HIST 369, U.S. Civil War and Reconstruction: Home

Not all journals are created equal, and not all will be appropriate for every research need. Here are some characteristics of scholarly journals:

• the authors are researchers or scholars - articles will typically include the author's institutional affiliation;
• the articles reflect an-depth analysis of topics or report original research (theoretical, experimental or applied);
• articles are often lengthy, and book reviews, if included, are substantial;
• the language used reflects the technical vocabulary of the discipline (i.e., jargon); and
• many are refereed or peer-reviewed.

For more information and additional characteristics, see Types of Periodicals.

Books are rarely peer-reviewed, which can make it more challenging to determine scholarly status. However, the following are common characteristics of scholarly books:

• the authors or editors are researchers or scholars (you might need to look inside the book for information about the author, or you can try a Google search);
• the publisher is often a university press (e.g., Oxford University Press, University of California Press) or an academic society (e.g., American Anthropological Association); and/or
• the language used reflects the technical vocabulary of the discipline (i.e., jargon).