Combine Search Terms
Article databases use more advanced search syntax than web search engines. Understanding how they are different can make it easier to manipulate your search results.
Use the Advanced Search option within the database for best results.
AND narrows down your results because it only finds items that include both search terms as a keyword.
Example: college students AND risky behavior
OR expands your results because it finds items that include either one or both search terms as a keyword.
Example: climate change OR climate variability OR environmental impact
NOT makes your results more specific by excluding words that aren't relevant to your search.
Example: renewable energy NOT Solar
Combine each to create a detailed search for very specific resources
| Scholarly (Refereed, Peer-Reviewed) Journal Articles |
Non-Scholarly (Popular) Journal Articles |
|
|---|---|---|
| Definition |
Scholarly articles are "peer-reviewed" by other experts in the field. Are also sometimes called "refereed articles." |
Non-scholarly articles are meant to inform or entertain readers rather than provide in-depth analysis. |
| Content | Content of articles usually reports on original research or experimentation. | Content of articles often reports on other research or events rather than presenting original research. |
| Bibliography | Articles usually list references in footnotes or endnotes. | Articles are seldom footnoted and the source of information is seldom given. |
| Illustrations | Illustrations, if any, are usually graphs and charts that support the subject content. | Often are illustrated with glossy or color photographs. |
| Author(s) | Articles are written by experts in the field. | Authors are usually on the staff of the magazine or are freelance writers. Author's name is often not supplied |
| Length/Depth | Articles are generally long and contain in-depth coverage of the topic. | Articles are often short and intended to provide an overview of a topic rather than an in-depth analysis. |
| Advertising | Contain few if any advertisements. | Usually contain many advertisements. |
| Publisher | Frequently, articles are published by a scholarly professional organization (e.g. American Chemical Society, American Psychological Association). | Publishers are marketing to the general public and usually make their publications available in stores and newsstands. |
| Language | Authors write in the language of their discipline. Readers are assumed to have some knowledge of the field. | Articles are directed towards the general public and written in non-technical language. |