Aucremann Medical Library at Bayfront Medical Center

After an article has been submitted to a journal for publication, the article is sent to subject matter experts (peers of the author) for critical evaluation. Revisions may be required of the author. Acceptance for publication implies that the article has met scholarly requirements. Sometimes the term ‘refereed’ is used instead of peer reviewed. The content of refereed publications is sanctioned, vetted, or otherwise approved by a peer-review or editorial board. The peer-review and evaluation system is utilized to protect, maintain, and raise the quality of scholarly material published in serials.

Note: not all articles in a peer reviewed journal may be acceptable to your instructor. For example, you would not normally use letters to the editor, editorials, or book reviews. Examine the periodical. Look for instructions to the authors and determine if the submission process includes reviewers or referees. This information is often on the inside front or back cover, although sometimes appearing only in one issue a year, it may also be on the publisher's web site.

	Scholarly Journals	Trade Publications	Popular Magazines	News / Opinion Magazines
Purpose	Share results of primary research & experiments with other scholars.	Provide news and information to members of an industry or profession.	Entertain a general audience and provide an advertising vehicle.	Inform or persuade
Authors	Researchers or scholars in the field or specialty. Credentials identified.	Members of profession, staff writers with subject matter expertise.	Staff writers or freelancers; often unidentified.	Staff writers, wire service writers, freelancers and editors.
Intended Audience	Professionals, researchers, educators, scholars.	Members of specific industry, profession or organization.	Broad-based, various age and education levels.	General audience, usually educated and seekers of current information.
Appearance	Plain cover and paper, illustrations usually charts and graphs with minimal photos and color usage.	Glossy, cover relates to specific audience, generous use of color.	Glossy, numerous color photos and ads, eye-catching cover.	Colorful, use of photos and illustrations common.
Content	Articles generally lengthy and include abstract, literature review, methodology, results, conclusion, and bibliography.	Industry news, practice-specific articles on topics of interest to specific audience, career information, symposium, and convention information.	Short articles, little depth. Could include interviews, how-to articles, feature stories.	Current topical stories on events and participants, opinion pieces in both editorial & article format
References / Sources	Always includes source citations in bibliography or footnotes, using formal style such as, APA, AMA.	Occasionally cites sources.	Rarely included.	Sources sometimes quoted in article text, occasional bibliography-often informally formatted.
Advertising	Rarely included.	Services and products geared to members of profession.	Extensive advertising for wide product range.	Contains advertising.
Examples	Nursing Research, Journal of Research in Childhood Education.	Advances in Nursing Practice.	Nursing, RN	Nursing Times, Time, Newsweek