Using Academic Sources
You are not required to use academic or scholarly resources for this paper. However, it is important to be familiar with the difference between scholarly and popular resources so you can determine the level of information you are working with.
Scholarly vs. Popular
The difference between scholarly journals and popular magazines:
| Scholarly | Popular & General Interest | |
| General Appearance | Serious appearance; may contain graphs, charts, statistics, few pictures, known as "Peer-Reviewed" or "Refereed" or "Academic" | Attractive in appearance, heavily illustrated with photos and ads |
| Writers of Articles |
Authors are often professors at universities, scholars or professionals with extensive experience. They are experts in the field (normally have obtained at least a Master’s Degree or greater in their field of study) |
Usually free-lance or staff writers |
| Audience | College students, faculty, scholars, or researchers | General public |
| Article Length | Longer articles that often provide in-depth research statistics and findings | Shorter articles - often one to three pages in length |
| References | Always cites sources and usually includes endnotes or a lengthy Works Cited page | Sometimes cite their sources. Often no references are provided. |
| Publisher | Often a university, a research institution, or a professional organization | Commercial enterprises or individuals |
| Examples | Journal of Marriage and Family, American Historical Review, Social Problems, New England Journal of Medicine | Ebony, Men's Journal, People, Time Magazine, Bloomberg Businessweek |
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