ENC1102 - Elliott - Library Lessons: Academic Sources

You will often be asked to use academic sources for your research assignments. Academic sources can sometimes be referred to as scholarly or peer-reviewed. These sources have better credibility and reliability, and will make your arguments stronger.

All sources (including books, articles, and Internet resources) should be carefully reviewed to see if they are academic in nature. Here are some general guidelines to help you determine whether an item is academic or not.

• What is the goal of this resource? Academic sources typically have the goal of presenting original research or summarizing various research articles into one. Be especially aware of opinion pieces (also called editorials); these are not sufficiently academic, even if they are on a college or university website.
• Check that the tone is neutral and unbiased. Academic sources should be fairly neutral, without inflammatory statements, personal attacks, or persuasive words.
• Does the author cite their sources? Most academic sources will include a bibliography (also called References or Works Cited) of the research they consulted and used to create this source.
• How in-depth is it? Many news reports and websites may summarize or report on research, but not present it in its entirety. This may lead to errors in interpretation or incorrect conclusions. True academic works will go beyond a short summary. If you locate only a summary, you should try to track down the original study or report.

Books can be informational, but still not academic. Some tips for choosing academic books:

•  Avoid memoirs, biographies, and fiction.
• Look to see if the author cites their sources; this might be in footnotes, citations at the end of a chapter, or a full bibliography at the end of the book. In the library catalog, look for the phrase Includes bibliographical references, in the Notes field.
  
•  Be cautious of books that have Popular works in their subject headings in the library catalog. Look for citations and references as outlined above.
  
•  Look up the author's credentials to determine if they can be considered experts in their field. A brief biography of the author will often be given on the book jacket. You can also look them up through an Internet search engine to find out more about them.

Academic articles should come from peer-reviewed or scholarly sources. In most databases, the default search will bring back a wide array of results, including non-academic sources such as magazines or newspapers. In order to limit to academic sources, you will need to check a box on the search screen. Here are some examples of these check boxes in a variety of databases. Look for the words academic, scholarly, or peer reviewed.

Want to learn more about peer review? This video explains Peer Review in 3 Minutes:

Academic articles will typically be written by authors who are established in their field. Many times they may be scientists, professors, researchers, or doctors. They will also cite their sources. Look for in-text citations or footnotes throughout the article, as well as a list of all citations at the end in a bibliography or references list.

For a more in-depth look comparing popular magazines with peer-reviewed journals, view the Library's Is it a Popular Magazine or a Scholarly Journal? page.

Websites can range from popular to informational to academic. Keep in mind the purpose of the site as you evaluate a source.

• You are more likely to find academic sources on .gov and .edu sites, but you still need to look at the purpose and other factors. Many .edu sites host student blogs, personal pages, news, etc. Not all pages with a .edu or .gov ending are academic, but they are good starting places for research. To limit to these sites, add site:gov or site:edu to the end of your search in Google or another search engine (note that there are no spaces in this search).
• .org sites may have some academic works, but again will require evaluation. Many nonprofits will publish research as reports or fact sheets. Note that many nonprofit organizations may have sponsors or a certain mission, so there may be bias. Be sure that you are aware of this (look for a "Mission" or "About Us" page on their site).
• Examine the tone and purpose of the site. Ideally, resources for college level research papers should be written to inform, educate, and/or share research. Some organizations may be trying to sell a product or persuade others of their point of view, which could affect the information they choose to present or highlight. Some organizations might also have a political stance that can affect their presentation of research. Even if a biased site supports your thesis, it lacks credibility and weakens your argument.