How to Make Sure an Article Is Peer-reviewed

How to recognize peer-reviewed (refereed) journals

In many cases professors will require that students utilize articles from "peer-reviewed" journals. Sometimes the phrases "refereed journals" or "scholarly journals" are used to describe the same type of journals. Just what are peer-reviewed (or refereed or scholarly) journal articles, and why do faculty require their utilize?

Iii categories of information resources:

• Newspapers and magazines containing news - Articles are written by reporters who may or may not be experts in the field of the article. Consequently, articles may contain incorrect information.
• Journals containing articles written by academics and/or professionals — Although the manufactures are written past "experts," any detail "expert" may have some ideas that are really "out there!"
• Peer-reviewed (refereed or scholarly) journals - Articles are written by experts and are reviewed past several other experts in the field before the article is published in the periodical in order to ensure the article's quality. (The commodity is more likely to be scientifically valid, reach reasonable conclusions, etc.) In most cases the reviewers do non know who the writer of the commodity is, and then that the article succeeds or fails on its own merit, non the reputation of the expert.

Helpful hint!

Non all data in a peer-reviewed journal is actually refereed, or reviewed. For example, editorials, letters to the editor, book reviews, and other types of information don't count as articles, and may not be accepted past your professor.

How do you determine whether an article qualifies as being a peer-reviewed journal article?

First, you need to be able to identify which journals are peer-reviewed. There are generally four methods for doing this

1. Limiting a database search to peer-reviewed journals only.
   Some databases allow you to limit searches for articles to peer reviewed journals but. For example, Academic Search Complete has this feature on the initial search screen - click on the pertinent box to limit the search. In some databases y'all may accept to go to an "advanced" or "skilful" search screen to practice this. Call back, many databases exercise not allow y'all to limit your search in this fashion.
2. Checking in the database Ulrichsweb.com to decide if the periodical is indicated as being peer-reviewed.
   If yous cannot limit your initial search to peer-reviewed journals, y'all will need to check to come across if the source of an article is a peer-reviewed journal. This tin can exist done past searching the database Ulrichsweb.com. Go to the alphabetical listing of databases and click on the "U". Select Ulrichsweb.com. It helps to blazon in the exact title of the source journal including any initial A, AN, or THE in the championship. If you don't find the journal y'all are interested in, you may want to utilize Method 3 below. If your journal title IS displayed, check to run into if the journal is indicated equally being refereed by having the symbol next to the title.
3. Examining the publication to see if it is peer-reviewed.
   If by using the get-go two methods you were unable to identify if a journal (and an commodity therein) is peer-reviewed, you may and then need to examine the journal physically or wait at additional pages of the journal online to determine if it is peer-reviewed. This method is not ever successful with resources available but online. The following steps are suggested:
   1. Locate the periodical in the Library or online, then identify the almost current unabridged twelvemonth'due south issues.
   2. Locate the masthead of the publication. This oftentimes consists of a box towards either the front or the end of the periodical, and contains publication information such as the editors of the journal, the publisher, the identify of publication, the subscription price and like data.
   3. Does the journal say that it is peer-reviewed? If so, yous're done! If not, move on to step d.
   4. Check in and effectually the masthead to locate the method for submitting articles to the publication.  If you find information similar to "to submit articles, send three copies…", the journal is probably peer-reviewed. In this example, y'all are inferring that the publication is then going to send the multiple copies of the article to the journal'due south reviewers. This may not always exist the instance, so relying upon this criterion alone may prove inaccurate.
   5. If you exercise non see this blazon of statement in the start upshot of the journal that you look at, examine the remaining journals to see if this information is included. Sometimes publications will include this information in only a single event a year.
   6. Is information technology scholarly, using technical terminology? Does the article format gauge the following - abstract, literature review, methodology, results, decision, and references? Are the articles written by scholarly researchers in the field that the periodical pertains to? Is advertizing non-real, or kept to a minimum? Are there references listed in footnotes or bibliographies? If yous answered yes to all these questions , the journal may very well be peer-reviewed. This decision would be strengthened by having met the previous criterion of a multiple-copies submission requirement. If you answered these questions no, the periodical is probably not peer-reviewed.
4. Find the official web site on the internet, and bank check to see if it states that the journal is peer-reviewed. Be careful to utilise the official site (often located at the journal publisher'southward web site), and, even then, information could potentially be "inaccurate."

Helpful hint!

If you have used the previous 4 methods in trying to determine if an article is from a peer-reviewed journal and are withal unsure, speak to your instructor.

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Source: https://www.angelo.edu/library/handouts/peerrev.php

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