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Scholarly |
Popular |
Trade |
Publication itself |
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- Title clearly identifies the subject
- Often black & white
- Matte paper
- Few (or no) advertisements or photos
- Scholarly, professional org., or university press
- Published less frequently (monthly, quarterly)
- Content is peer reviewed
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- Short, attention-grabbing title
- Color
- Glossy
- Lots of advertisements and images
- Commercial publisher
- Published frequently (weekly, bi-weekly)
- Content is not peer reviewed
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- Title usually identifies the trade
- Color
- Glossy
- Some ads, usually trade-related
- Published less frequently
- Content is not peer reviewed
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Articles (and Books/Chapters) |
Audience |
Scholars and students |
General audience |
Members of a specific business, industry, or organization |
Authors |
- Scholars, researchers, or experts in the field of study.
- Affiliation and/or credentials provided.
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- Usually aren't experts in the field of study.
- Employed and/or paid by the publisher.
- Credentials usually not listed.
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- Staff or contributing authors.
- Credentials usually not listed.
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Documentation |
- Sources cited in bibliography and/or footnotes.
- Can use references to extend your research.
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- Sources not cited (or cited informally).
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Varies, but usually sources are not cited.
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Purpose |
Report results of original research or experimentation.
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Provide general information or entertainment.
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Provide information about industry trends, news, products, or techniques. |
Scope |
- Typically lengthy (articles: >5 pages)
- Follows a structure (abstract, intro, literature review,
- methods, results, discussion)
- Usually has a narrow focus about a specific aspect of a topic.
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- Short (articles: <5 pages)
- May present a broad overview of a topic, but little detail.
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- Short
- Discusses a specific topic within a trade.
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