Evaluating Scholarly Articles
- Patterns in Scholarly WritingThis hand out will help you to recognize the patterns in a scholarly articles, making them easier to read and navigate.
- Evaluating InformationOnce you’ve found sources for research project, the next step is to evaluate whether or not they meet your needs for your topic. While your sources may broadly or loosely relate to your topic, you really want sources that relate more directly – either supporting or refuting your points. There are multiple ways to evaluate sources, but one that we recommend is the RADAR method.
- Guided Note-TakingUse this worksheet to help you keep the information gathered from your chosen scholarly articles organized.
Librarian
Scholarly Articles and Dissertations
Just like with books, there are several ways to find and access scholarly articles and dissertations. However, your best place to start is in Summon.
- SummonSearch the BGSU library catalog alongside the vast majority of our journal content at one time using Summon. Find and link to full text articles in scholarly journals and newspapers, ebooks, and images.
Scholarly vs Popular
When conducting your research, it is important for you to distinguish between journal articles and magazine articles. Databases are used to find and identify articles from peer-reviewed journals and other types of documents.
Journal articles are usually referred to as "scholarly," while magazine articles are commonly considered "popular."
Consider these points when differentiating between journals and magazines:
| Criteria | Scholarly Journal | Popular Magazine/Blog/Online Publication |
| Audience | Academics and/or Researchers, Professionals | General Public |
| Authors | Experts and/or Specialists | Journalists and/or Freelance Writers |
| Editorial Review/Peer Review | Journal Editorial Board and peer reviewers | Professional Editors |
| Reference/Works Cited | Yes | Not always required or provided |
Other Great Database Options
Although Summon is a great place to start, there are other database options - especially for history specific research.
- JSTOROver a thousand full-text scholarly journals and books covering all subjects in the humanities, sciences and social sciences. History, economics, art, literature, and mathematics are particularly strong. All journal titles are archived back to the first issue, many dating from the early 1800s.
- Academic Search CompleteAcademic Search Complete is a multidisciplinary full-text database, with more than 8,600 full-text periodicals, including more than 7,500 peer-reviewed journals.
- Bibliography of Indigenous Peoples in North AmericaAn index covering all aspects of culture, history, and life of Indigenous peoples in North America.
- Dissertations & Theses (ProQuest)Index to more than 2 million doctoral dissertations and master's theses written from 1861 to the present for universities all over the world, with full text access to most.
- Historical Abstracts (EBSCO)Index to scholarly journal articles from international historical journals, covering the history of the world (excluding the United States and Canada) from 1450 to the present.
- Humanities International CompleteIndex to scholarly articles covering topics such as history, music, literature, philosophy and religion.
- Project MUSE - Standard CollectionAn interdisciplinary collection of hundreds of high quality, peer reviewed, scholarly journals in the humanities, arts, and social sciences. All titles in the Standard Collection are full text.