All Guides: Scholarly, Popular or Trade: Learn

Periodicals are a category of publication that include scholarly, popular or trade. Periodicals are published on a regular basis (or period) for example, daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly. Your professor may ask you to use only scholarly (or academic) sources so it's important to know the key qualities of each type.

Consider:

What's the purpose and intended audience of the article?

Determine the purpose by looking at the language and type of information that is shared.

Scholarly Articles: Inform the academic community on new research, ideas, and theoretical concepts within fields of study.
Popular Articles: Inform the public of trends, public debates, news, and opinions. Often includes content for entertainment or amusement.
Trade Articles: Provide practical information for professionals in a specific field, including news, trends and opinions.

Who's the author of the article?

Authors names are generally provided at the beginning of the article, or the end. The author's credentials or affiliations (such as the University of Toronto) are often listed next to the author's name. In some cases, you may have to look for an 'About this publication' section, where they often describe what type of authors the publication uses.

Scholarly Articles: Written by researchers and other experts within a field of study, usually for the academic community. Author's credentials are always listed with the article.
Popular Articles: Written by non-professionals for the general public. The author's credentials are often not provided.
Trade Articles: Written by professional or experts in the field for professionals. Author's credentials are often listed with the article.

What images and language clues appear in the article?

Use of images and language are often reflective of the audience and purpose. In library databases, all articles may look alike, as images that would have appeared in the hardcopy are often left out of the digital copies. In the absence of images, the length of the article and language can be good indicators of the type of article you are reading.

Scholarly Articles: Generally lengthy (6-75 pages long) and usually discuss studies from other researchers. These articles includes technical terminology and jargon. Often displays graphs, tables, charts, or illustrations. Minimal advertisements. Contains citations.
Popular Articles: Typically short (500 words or less) and use simple language. Includes lots of colourful images. Likely contains advertisements. Minimal citations, if any.
Trade Articles: Generally short as well (500 words or less). Language is straightforward, but likely contains professional words, phrases and jargon. May include advertisements related to the profession. Possibly includes a citation list

What does the review process look like?

Most publications will indicate how the publication is reviewed. Look for an 'About this publication' section on the publication's website.

Scholarly Articles: Often reviewed by other experts, or peer-reviewed for the purpose of quality control.
Popular Articles: Generally edited for grammar and spelling but not peer-reviewed.
Trade Articles: Content is usually reviewed by an editor but not peer-reviewed.

Here are a few excellent examples. Watch video

Compare the Differences

A comparison of Scholarly, Popular, and Trade publications
	Scholarly	Popular	Trade
Examples
Purpose	To inform the academic community on new research, ideas, and theoretical concepts within fields of study.	To inform the public of trends, public debates, news, and opinions. Often includes content for entertainment or amusement.	To provide practical information for professionals in a specific field, including news, trends and opinions.
Author	Written by researchers and other experts within a field of study, usually for the academic community. Author's credentials are always listed with the article.	Written by non-professionals for the general public.	Written by professional or experts in the field for professionals. Author's credentials are often listed with the article.
Appearance	Articles are generally lengthy and usually include a literature review. Includes technical language like terminology and jargon. Often displays graphs, tables, charts, or illustrations. Minimal advertisements. Contains citations.	Not a text-focused source. Includes colourful images Likely contains advertisements. Minimal citations, if any	Articles are generally brief. Language is straightforward, but likely contains professional words, phrases and jargon. May include advertisements related to the profession. Possibly include a citation list.
Publishing	Often reviewed by other experts, or peer-reviewed for the purpose of quality control.	Generally edited for grammar and spelling but not peer-reviewed.	Content is usually reviewed by an editor but is not peer-reviewed.
When to Use	Use scholarly journals when high quality, original research from academic sources is required.	Use popular sources when you need an overview of a topic or to get a sense of public reactions to events.	Use trade magazines to learn more about practical applications of a topic to your practice.