How do I know if an article is scholarly?

Answer

Scholarly journals are journals that have been peer reviewed (or refereed). Peer review is the process to ensure that we can trust what’s in an article. It has been read and evaluated by experts in the field before publication.

So how do you know if an article has been peer reviewed? You should consider:

Who is the author? Does the author have an affiliation with an academic institution that gives them authority on the subject? Scholarly publications will list the author’s credentials.
Who is the publisher? Is the journal published by a university press or scholarly association? If so, it’s likely to be scholarly.
Content: Consider accuracy, bias (e.g. political affiliation) and audience appropriateness. Does it use technical language which indicates that it has been written for an academic audience? Scholarly journal articles are usually structured in the following way: abstract, literature review, methodology, results, conclusion, and references.
Cited Sources: Scholarly publications will have a list of references, most of those written for a general audience don’t. Consider the quality of these sources. They should include other scholarly books or articles and primary sources.

Journal information: The first few pages of the journal, or the journal website should have an ‘Instructions for author’s’ page which mentions the peer review process. Scholarly journals also usually list the editors' names and also their academic credentials. It may even say that the journal is peer reviewed or refereed!

Most databases allow you to limit searches to peer reviewed articles only.

If you’re still not sure if it’s scholarly, ask a member of the library team.

Listen to the Podcast: Scholarly journals what they are and how to find them.