular magazines often have a staff of writers hired to produce articles on timely, general interest topics. Articles are submitted to an editor who reviews the article for relevance to the magazine. Glossy photographs, provocative titles, and advertising are commonly found throughout each issue.

Here are the general differences between scholarly journals and popular magazines:

• Next: Examples >>
• Last Updated: Aug 24, 2023 9:59 AM
• URL: https://libguides.uwf.edu/scholarly

• What are Scholarly Articles?

Scholarly and Peer-Reviewed Articles

Major search databases like ProQuest, have checkboxes to narrow search results to only peer-reviewed articles.

A scholarly source is an article or book that was written by an expert in the academic field. Most are written by professors or doctoral students for publication in peer-reviewed academic journals. The terms “scholarly article” and “peer-reviewed” articles are often used interchangeably, but there is a distinction.

Scholarly articles are written by subject-matter experts, often appear in journals, and include bibliographies, but may be passed off by a review board instead of undergoing the same amount of scrutiny as  peer-reviewed articles. Databases typically have a checkbox you can click to search only for peer-reviewed content.

Steps involved in the peer-review process.

Understanding the peer-review process gives insight as to why your instructors want you to focus on these resources. First, hopeful authors send their article manuscript to the journal editor, a role filled by some prominent scholar in the field. The editor reads over the manuscript and decides whether it seems worthy of peer-review. If it’s not rejected and looks appropriate and of sufficiently high quality, the editor will recruit a few other experts in the field to act as anonymous peer reviewers. The editor will send the manuscript (scrubbed of identifying information) to the reviewers who will read it closely and provide a thorough critique. Reviewers send their comments to the editor who then decides whether to (1) reject the manuscript, (2) ask the author(s) to revise and resubmit the manuscript or (3) accept it for publication. Editors send the reviewers’ comments to authors along with their decisions. A manuscript that has been revised and resubmitted usually goes out for peer-review again; editors often try to get reviews from one or two first-round reviewers as well as a new reviewer. The whole process, from start to finish, can easily take a year, and it is often another year before the paper appears in print.

Finding Scholarly Sources

Let’s revisit Marvin’s situation and see what the online professor has to say about finding peer-reviewed articles.

Marvin: My professor said something about using peer-reviewed articles in scholarly journals.

O-Prof: Professors will often want you to use such sources. Articles in scholarly journals are written by experts; and if a journal’s peer-reviewed, its articles have been screened by other experts (the authors’ peers) before being published.

Marvin: So that would make peer-reviewed articles pretty reliable. Where do I find them?

O-Prof: Google’s got a specialized search engine, Google Scholar, that will search for scholarly articles that might be useful (www. googlescholar.com). But often the best place is the college library’s bibliographic databases. A database is a collection of related data, usually electronic, set up for easy access to items in the collection. Library bibliographic databases contain articles from newspapers, magazines, scholarly journals, and other publications. They can be very large, but they’re a lot smaller than the whole Internet, and they generally contain reliable information. The Internet, on the other hand, contains both good and bad information.

Marvin looks down at his feet.

Marvin: Sounds sort of like looking for shoes. When I was buying my running shoes, I went to a specialty running shop instead of a regular shoe store. The specialty shop had all the brands I  was looking for, and I didn’t have to weed through sandals and dress shoes. Is that kind of like a library’s bibliographic database?

O-Prof: Exactly. But remember, a database search engine can only find what’s actually in the database. If you’re looking for information on drinking water, you won’t find much in a database full of art history publications. The library has some subject guides that can tell you the best databases to use for your topic.

Marvin: What about books? I did check out the library catalog and found a couple of good books on my topic.

O-Prof: Yes, don’t forget about books. You generally have to walk physically to get information that’s only in print form, or have someone else bring it to you. Even though Google has now scanned many of the world’s books into its database, they won’t give you access to the entire book if the book is still under copyright.

Marvin: So I’m back to real walking again.

O-Prof: Yes. Don’t forget to ask for help when you’re looking around for sources. Reference librarians make very good guides; it’s their job to keep up on where various kinds of knowledge are located and help people find that knowledge. Professors also make good guides, but they’re most familiar with where to find knowledge in their own fields.

Marvin: I could ask my health and environment professor for help, of course, and maybe my geology and chemistry professors. I’m guessing my music teacher would be less helpful.

O-Prof: One last hint about finding sources. If you find an article or book that’s helpful for your paper, look at its reference list. There might be some useful sources listed there.

Primary and Secondary Sources

While most scholarly sources are secondary sources, you will sometimes be asked to find primary sources in your research. For this reason, you should understand the differences between primary, secondary, and tertiary sources.

• Primary sources allow researchers to get as close as possible to original ideas, events, and empirical research as possible. Such sources may include creative works, first hand or contemporary accounts of events, and the publication of the results of empirical observations or research. These include diaries, interviews, speeches, photographs, etc.
• Secondary sources analyze, review, or summarize information in primary resources or other secondary resources. Even sources presenting facts or descriptions about events are secondary unless they are based on direct participation or observation. These include biographies, journal articles, books, and dissertations.
• Tertiary sources provide overviews of topics by synthesizing information gathered from other resources. Tertiary resources often provide data in a convenient form or provide information with context by which to interpret it. These are often grouped together with secondary sources. They include encyclopedias and dictionaries.
• Primary, secondary, and tertiary sources. Provided by : Virginia Tech University Libraries. Located at : http://www.lib.vt.edu/help/research/primary-secondary-tertiary.html . License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
• Revision and Adaptation. Provided by : Lumen Learning. License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
• Finding sources image. Authored by : Kim Louie for Lumen Learning. License : CC BY: Attribution
• Scholarly Sources. Provided by : Boundless. Located at : https://www.boundless.com/writing/textbooks/boundless-writing-textbook/the-research-process-2/understanding-the-academic-context-of-your-topic-261/understanding-the-academic-context-of-your-topic-34-1667/ . Project : Boundless Writing. License : CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
• Peer-review process image and ProQuest image. Provided by : Bond University Library. Located at : http://bond.libguides.com/internet-research/peer-review . License : CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
• Secondary Sources in Their Natural Habitats. Authored by : Amy Guptill. Provided by : SUNY. Located at : http://pressbooks.opensuny.org/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence/chapter/4/ . Project : Writing in College. License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
• Walk, Talk, Cook, Eat: A Guide to Using Sources. Authored by : Cynthia R. Haller. Located at : http://www.saylor.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/writing-spaces-readings-on-writing-vol-2.pdf . Project : Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing Vol. 2. License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
• Table of Contents

Instructor Resources (available upon sign-in)

• Overview of Instructor Resources
• Quiz Survey

Reading: Types of Reading Material

• Introduction to Reading
• Outcome: Types of Reading Material
• Characteristics of Texts, Part 1
• Characteristics of Texts, Part 2
• Characteristics of Texts, Part 3
• Characteristics of Texts, Conclusion
• Self Check: Types of Writing

Reading: Reading Strategies

• Outcome: Reading Strategies
• The Rhetorical Situation
• Academic Reading Strategies
• Self Check: Reading Strategies

Reading: Specialized Reading Strategies

• Outcome: Specialized Reading Strategies
• Online Reading Comprehension
• How to Read Effectively in Math
• How to Read Effectively in the Social Sciences
• How to Read Effectively in the Sciences
• 5 Step Approach for Reading Charts and Graphs
• Self Check: Specialized Reading Strategies

Reading: Vocabulary

• Outcome: Vocabulary
• Strategies to Improve Your Vocabulary
• Using Context Clues
• The Relationship Between Reading and Vocabulary
• Self Check: Vocabulary

Reading: Thesis

• Outcome: Thesis
• Locating and Evaluating Thesis Statements
• The Organizational Statement
• Self Check: Thesis

Reading: Supporting Claims

• Outcome: Supporting Claims
• Types of Support
• Supporting Claims
• Self Check: Supporting Claims

Reading: Logic and Structure

• Outcome: Logic and Structure
• Rhetorical Modes
• Inductive and Deductive Reasoning
• Diagramming and Evaluating Arguments
• Logical Fallacies
• Evaluating Appeals to Ethos, Logos, and Pathos
• Self Check: Logic and Structure

Reading: Summary Skills

• Outcome: Summary Skills
• How to Annotate
• Paraphrasing
• Quote Bombs
• Summary Writing
• Self Check: Summary Skills
• Conclusion to Reading

Writing Process: Topic Selection

• Introduction to Writing Process
• Outcome: Topic Selection
• Starting a Paper
• Choosing and Developing Topics
• Back to the Future of Topics
• Developing Your Topic
• Self Check: Topic Selection

Writing Process: Prewriting

• Outcome: Prewriting
• Prewriting Strategies for Diverse Learners
• Rhetorical Context
• Working Thesis Statements
• Self Check: Prewriting

Writing Process: Finding Evidence

• Outcome: Finding Evidence
• Using Personal Examples
• Performing Background Research
• Listening to Sources, Talking to Sources
• Self Check: Finding Evidence

Writing Process: Organizing

• Outcome: Organizing
• Moving Beyond the Five-Paragraph Theme
• Introduction to Argument
• The Three-Story Thesis
• Organically Structured Arguments
• Logic and Structure
• The Perfect Paragraph
• Introductions and Conclusions
• Self Check: Organizing

Writing Process: Drafting

• Outcome: Drafting
• From Outlining to Drafting
• Flash Drafts
• Self Check: Drafting

Writing Process: Revising

• Outcome: Revising
• Seeking Input from Others
• Responding to Input from Others
• The Art of Re-Seeing
• Higher Order Concerns
• Self Check: Revising

Writing Process: Proofreading

• Outcome: Proofreading
• Lower Order Concerns
• Proofreading Advice
• "Correctness" in Writing
• The Importance of Spelling
• Punctuation Concerns
• Self Check: Proofreading
• Conclusion to Writing Process

Research Process: Finding Sources

• Introduction to Research Process
• Outcome: Finding Sources
• The Research Process
• Finding Sources
• Finding Scholarly Articles and Using Databases
• Database Searching
• Advanced Search Strategies
• Preliminary Research Strategies
• Reading and Using Scholarly Sources
• Self Check: Finding Sources

Research Process: Source Analysis

• Outcome: Source Analysis
• Evaluating Sources
• CRAAP Analysis
• Evaluating Websites
• Synthesizing Sources
• Self Check: Source Analysis

Research Process: Writing Ethically

• Outcome: Writing Ethically
• Academic Integrity
• Defining Plagiarism
• Avoiding Plagiarism
• Using Sources in Your Writing
• Self Check: Writing Ethically

Research Process: MLA Documentation

• Introduction to MLA Documentation
• Outcome: MLA Documentation
• MLA Document Formatting
• MLA Works Cited
• Creating MLA Citations
• MLA In-Text Citations
• Self Check: MLA Documentation
• Conclusion to Research Process

Grammar: Nouns and Pronouns

• Introduction to Grammar
• Outcome: Nouns and Pronouns
• Pronoun Cases and Types
• Pronoun Antecedents
• Try It: Nouns and Pronouns
• Self Check: Nouns and Pronouns

Grammar: Verbs

• Outcome: Verbs
• Verb Tenses and Agreement
• Non-Finite Verbs
• Complex Verb Tenses
• Try It: Verbs
• Self Check: Verbs

Grammar: Other Parts of Speech

• Outcome: Other Parts of Speech
• Comparing Adjectives and Adverbs
• Adjectives and Adverbs
• Conjunctions
• Prepositions
• Try It: Other Parts of Speech
• Self Check: Other Parts of Speech

Grammar: Punctuation

• Outcome: Punctuation
• End Punctuation
• Hyphens and Dashes
• Apostrophes and Quotation Marks
• Brackets, Parentheses, and Ellipses
• Semicolons and Colons
• Try It: Punctuation
• Self Check: Punctuation

Grammar: Sentence Structure

• Outcome: Sentence Structure
• Parts of a Sentence
• Common Sentence Structures
• Run-on Sentences
• Sentence Fragments
• Parallel Structure
• Try It: Sentence Structure
• Self Check: Sentence Structure

Grammar: Voice

• Outcome: Voice
• Active and Passive Voice
• Using the Passive Voice
• Conclusion to Grammar
• Try It: Voice
• Self Check: Voice

Success Skills

• Introduction to Success Skills
• Habits for Success
• Critical Thinking
• Time Management
• Writing in College
• Computer-Based Writing
• Conclusion to Success Skills

Explore millions of high-quality primary sources and images from around the world, including artworks, maps, photographs, and more.

Explore migration issues through a variety of media types

• Part of The Streets are Talking: Public Forms of Creative Expression from Around the World
• Part of The Journal of Economic Perspectives, Vol. 34, No. 1 (Winter 2020)
• Part of Cato Institute (Aug. 3, 2021)
• Part of University of California Press
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• Part of Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies, Vol. 19, No. 1 (Winter 2012)
• Part of R Street Institute (Nov. 1, 2020)
• Part of Leuven University Press
• Part of UN Secretary-General Papers: Ban Ki-moon (2007-2016)
• Part of Perspectives on Terrorism, Vol. 12, No. 4 (August 2018)
• Part of Leveraging Lives: Serbia and Illegal Tunisian Migration to Europe, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (Mar. 1, 2023)
• Part of UCL Press

Harness the power of visual materials—explore more than 3 million images now on JSTOR.

Enhance your scholarly research with underground newspapers, magazines, and journals.

Explore collections in the arts, sciences, and literature from the world’s leading museums, archives, and scholars.

Evaluating Information Sources

• Evaluate Your Sources
• Publication Types and Bias

Structure of Scientific Papers

Reading a scholarly article, additional reading tips, for more information.

• Reading Scholarly Articles
• Impact Factors and Citation Counts
• Predatory Publishing

Research papers generally follow a specific format. Here are the different parts of the scholarly article.

Abstract (Summary)

The abstract, generally written by the author(s) of the article, provides a concise summary of the whole article. Usually it highlights the focus, study results and conclusion(s) of the article. 

Introduction (Why)

In this section, the authors introduce their topic, explain the purpose of the study, and present why it is important, unique or how it adds to existing knowledge in their field. Look for the author's hypothesis or thesis here. 

Introduction - Literature Review (Who else)

Many scholarly articles include a summary of previous research or discussions published on this topic, called a "Literature Review".  This section outlines what others have found and what questions still remain.

Methodology  / Materials and Methods (How) 

Find the details of how the study was performed in this section. There should be enough specifics so that you could repeat the study if you wanted. 

Results   (What happened)

This section includes the findings from the study. Look for the data and statistical results in the form of tables, charts, and graphs. Some papers include an analysis here.

Discussion  / Analysis  (What it means)

This section should tell you what the authors felt was significant about their results. The authors analyze their data and describe what they believe it means.

Conclusion (What was learned)

Here the authors offer their final thoughts and conclusions and may include: how the study addressed their hypothesis, how it contributes to the field, the strengths and weaknesses of the study, and recommendations for future research. Some papers combine the discussion and conclusion.

A scholarly paper can be difficult to read. Instead of reading straight through, try focusing on the different sections and asking specific questions at each point.

What is your research question? 

When you select an article to read for a project or class, focus on your topic. Look for information in the article that is relevant to your research question. 

Read the abstract first  as it covers basics of the article. Questions to consider: 

• What is this article about? What is the working hypothesis or thesis?
• Is this related to my question or area of research?

Second: Read the introduction and discussion/conclusion.  These sections offer the main argument and hypothesis of the article. Questions to consider for the introduction: 

• What do we already know about this topic and what is left to discover?
• What have other people done in regards to this topic?
• How is this research unique?
• Will this tell me anything new related to my research question?

Questions for the discussion and conclusion: 

• What does the study mean and why is it important?
• What are the weaknesses in their argument?
• Is the conclusion valid?

Next: Read about the Methods/Methodology.  If what you've read addresses your research question, this should be your next section. Questions to consider:

• How did the author do the research? Is it a qualitative or quantitative project?
• What data are the study based on?
• Could I repeat their work? Is all the information present in order to repeat it?

Finally: Read the Results and Analysis.  Now read the details of this research. What did the researchers learn? If graphs and statistics are confusing, focus on the explanations around them. Questions to consider: 

• What did the author find and how did they find it?
• Are the results presented in a factual and unbiased way?
• Does their analysis agree with the data presented?
• Is all the data present?
• What conclusions do you formulate from this data? (And does it match with the Author's conclusions?)

Review the References (anytime): These give credit to other scientists and researchers and show you the basis the authors used to develop their research.  The list of references, or works cited, should include all of the materials the authors used in the article. The references list can be a good way to identify additional sources of information on the topic. Questions to ask:

• What other articles should I read?
• What other authors are respected in this field?
• What other research should I explore?

When you read these scholarly articles, remember that you will be writing based on what you read.

While you are Reading:

• Keep in mind your research question
• Focus on the information in the article relevant to your question (feel free to skim over other parts)
• Question everything you read - not everything is 100% true or performed effectively
• Think critically about what you read and seek to build your own arguments
• Read out of order! This isn't a mystery novel or movie, you want to start with the spoiler
• Use any keywords printed by the journals as further clues about the article
• Look up words you don't know

How to Take Notes on the Article

Try different ways, but use the one that fits you best. Below are some suggestions:

• Print the article and highlight, circle and otherwise mark while you read (for a PDF, you can use the highlight text  feature in Adobe Reader)
• Take notes on the sections, for example in the margins (Adobe Reader offers pop-up  sticky notes )
• Highlight only very important quotes or terms - or highlight potential quotes in a different color
• Summarize the main or key points

Reflect on what you have read - draw your own conclusions . As you read jot down questions that come to mind. These may be answered later on in the article or you may have found something that the authors did not consider. Here are a few questions that might be helpful:

• Have I taken time to understand all the terminology?
• Am I spending too much time on the less important parts of this article?
• Do I have any reason to question the credibility of this research?
• What specific problem does the research address and why is it important?
• How do these results relate to my research interests or to other works which I have read?
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Characteristics of a Scholarly Journal

Purpose To communicate the results of recent research in the field of study covered by the journal. Scholarly articles reflect a systematic and thorough study of a single topic, often involving experiments or surveys. Scholarly journals may also occasionally publish review articles that summarize the current state of knowledge on a topic.

Appearance Scholarly journals lack the advertising, colorful graphics, and photographs found in popular magazines. The articles are often lengthy, will begin with an abstract, and may include graphs, tables, or charts. Articles will include the name of the author or authors and a list of references.

Authority Scholarly articles are written by the person(s) who did the research being reported. When more than two authors are listed for a single article, the first author listed is usually the primary researcher who supervised or coordinated the work done by the other authors. The most highly-regarded scholarly journals are usually those sponsored by professional associations; for example, the American Psychological Association and the American Chemical Society.

Validity and Reliability Articles submitted to scholarly journals are evaluated by an editorial board and other experts before they are accepted for publication. This evaluation, often called " peer reviewed ," is designed to insure that the articles published are based on solid research that meets the normal standards of the field of study covered by the journal.

Writing Style Articles in scholarly journals are usually in-depth and contain an advanced vocabulary, since the authors use the technical language or jargon of their field of study. Articles are not written for the general public in that the authors assume the reader already possesses a basic understanding of the field of study.

References The authors of scholarly articles always list the sources of their information. These references are usually listed at the end of an article, but they may appear in the form of footnotes, endnotes or a bibliography.

How to Determine if a Periodical is a Scholarly Journal

What to Look For in a Scholarly Journal Article

• Abstract: An article from a scholarly journal will have an abstract- a summary on what the article is about.
• Author's Credentials: Articles in scholarly journals are written by experts or researchers in a particular field of study. Look for advanced degrees or credentials attached to an author's name (i.e. M.S., Ph.D, M.D., etc) as well as their affiliations with particular institutions. 
• Journal Name:  The name of the journal is going to be professional in nature, and many are published via a professional organization or university press. 
• Purpose:  The purpose of the article is academic and/or scientific in nature, and reports on original research in a particular field of study. 
• Language:  Articles are written for professionals in the field or for those in academia, so technical language is used, and knowledge or familiarity is expected of the audience. 
• References:  Scholarly articles will always list the sources of their information. These sources can appear as references at the end of an article, but can also include footnotes, endnotes, or a bibliography. 
• Charts, Graphs, Statistics: Some scholarly journal articles will include charts, graphs, and statistics in order to demonstrate their results or how they achieved their results.
• DOI Number:  A DOI, or Digital Object Identifier, is a unique string of numbers and letters used to permanently identify an article and link it on the web. DOIs are primarily assigned to academic journal articles and research reports. Many scholarly articles will have DOIs attached to them. 
• Peer-Review Process:  The peer review process can be lengthy. An article is reviewed by professional peers to ensure that properly conducted research, experimentation, and writing is done before the article can be published. 
• Literature Review:  Some scholarly journals also publish literature reviews or an article may contain a literature review within it. A literature review is a summary of what is currently known about the topic. The review may not say "literature review," within the article itself.   Example:  Information Literacy Research: Dimensions of the Emerging Collective Consciousness
• Literary Criticism: Scholarly journals also publish literary criticism, which is the study, interpretation, and evaluation of literary works, which can be influenced by literary theories.   Example:   Bram Stoker's Ireland: A Complex National Identity
• Other Information: May also include acknowledgments, conflicts of interest, if any, and funding information. This may be located either at the beginning or the end of the article. 

In the Sanctuary of Animals: Honoring God's Creatures through Ritual and Relationship

The Eighteen of 1918–1919: Black Nurses and the Great Flu Pandemic in the United States

Promoting College and Career Readiness: Practical Strategies for the Classroom

Working Backwards: How Employment Regulation Hurts Unemployed Millennials 

Empirical Research Articles

Empirical research articles report primary research based on observations or experiments in a particular field of study. Qualitative research uses observation methods to analyze behaviors, beliefs, feelings, or values and gather non-numerical data. Quantitative research uses numerical data and statistical, mathematical, or computational techniques to measure, analyze, and explain phenomena or causal relationships.  

REMEMBER: Empirical Research Articles are from scholarly or professional journals and are peer-reviewed. They will have the same criteria as scholarly articles listed above (abstract, references, DOI, etc.) but will also have the following criteria: 

What to Look For in an Empirical Research Article:

• Introduction : An empirical study will have an introduction or “literature review”, which will be a summary of what is currently known about the topic. It can include theoretical frameworks and information about previous studies as well.
• Methodology: Describes how to recreate the study and discusses the population, research process, analytical tools, and any other important information related to the study.
• Results : May also appear as “findings.” Discusses what was learned in the study. Might present statistical data, quotes from the participants, graphs, charts, and other information.
• Discussion : May also be called “conclusion” or “implications” or will have a separate section for this under the discussion portion of the study. This part of the article will describe why the study is important. Can also describe how the research results can or will influence the field itself, or what changes, if any, may occur due to the findings of the study. May also include a section titled "limitations," describing what limitations should be taken into account. 
• Professional Journals: addressed to a professional audience and may contain research articles, reports, and practical information applicable to a field of study. Use professional journals if they are peer-reviewed and have the previously cited criteria. 
• Other Information:  An empirical research article can also include information sections on funding, acknowledgments, author contributions, as well as ethics and consent to participate approval. This may appear either at the beginning or the end of the article. 
• References:  Articles will always list their sources of their information. These sources can appear as references at the end of an article, but can include footnotes, endnotes, or a bibliography. 

Alternative Terminology to use when Searching the Databases instead of "Empirical Research":

• Case Studies                                                            •  Longitudinal Method
• Fieldwork/ Field Studies                                           •  Statistics
• Experimental Studies                                               •  Research Methodology
• Qualitative Studies                                                   •  Analysis of Variance
• Quantitative Studies                                                 •  Correlation (Statistics) 
• Action Research                                                       •  Data Analysis
• Evaluation Methods/Research                                 •  Research
• Mixed Methods Research                                        •  Psychological Tests
• Descriptive Statistics                                                •  Statistical Sampling 
• Questionnaires                                                         •  Scale Analysis (Psychology)

Come Together: Case Specific Cross-Institutional Cooperation of Youth Welfare Services and Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 

Matrix Training of Receptive Language Skills with a Toddler with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Case Study

A Dyadic Analysis of Power in Sibling and Friend Conflict in Early Childhood

Parenting Deferentially Influences the Development of Boys’ and Girls’ Inhibitory Control

Periodicals That Are Not Scholarly Journals

Popular Magazines These are periodicals that one typically finds at grocery stores, airport newsstands, or bookstores in a shopping mall. Magazines are designed to appeal to a broad segment of the population, and contain relatively brief articles written in a readable, non-technical language. Articles written for a wide audience and are useful when looking for information on current events, special topics and general interests. Examples include: Car and Driver , Essence , Rolling Stone , Sports Illustrated , and Psychology Today .

News Magazines These periodicals, which are usually issued weekly, can be useful for information on trending topics or current events, but their articles seldom have the depth or authority of scholarly articles. Examples include: Newsweek , Time , and U.S. News and World Report.

Professional Publications or Trade Journals These periodicals cover a specific profession or field of interest and report on developments, trends and news in a profession, trade, or industry. Advertising will be geared toward professionals in that specific field, and may include information promoting upcoming professional conferences.  Examples include: Library Journal , Young Children , and Nursing .

Popular databases to search for Scholarly and Peer Reviewed Sources

A multi-disciplinary database providing full-text articles for more than 6,600 magazines and scholarly journals, including full-text for nearly 6,000 peer-reviewed titles. In addition, it includes peer-reviewed full text for STEM research, as well as for the social sciences and humanities.

After typing a search term, use the Select a Field option to refine your search: Subject (searches subject terms within the database) Abstract (searches terms within the article abstract) All Text (search the entire article) Under Limit your results check: "Full-Text" for full-text articles only "Scholarly Journals" for journal articles only

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What is a Scholarly Journal?

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A scholarly journal is a periodical that contains articles written by experts in a particular field of study and reports the results of research in that field. The articles are intended to be read by other experts or students of the field, and they are typically much more sophisticated and advanced than the articles found in general magazines. This guide offers some tips to help distinguish scholarly journals from other periodicals.

CHARACTERISTICS OF SCHOLARLY JOURNALS

PURPOSE : Scholarly journals communicate the results of research in the field of study covered by the journal. Scholarly articles reflect a systematic and thorough study of a single topic, often involving experiments or surveys. Scholarly journals may also occasionally publish review articles that summarize the current state of knowledge on a topic.

APPEARANCE : Scholarly journals lack the slick advertising, classified ads, coupons, etc., found in popular magazines. The articles are often printed one column to a page, as in books, and there are often graphs, tables, or charts referring to specific points in the articles.

AUTHORITY : Scholarly articles are written by the person(s) who did the research being reported. When more than two authors are listed for a single article, the first author listed is often the primary researcher who coordinated or supervised the work done by the other authors. The most highly‑regarded scholarly journals are typically those sponsored by professional associations, such as the American Psychological Association or the American Chemical Society.

VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY : Articles submitted to scholarly journals are evaluated by an editorial board and other experts before they are accepted for publication. This evaluation, called peer review, is designed to ensure that the articles published are based on solid research that meets the normal standards of the field of study covered by the journal. Professors sometimes refer to peer-reviewed journals as refereed journals.

WRITING STYLE : Articles in scholarly journals usually contain an advanced vocabulary, since the authors use the technical language or jargon of their field of study. The authors assume that the reader already possesses a basic understanding of the field of study.

REFERENCES : The authors of scholarly articles always indicate the sources of their information. These references are usually listed at the end of an article, but they may appear in the form of footnotes, endnotes, or a bibliography.

EXAMPLES OF SCHOLARLY JOURNALS

Adolescence , American Historical Review , Art History , Chaucer Review , Counseling Psychologist , Geological Society of America Bulletin , Harvard Law Review , Journal of Black Studies , Journal of Experimental Biology , Journal of Learning Disabilities , Management Science , Philosophical Review , Religious Studies , Urban Affairs Quarterly , Women's Studies .

PERIODICALS THAT ARE NOT SCHOLARLY JOURNALS

POPULAR MAGAZINES : These are periodicals that one typically finds at grocery stores, airport newsstands, or bookstores at a shopping mall. Popular magazines are designed to appeal to a broad audience, and they usually contain relatively brief articles written in a readable, non‑technical language.

Examples include: Car and Driver , Cosmopolitan , Esquire , Essence , Gourmet , Life , People Weekly , Readers' Digest , Rolling Stone , Sports Illustrated , Vanity Fair , and Vogue .

NEWS MAGAZINES : These periodicals, which are usually issued weekly, provide information on topics of current interest, but their articles seldom have the depth or authority of scholarly articles.

Examples include: Newsweek , Time , U.S. News and World Report .

OPINION MAGAZINES : These periodicals contain articles aimed at an educated audience interested in keeping up with current events or ideas, especially those pertaining to topical issues. Very often their articles are written from a particular political, economic, or social point of view.

Examples include: Catholic World , Christianity Today , Commentary , Ms. , The Militant , Mother Jones , The Nation , National Review , The New Republic , The Progressive , and World Marxist Review .

TRADE MAGAZINES : People who need to keep up with developments in a particular industry or occupation read these magazines. Many trade magazines publish one or more special issues each year that focus on industry statistics, directory lists, or new product announcements.

Examples include: Beverage World , Progressive Grocer , Quick Frozen Foods International , Rubber World , Sales and Marketing Management , Skiing Trade News , and Stores .

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Academic vs Non-Academic Articles

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Academic vs. Non-Academic: What's the Difference?

The majority of your research will require academic and scholarly articles. Many students struggle with trying to determine what an academic source, or article, is.

Academic articles   are written by professionals in a given field. They are edited by the author's peers and often take years to publish. Their language is formal and will contain words and terms typical to the field. The author's name will be present, as will their credentials. There will be a list of references that indicate where the author obtained the information they are using in the article.

Academic articles can be found in periodicals similar to the Journal of Psychology, Childhood Education, or The American Journal of Public Health.

The following link is an example of an academic article.  Experimental educational networking on open research issues; Studying PSS applicability and development in emerging contexts .

This article is considered academic because the language is very formal and genre-specific, there are two authors and their credentials are listed (these are found at the end of the article), and most importantly there is a list of references.

Non-academic articles are written for the mass public. They are published quickly and can be written by anyone. Their language is informal, and casual and may contain slang. The author may not be provided and will not have any credentials listed. There will be no reference list. Non-academic articles can be found in periodicals similar to Time, Newsweek, or Rolling Stone.

As a general rule religious texts and newspapers are not considered academic sources. Do not use Wikipedia as an academic source. This website can be altered by anyone so any information found within its pages cannot be considered credible or academic.

The following link is an example of a non-academic article.  Marketing News's Writers Rules

This article is non-academic because the language is very casual and includes some examples of slang, there is an author, but they chose to write anonymously so there are no credentials provided for the author, and no references were included to show where the author obtained their information.

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OU Professor Named U.S. Fulbright Scholar

Yuri Lansinger, M.D., associate professor with the Department of Orthopedic Surgery at the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine and a board-certified orthopedic surgeon specializing in hand surgery, has received the Fulbright U.S. Scholar award for the 2024-2025 academic year.

The 10-month research award will help Lansinger connect with health care professionals in South Korea to compare the two different models of healthcare in U.S. and Korea to see if access to care, particularly, subspecialty care, lead to different patient outcomes in managing difficult nerve injuries of the upper extremity. She said it was surreal when she found out she received the Fulbright Scholar Award. 

“I was delighted to hear that I was selected because it means a lot to me not just professionally but personally in terms of the opportunity that my family gets to experience together,” Lansinger said. “My family and I have been wanting to do this for a while and it's actually coming into reality.”

Fulbright U.S. Scholars are faculty, researchers, administrators and established professionals teaching or conducting research in affiliation with institutes abroad. Fulbright Scholars engage in cutting-edge research and expand their professional networks, often continuing research collaborations started abroad and laying the groundwork for forging future partnerships between institutions.  

Lansinger received a medical degree from Georgetown University School of Medicine in Washington, D.C., in 2007. Subsequently, she completed her Orthopedic Surgery Residency at the University of Pittsburgh medical center in 2012. In 2013, she pursued further specialized education and training in orthopedic hand surgery through a hand surgery fellowship at Integris Baptist Medical Center in Oklahoma City.

Lansinger said she hopes this Fulbright award will lead to further collaboration and partnership with OU and medical centers in South Korea.  

“Under usual circumstances, if I were to practice out in community as a private practice hand surgeon, it would be difficult to take a year off to go somewhere abroad to do a research project,” Lansinger said. “Being at OU, from the department chair to my senior partner, they were all very supportive through the whole application process.”

She will join an alumni network of Fulbrighters that includes 62 Nobel Laureates, 89 Pulitzer Prize winners, 80 MacArthur Fellows, 41 heads of state or government and thousands of leaders across the private, public and non-profit sectors. 

About the University of Oklahoma

Founded in 1890, the University of Oklahoma is a public research university located in Norman, Oklahoma. As the state’s flagship university, OU serves the educational, cultural, economic and health care needs of the state, region and nation. OU was named the state’s highest-ranking university in  U.S. News & World Report’s  most recent Best Colleges list .  For more information about the university, visit  ou.edu .

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MIT announces financial aid and tuition rates for the 2024–25 academic year

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MIT’s commitment to undergraduate financial aid will remain strong for the 2024-25 academic year, increasing to an estimated budget of $167.3 million. The increase will more than offset a 3.75 percent percent rise in tuition, to $61,990 ($62,396 including fees), and other living expense increases. The estimated average MIT scholarship for students receiving financial aid next year is $63,146.

Moreover, for students coming from families with incomes of $75,000 and less, their parents will not be expected to contribute to the cost of attendance, which includes tuition, housing, food, and personal expenses.

“MIT takes enormous pride in ensuring that any student who attends can dive into all the things that make our educational experience special, both our rigorous academic programs and the ‘secret sauce’ experiences — like experiential learning, social impact opportunities, study abroad, and team and club sports and other activities,” says Ian A. Waitz, vice chancellor for undergraduate and graduate education and the Jerome C. Hunsaker Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics.

The 2024-25 undergraduate financial aid program will continue prior enhancements, including making MIT tuition-free for families who have typical assets and whose incomes are below $140,000, and providing additional financial aid dollars that will reduce the amount paid by most families.

Last year, more than 39 percent of MIT undergraduates received aid sufficient to allow them to attend the Institute tuition-free. MIT is one of only eight U.S. colleges with a fully need-blind undergraduate admissions policy that meets the full financial need of all students, and it continues to be focused on making the cost of an MIT education more affordable. The new financial aid enhancement also made it possible to admit more students through the QuestBridge match this year (56), increasing access for low-income students.

“In parallel with increasing access, we are also ramping up our resources for academic success. The Undergraduate Advising Center (UAC) was recently launched as part of a long-standing effort supported by students and faculty. We envision the UAC as the anchor office of a future advising hub, integrating academic advising and support, financial services, experiential learning, and career development. The UAC is already supporting first-years to seniors and has revitalized and expanded the MIT First Generation/Low Income Program ,” adds Waitz.

While the Institute’s financial aid program primarily supports students from lower- and middle-income households, even families earning more than $250,000 may qualify for financial aid based on their circumstances, such as if two or more children are in college at the same time.

About 58 percent of MIT’s undergraduates receive need-based financial aid from the Institute, and about 20 percent receive federal Pell Grants, typically awarded to undergraduate students who display exceptional financial need. MIT treats the Pell Grant in a unique way to further support low-income students. Unlike most other colleges and universities, MIT allows students to use the Pell Grant to offset what they are expected to contribute through work during the semester and the summer. MIT also recently changed its financial aid policies to provide more support for U.S. veterans and veterans’ dependents.

When measured in real dollars, the average cost of an MIT education for those who receive financial aid has been reduced by almost 25 percent over the past two decades.

For undergraduates not receiving any need-based financial aid, tuition and fees will be (as noted earlier) $62,396 for the 2024-25 academic year. Including housing and dining costs, the total cost of attendance will come to $85,960 (based upon residing in a Tier 1 double room for the year, being on a full meal plan, and taking into account books and estimated personal expenses). Expenses may vary depending upon a student’s choices.

In 2023, 86 percent of MIT seniors graduated with no debt; of the 14 percent who did assume debt to finance their education, the median indebtedness at graduation was $14,844. Furthermore, graduating MIT students report some of the highest starting salaries across a range of industries relative to their peers.

“It’s critical that students are well-positioned when they graduate and benefit from a whole student education, especially as technology and innovation advances, from generative AI to addressing climate change to fundamental science. So, we are exploring how our academic programs can be improved and enhanced to meet students where they are and to prepare them to be nimble and always curious,” says Waitz.

For more detailed information regarding the cost of attendance, including specific costs for tuition and fees, books and supplies, housing and food, as well as transportation, please visit the Student Financial Services website.

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Shani Mott, Black Studies Scholar Who Examined Power All Around Her, Dies at 47

Her work looked at how race and power are experienced in America. In 2022, she filed a lawsuit saying that the appraisal of her home was undervalued because of bias.

By Campbell Robertson and Debra Kamin

Shani Mott, a scholar of Black studies at Johns Hopkins University whose examinations of race and power in America extended beyond the classroom to her employer, her city and even her own home, has died in Baltimore. She was 47.

She died of adrenal cancer on March 12, said her husband, Nathan Connolly, a professor of history at Johns Hopkins.

Though Dr. Mott spent her career in some of academia’s elite spaces, she was committed to the idea that scholarship should be grounded and tangible, and not succumb to ivory tower abstraction. She encouraged students to turn a critical eye to their own backgrounds and to the realities of the world around them. In a city like Baltimore, with its complicated and often cruel racial history, there was plenty to scrutinize.

“How do we think about what we’re doing and how it relates to a city like Baltimore?” is how Minkah Makalani, the director of the university’s Center for Africana Studies, described some of the questions that drove Dr. Mott’s work. “There was this kind of demanding intellectual curiosity that she had that she brought to everything that really pushed the conversation and required that people think about what we’re doing in more tangible ways.”

Her research focused on American books, both popular and literary, and how they revealed the kind of conversation about race that was allowed by the publishing industry and other cultural gatekeepers. This work connected to a larger theme of her scholarship: how big institutions determine how race is discussed and experienced in America.

As an active member of the Johns Hopkins faculty, she pointedly explored the ways the university engaged, or did not engage, with its own workers and the majority Black city in which it sits. In 2018 and 2019, Dr. Mott was a principal investigator for the Housing Our Story project, which interviewed Black staff workers at Johns Hopkins whose voices had not been included in the campus archives.

“What she had a keen ability to do was to say and remember that we’re thinking of things that are real, not just abstract,” said Tara Bynum, an assistant professor of English and African American Studies at the University of Iowa who received her doctorate at Johns Hopkins.

Though Dr. Mott taught her students to understand racism as a continuing force in American life, the hard reality could still be jarring. In 2021, she and Dr. Connolly were hoping to refinance the mortgage on their home, which sits in a historic, predominantly white neighborhood. But the appraisal was far lower than what they were expecting, and their application for a refinance loan was denied.

Believing that race played a key role, they applied for a loan again several months later, but for this appraisal they hid evidence of their race, such as family photographs, and had a white colleague stand in for them when the appraiser came for a visit. The second appraisal was almost 60 percent higher than the first.

Months later, in 2022, they sued the mortgage company that denied the loan, the appraisal company that was contracted and the individual appraiser who was at the home. All parties have denied that bias was involved, and the individual appraiser countersued for defamation.

On Monday, Dr. Connolly announced a settlement with the mortgage company. The case involving the appraisal company and the appraiser, and the defamation lawsuit remain pending.

For Dr. Mott, it was a discouraging real-world illustration of what she had long researched.

“People say it all the time: It’s one thing to study something, but it’s an entirely different thing to actually experience it,” she said in a 2022 interview with The Times. She understood discrimination through her work, she said, but “to actually be living a kind of life that was always a dream and then to have someone in 45 minutes come in and just ruin that, or try to — it leaves me feeling angry.”

Shani Tahir Mott was born on March 16, 1976, in Chicago. Her mother was a schoolteacher, and her father was an Army veteran who lost his sight in the Vietnam War.

After graduating from Wesleyan University, she received her master’s degree and doctorate at the University of Michigan. Her dissertation focused on midcentury American literature, particularly books in which Black authors portrayed white characters and in which white authors portrayed Black characters. Such attempts by writers to “free themselves from the racial boundaries” that the country kept in place were ultimately unsuccessful, she concluded.

She considered the work she did outside of academia consistent with her research. In Baltimore, she encouraged students to work alongside her as volunteers at Orita’s Cross Freedom School , a program that provides instruction and recreation for Black youth when their families are at work. In 2020, when many of those children were stuck at home during Covid, Dr. Mott and her family produced a series of YouTube videos in which they read and discussed children’s books celebrating Black history and culture.

Her survivors include her husband and their children, two daughters and a son.

Dr. Mott was diagnosed with cancer in 2021, but colleagues said she continued to keep a packed schedule of teaching and outside projects. Days before her death, she gave an eight-hour deposition in the appraisal suit, Dr. Connolly said. She declined to take her pain medication, he added, so that she would be able to respond to questions with clarity.

“She burned through two oxygen tanks and was in a wheelchair the entire time,” Dr. Connolly said. “And her ability to speak forcefully and to be direct and, frankly, to be so crystal clear about how real estate works and, in particular, instruments within the structure of a mortgage transaction, it was a master class.”

Campbell Robertson reports on Delaware, the District Columbia, Kentucky, Maryland, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia, for The Times. More about Campbell Robertson

Debra Kamin reports on real estate, covering what it means to buy, sell and own a home in America today. More about Debra Kamin