Identifying Scholarly Sources
Kinds of Sources:
During your time at Holy Cross, you may find yourself using a combination of both popular and scholarly sources.
Scholarly sources are written by experts on a particular subject (for example, a professor or other researcher). They also go through an extra process of review and approval by a group of other experts before they can be published. Usually, scholarly articles are written in 'academic-ese' and designed to be read by other scholars. However, because scholarly sources take a long time to be approved and published, they are not always good sources for current events.
How can you tell if you have a scholarly article in your hand?
The chart below compares the characteristics of scholarly vs. popular (non-scholarly) sources: 
| popular | scholarly | |
|---|---|---|
| author | Usually staff writers and/or journalists | Experts on the topic -- usually researchers, scholars and/or professors |
| audience | General public (for "popular" consumption) | Other experts (and students) in the field |
| editing & review | ` | Other experts ("peer reviewed"); generally concerned with quality, thoroughness of research, strength of argument, etc. |
| style & design |
Reasonably brief, typically uses colloquial if not informal language. Often illustrated with graphics, sidebars and other aesthetic elements. Sometimes accompanied by ads. |
More extensive in length; tends to be more formal and uses specialized vocabulary. Illustrations and charts are used only when furthering content. |
| goal or purpose | To entertain; and/or, to share general information | To share findings, advance and argument and/or engage with other scholars |
| sources | Few or none; if sources are used, there may not be formal citations. | Typically uses many sources, cited in detailed bibliographies, footnotes and/or endnotes |
| examples | Time Magazine; Sports Illustrated; New Yorker; Boston Globe | Annual Review of Political Science; American Historical Review; Sociology of Education |
| Sample Scholarly Article | Sample Nonscholarly Article |
The Information Lifecycle:
The Information Lifecycle helps us understand how information about an event, topic or idea might emerge and evolve over time.
Note that this timeline is just a general sense of the information lifecycle -- the exact timing can vary greatly from one discipline to another!
