Scholarly |
vs. |
Popular |
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Image credit: tanakawho on Flickr |
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Usually written by an scholar or a researcher in the field. Credentials and/or affiliation are given. |
Author |
Often a professional writer with no expertise in the subject area. Author's name may or may not be given. |
Other scholars, researchers and students. |
Audience |
The general public; those interested without a specialty in the subject |
Specialized terminology or jargon of the field; requires prior knowledge or a dictionary. |
Language |
General vocabulary. Understandable to most readers. |
Articles have a defined structure with an abstract, objective, methodology, results, analysis, conclusion and references.
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Appearance |
Informal organization, usually eye catching. Typically contains organization and photographs. |
Always provides a list of references or a bibliography. Sources are cited and can be verified. |
References/ Bibliography |
Rarely has a list of references, but can include sources listed under a section titled "more to explore" or "further reading", etc. Usually does not give complete information about sources. |
Articles are peer-reviewed before publication by a panel of researchers or an editor for accuracy, methodology and importance. |
Peer-Review
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Articles are usually not evaluated by experts. Non-peer reviewed resources must be carefully examined for accuracy and relevance. |
Effect of Caffeine on Prospective and Retrospective Duration Judgments |
Example |