Answered By: Paul Streby
Last Updated: Oct 21, 2020 Views: 232003
A "periodical" is any publication that comes out regularly or occasionally (i.e. periodically, get it?). TV Guide, Sports Illustrated, The Journal of Anthropological Research, The World Almanac, and the phone book are all periodicals. The are also know as "serials."
A "magazine" is a periodical with a popular focus, i.e. aimed at the general public, and containing news, personal narratives, and opinion. Articles are often written by professional writers with or without expertise in the subject; they contain "secondary" discussion of events, usually with little documentation (e.g. footnotes). Magazines use vocabulary understandable to most people, and often have lots of eye-catching illustrations. Time, Newsweek, U.S. News & World Report, and Psychology Today are magazines
A "journal," or "scholarly journal," is a scholarly periodical aimed at specialists and researchers. Articles are generally written by experts in the subject, using more technical language. They contain original research, conclusions based on data, footnotes or endnotes, and often an abstract or bibliography. The Journal of Physical Chemistry, The Chaucer Review, The Milbank Quarterly, and Labor History are examples of journals.
It's important to understand the differences between journals and magazines. Magazines are not necessarily bad or low quality (nor are journals necessarily high quality) -- they simply aren't designed to support most upper-level academic research. This is because they don't document their sources of information, and they generally lack the depth of scholarly journals.
The table below highlights the differences. For more information check out our Understanding Journals guide.
| Journals - Scholarly | Magazines - Popular | |
| Content | Detailed report or original research or experiment. | Secondary report or discussion; may include personal narrative, opinion, anecdotes |
| Author | Author’s credentials are given; usually a scholar with subject expertise | Author may or may not be named; often a professional writer; may or may not have subject expertise. |
| Audience | Scholars, researchers, and students | General public; the interested non-specialist |
| Refereed/peer-reviewed? [What's this?] | Usually | No |
| Language | Specialized terminology or jargon of the field; requires prior knowledge | Vocabulary in general usage; understandable to most readers |
| Layout & Organization | Formal organization often begins with an abstract of the article; if reporting experimental findings notes the experiment’s purpose, methodology, and analysis of the results; a conclusion, and a bibliography; may include charts or graphs, but rarely photographs. | Informal organization: eye-catching type and formatting, usually includes illustrations or photographs. May not intend to present an idea with supporting evidence or come to a conclusion |
| Bibliography & References | Required. All quotes and facts can be verified. | Rare. Scanty, if any, information about sources. |
| Examples | Developmental Psychology JAMA: Journal of the American Medical Association The words "journal" or "review" often appear in the title | Harper’s Newsweek People Time Almost anything available in a store or news stand. |
Comments (6)
These are sources that you are likely to encounter when doing academic research.
Questions? Ask us!
A scholarly publication contains articles written by experts in a particular field. The primary audience of these articles is other experts. These articles generally report on original research or case studies. Many of these publications are "peer reviewed" or "refereed". This means that scholars in the same field review the research and findings before the article is published. Articles in scholarly publications, in most cases:
are written by and for faculty, researchers, or other experts in a field
use scholarly or technical language
include a full bibliography of sources cited in the article
are often peer reviewed (refereed)
To see the typical components of a scholarly journal article check out the Anatomy of a Scholarly Article page from North Carolina State University Libraries.
There are many occasions on which reading articles from popular sources can help to introduce you to a topic and introduce you to how that topic is being discussed in society. Articles in popular sources, in most cases:
are written by journalists or professional writers for a general audience
written in a language that is easy to understand by the general public
rarely have a bibliography - rather, they are fact-checked through the editorial process of the publication they appear in
don't assume prior knowledge of a subject area - for this reason, they are often very helpful to read if you don't know a lot about your subject area yet
may contain an argument, opinion, or analysis of an issue
Trade publications are generally for practitioners. They are focused on a specific field but are not intended to be "scholarly". Rather, they communicated the news and trends in that field. Articles in trade publications, in most cases:
are written by practitioners in a field (nurses, teachers, social workers, etc)
use the language (and jargon) of the field
Books / Book Chapters
Many academic books will be edited by an expert or group of experts. Often, books are a good source for a thorough investigation of a topic. Unlike a scholarly article, which will usually focus on the results of one research project, a book is likely to include an overview of research or issues related to its topic.
Conference proceedings
Conference proceedings are compilations of papers, research, and information presented at conferences. Proceedings are sometimes peer-reviewed and are often the first publication of research that later appears in a scholarly publication (see above!). Proceedings are more commonly encountered (via databases and other searching) in science and engineering fields that in the arts and humanities.
Government Documents
The Government Printing Office disseminates information issued by all three branches of the government to federal depository libraries (including NMSU). Additionally, the many departments of the government publish reports, data, statistics, white papers, consumer information, transcripts of hearings, and more. Some of the information published by government offices is technical and scientific. Other information is meant for the general public.
Theses & Dissertations
Theses and dissertations are the result of an individual student's research while in a graduate program. They are written under the guidance and review of an academic committee but are not considered "peer-reviewed" or "refereed" publications.