Scholars have access to diverse materials for research but not all sources are created equal, and their quality and credibility can vary widely. There are multiple ways to recognize scholarly sources. This can help a researcher assess the overall quality of a source based on methodological rigor, contributions to a particular field, and replicability of the findings.
Contrarily, non-scholarly sources (blogs, opinion pieces, and popular media articles) often lack the same level of scrutiny and reliability. Recognizing the differences between these types of sources is essential for conducting credible research. A notable difference between scholarly and non-scholarly sources is that scholarly sources provide evidence-based insights while non-scholarly sources may reflect biases, unverified claims, or subjective interpretations. This distinction is particularly important in academic work, which usually require reliability and validity of sources to arrive at concrete findings.
What is Peer Review?
Peer review refers to the evaluation of research articles by peers to ensure credibility in originality, methodology and significance. Peers are other experts in the field of discussion and in reviewing, the provide feedback to the author on the pros and cons of their article, making recommendations to the journal editor on whether it should be published, revised or rejected.
Peer review can take many forms, including single-blind review, double blind review and open review among others.
In a single-blind review, the reviewers are aware of the author’s identity, but the author does not know the reviewers. Contrastingly, in a double-blind review, neither the reviewer nor the author knows each other’s identity and in an open review both the author (s) and the reviewers know each other’s identity.
Why is Peer Review Important?
- Peer review ensures that the research is relevant to avoid repetition.
- Peer review ensures that the research follows the standards of the discipline such as using the appropriate terms, following research integrity and honesty guidelines and adopting a balanced research approach.
- The rigorous review process also ensures that the research is well supported by evidence, guaranteeing its credibility and reliability.
- Review provides the author with suggestions for improving the paper, such as correcting errors, refining the methodology and clarifying arguments among others. Therefore, a peer reviewed research publication is highly reliable and credible for use in one’s study. For instance, in academic research and other professional contexts, one should focus on obtaining evidence from peer reviewed articles. These appear in the form of journal articles, textbook publications and conference papers. Here are some tips on identifying a peer reviewed article:
7 Ways to Tell if a Source is Peer-Reviewed
1. Check the Journal’s Reputation
Most academic journals explicitly state on their website if they use a peer-review process. So, one can check the journal’s reputation by reading “About Us” or “Editorial Policies” pages on their website.
For example, some popular journals guaranteeing peer review include Sage, Nature, Lancet, Journal of Clinical Oncology and Psychology among others.
You can also use the UlrichsWeb database that allows you to search for journal titles and check whether they are peer reviewed. Look for a black-and-white referee logo next to the journal title, which indicates a peer-reviewed publication.
2. Examine the Author Credentials
Some authors have numerous publications under their names, especially if they are renown experts in the field. So, an article is likely to be peer-reviewed if it is written by experts with advanced degrees or affiliations with academic institutions.
3. Customize Search in an Academic Database
One way to tell if a source is peer-reviewed is to search in academic database. Databases like PubMed, JSTOR, and ProQuest often label peer-reviewed journals, and some have filters for “peer-reviewed” sources.
These databases provide features to limit search results into ‘peer-reviewed’ or ‘scholarly’ articles. Using these features will help you limit the scope of the suggested sources to peer-reviewed, streamlining your research process.
4. Examine the Article Itself
The information on an article reveals whether it is peer reviewed. For example, articles authored by experts in the field, often indicated by credentials such as PhD and affiliations with universities and research institutions are often peer-reviewed. Furthermore, peer-reviewed articles often follow a formal structure, including an abstract, introduction, methodology, results, discussion and inferences. The presence of a bibliography or reference section as well as a formal and professional tone also strongly indicates peer-reviewed work.
Additionally, the publication information can also reveal whether an article is peer reviewed. For example, if you have a physical copy or electronic copy of the journal, look at the masthead which is often at the beginning or at the end of the journal. Sometimes it can list its editorial board and maybe about the submission which informs whether articles are peer-reviewed. Publication guidelines and instructions on how to submit an article, often indicate whether a journal practices peer review. To grasp the provisions regarding the review process, look for declarations in these guidelines. Peer reviewed articles are also often published in scholarly or academic journals rather than trade publications or popular magazines.
5. Analyze the Structure of the Article
Peer-reviewed articles often follow a standard structure, including an abstract, introduction, methodology, results, discussion, and conclusion. These articles are most useful in academic research and professional contexts. They follow a specific structure, often the abstract, introduction, methodology, findings, discussion, recommendations and conclusion.
6. Review the References Used in the Article
If the article cites all peer-reviewed article, it is likely one of these publications that have undergone the review process. Peer-reviewed articles typically include extensive citations and references to other scholarly work.
Check the bibliography to determine if an article has been reviewed and can be considered a reliable piece of evidence.
7. Search Using Ulrichsweb
Ulrichsweb is a directory of periodicals that indicates whether a journal is peer-reviewed. For scholars and professionals, using peer-reviewed articles is essential in research since it is an intensive process that sometimes takes months or even years. This is an advantage and limitation at the same time since despite ensuring credibility and reliability, the process could take so long and not address real time issues. Moreover, always remember to critically evaluate the content regardless of its peer-review status to ensure it meets your research needs.
