Academic v popular: What is a journal?
A journal (or serial or magazine) is published in a numbered sequence, usually on a regular basis, eg weekly, monthly, bimonthly, quarterly.
Each issue of a journal consists of a number of papers (articles) each by a different author or group of authors; the issues are often combined into volumes.
Journal articles in academic (scholarly) journals provide up-to-date information on current research on a specific subject.
What is the difference between a journal and a magazine?
Academic journals | Popular magazines | |
Audience | Academics, professionals & practitioners. | General audience. |
Authors | Experts or noted professionals (credentials and the institution that the authors are affiliated with are often supplied). | Often written by journalists, or an anonymous author (credentials may not be supplied). |
Purpose | Usually report original research. | Focus on current events and topics of general interest. |
Structure | Usually longer articles with in-depth analysis of topics & research results. Usually has an introduction, methodology, results & conclusion. | Usually short articles, using language easily understood by general readers. Usually reports opinion in a story format. |
References | A bibliography or list of references is usually included at the end of an article. | Do not usually include a bibliography, or fully cite their sources. |
Quality control | Articles are reviewed by peers (other experts in the subject area) for research accuracy before accepted for publication ie peer review or refereeing. | Usually no official peer review although the magazine editor might review the article. |
Publisher | Usually sponsored or published by an institution or professional organisation. | Usually published by a company. |
Different types of articles/papers
What is the difference between a research paper and a review paper?
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Stop and think |
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'Scholarly' doesn't always guarantee quality. Find out why in the section on Peer review. |
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