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*Political Science, general

Find political science data, articles, encyclopedias, handbooks and information about quantitative and qualitative research methods.

Peer-Reviewed vs. Popular Periodicals

View this YouTube video in fullscreen (created and permission to reuse by Heard Library of Vanderbilt University).

What is a peer-reviewed journal?

Peer-reviewed journals (also called "scholarly" or "academic" journals) contain original research articles within a specific subject domain.

These articles are reviewed by other experts before publication and share many or all of these qualities:

  • List authors' names, email addresses, and affiliations (e.g. Univ. of Nebraska-Kearney)
  • Use section headers (these may vary): Abstract, Introduction, Literature Review, Methodology, Results, Discussion, Conclusion
  • Include tables or figures of statistical data
  • Cite references to other quality sources

Examples of peer-reviewed publications:

  • Politics & Society
  • American Political Science Review

NOTE: Some peer-reviewed journals will include literature reviews, book reviews, and opinion essays. None of these present original research however!

This table summarizes the differences between peer-reviewed journals and other periodicals, but please ask a librarian if you have further questions!

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