Scholarly articles have the following traits:

• They tend to be long, greater than 5 pages
• They are written by researchers
• They are well-documented, with long lists of references at the end
• They are published by reputable publishers in publications that may have the words "Journal," or "Review" in the title

Screenshot of the top portion of a scholarly journal article, showing the number of pages and the author's credentials.

Scholarly books are acceptable secondary sources, but how can you tell if a book is scholarly? Here are a few things to look for:

• One author
• Published by a University press (Oxford University Press, for example)
• Includes a significant bibliography

The example below highlights the areas to look at for clues in the catalog record.

Screenshot of a record for a book in the URI Libraries Search showing the publisher information.

If you are not sure whether you have a scholarly source, please ask!

Popular sources provide information from publications intended for the general public. They can provide a sense of what people at the time were learning about or interested in.

Popular sources can be excellent primary sources when gathering information from a specific time period.

Here's an example of a popular source:

Screenshot of an article from the CNN website, a popular source.

Note that popular sources tend to be short, they include multiple images and graphics meant to enhance appeal and catch your attention, and they don't usually list the author's academic affiliations or credentials. This is generally because popular sources are written by authors directly employed by the publication.

Want to learn more about differentiating between different kinds of sources? Check out the resources linked below.