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Partner Student Library Services

For students studying with FedUni at a partner institute - TAFE, undergrad, postgrad, in Australia and outside of Australia

Searching for Journal Articles

Your lecturer has asked for "peer reviewed journal articles". What exactly does that mean?

Check your understanding of the terminology here:

 

What are journals?
In the context of university, a Journal is a scholarly publication issued on a regular basis, covering a specific discipline area. It like a magazine for scholars. The articles in journals are written by researchers and academics who contribute their research findings to a publisher in their field of expertise. Journal editors go through a peer review process of the submitted manuscripts to ensure the quality and validity of the work.

Some characteristics:

  • may be peer-reviewed or refereed;
  • are usually published by an academic institution, research body, professional organisation or scholarly press;
  • rarely contain a lot of glossy pictures and advertisements.

Articles published in refereed or peer-reviewed journals are subjected to a strict approval process. One or more experts on the subject act as referees who review the article before it is accepted for publication. This process is designed to ensure the article is accurate, well researched, and contributes to the body of knowledge in a field. Peer-reviewed is synonymous with refereed.

What are journal articles?
A journal article is an academic paper found in a journal. Articles published in scholarly journals report on current research or are analytical studies undertaken in a scholarly environment. Some characteristics of journal articles:
  • often start with an abstract;
  • always include footnotes or bibliographies;
  • list the author and their credentials or affiliated institution;
  • often use specialised language;
  • assume some scholarly background on the part of the reader.
What are databases?

Databases are searchable collections of journals, journal articles, book chapters, video streaming, conference proceedings, annual reports, case studies, business reports, image collections and more. Databases usually focus on certain subject areas and hold material to do with that subject.

To be precise, library catalogues and the Internet are both databases, but the library uses the term to refer to database products produced by external parties, such as EBSCO. Some databases are free of charge and others are subscribed to, on your behalf, by the FedUni Library.

The content of databases varies.

What are periodicals?

Periodical is a collective term for newspapers, magazines and journals. These texts are published periodically or at regular intervals (e.g. daily, weekly, monthly). Their frequency means that periodicals are good sources of current information.

Periodical types

Material: Definition: Use to: Examples:
Newspapers Newspapers are periodicals aimed at a general readership and issued on a daily or weekly basis. Content includes news, editorials, regular columns, cartoons and advertising. Find information about current events or items of local interest.

The Age

The Australian

Australian Financial Review
Magazines Magazines are periodicals which are of popular interest and written in non-scholarly language and format. Magazines are usually heavily illustrated and contain advertising. Articles are usually short in length, do not include bibliographies and often do not indicate an author. Find information about public sentiment; identify popular trends.

New Scientist

The Bulletin

The Monthly

Newsweek

National Geographic

Psychology Today
Trade Publications Trade publications are periodicals which publish information relevant to a specific industry. Find information about industry trends. Business Review Weekly
Journals Journals publish original research and commentary on recent developments in specific disciplines. Access original research. Nature

 

Once you are clear on the terms used you will be able to either:

1. Locate an article you already have information about. This is called the "citation" for the article, ie. the Author, Year of publication, Title, Journal Name, Volume number.

OR

2. Start searching for a journal article using keywords and search strategies.

Yes I know the citation

Follow the process below to find it. 

 

 

 

3. Note: FedUni databases are listed here Databases A-Z ; every FedUni subscribed journal accessible electronically is available here eJournal A-Z. First try the Journal Title in the eJournals A-Z, or try the article title in "inverted commas" in Google Scholar, and link it to FedUni Library for access to Full Text articles.

Google Scholar Search

You can link Google Scholar to FedUni Library journals to access full text articles

Watch: Searching using Google Scholar

Start searching using keywords / search terms