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Journals

General Information

Periodical publications (issued monthly or quarterly) containing scholarship, empirical research reports, and/or learned commentary on subjects of special interest to a specific academic or professional community. Journals are a formal means of communicating ideas in academic scholarship, and publication in journals is a major criterion for promotion among university faculty. Articles are peer reviewed or refereed (screened) before they are approved for publication by peer professionals (scholars and/or practitioners) who evaluate articles by such criteria as:

• Sound methodology - is the method by which these data were gathered consistent with normal and accepted practice within the discipline?
• Conclusions - are the conclusions consistent with the data gathered?
• Significance - is the research trivial within the context of the discipline?

Strengths:

• Written by and for scholars, researchers, and professionals -- a formal conversation among specialists
• Contain bibliographies with full citations
• Filtering ensures high credibility
• In-depth analysis of narrowly-focused subjects
• Authoritative source for research findings

Considerations:

• Dense, technical vocabularies may require reading an overview and gathering terminology beforehand
• Normally published monthly or quarterly; not a great source for the latest developments
• May only be available in libraries or through licensed Internet sources ($$)
• Target audience: Scholars, researchers, and professionals within a discipline

Example: Immigration Reform

Here are example citations to journal articles on this topic:

• Rogers, Sion E. "Immigration Reform." Natural History 115.2 (2006): 14.
  
  
• Bansak, Cynthia. "The Differential Wage Impact of the Immigration Reform and Control
       Act on Latino Ethnic Subgroups." Social Science Quarterly 86.5 (2006): 1279-1298.
  
  
• Bacon, David. "The Political Economy of Immigration Reform." Multinational
       Monitor 25.11 (2004): 9-13.

Tools for Finding these Sources

• Academic Search Complete - UTSA Access Only
• ProQuest Research Library - UTSA Access Only