Information Literacy

Don't let the often dense, academic language of scholarly journal articles intimidate you! Follow these tips to get the information you need quickly and easily.

• Read the abstract in full. Does this article address an aspect of your topic? If so, read on.
• Read and skim strategically. Skim the full article, then read the introduction, especially the hypothesis or thesis statement, and discussion sections in full first. 
• When reading and skimming, keep these questions in mind:
  • What is the article saying?
  • How is it saying this? How is the main argument being defended?
  • How does this compare to what others are saying? Is this a majority or minority view? What competing ideas are there to consider?
  • What came before it in the scholarly literature? What comes after it in the scholarly literature?
• Write a brief summary, in your own words, to help you later. Note if there are certain facts or quotations you plan to use in your paper.
• Look at the Literature Review section. This is a common feature of many articles that summarizes other major works on the topic and can provide very helpful resources for further exploration.

Many scholarly articles follow the same format:

Abstract 

Brief summary of the article's contents. Usually it highlights the focus, results, and conclusions of the article.

Introduction 

Introduction to the topic, explanation of the study's purpose, and description of why it matters is found here. Look for the hypothesis or thesis statement here.

Literature Review

This section outlines what others have found and what questions still remain. Find other articles to look for here.

Methodology

Details of how the study was performed are found here.

Results

The study's findings are found here. This section often includes data in the form of tables, charts, and graphs.

Discussion / Analysis

This section tells you what the authors felt was significant about their results.

Conclusion

Final thoughts and conclusions are found here.

Not every scholarly journal has the same quality standards, and some are considered a step above others. There are thousands of scholarly journals out there, so how do you know if you're choosing to read a good one?

• Is it indexed? If you found it in one of our library databases, this is a good sign!
• What's its history? If it's new, what is the journal's mission? Is it being supported by a trustworthy organization, such as a publisher, university, or scholarly society?
• Is it peer reviewed? What is the peer review standard compared to other journals in the field?
• Talk to your professors or a librarian! They can help you assess the journals you're finding and point you to better alternatives, if needed.