Popular vs. Scholarly Articles
What is the difference between popular and scholarly articles?
Popular Articles (Magazines)
-
Are often written by journalists or professional writers for a general audience
-
Use language easily understood by general readers
-
Rarely give full citations for sources
-
Written for the general public
-
Tend to be shorter than journal articles
Scholarly Articles (Journals)
-
Are written by and for faculty, researchers or scholars (chemists, historians, doctors, artists, etc.)
-
Uses scholarly or technical language
-
Tend to be longer articles about research
-
Include full citations for sources
-
Are often refereed or peer reviewed (articles are reviewed by an editor and other specialists before being accepted for publication)
