Library & Research Overview

A scholarly journal publishes authoritative research articles by academics or experts in a discipline.
The articles often undergo peer-review, that is they are evaluated by other experts before publication.

Periodicals are any published materials that come out periodically, that is on a regular basis, daily, weekly, monthly, etc.

These include newspapers, magazines, trade and professional journals, and scholarly research journals.

The articles in periodicals can be located by searching online Databases that are subscribed to by the Library. Many of these databases include the full-text of articles. 

Types of Periodicals

• Academic Journals are also referred to as "scholarly" or "peer-reviewed" journals. They publish authoritative research articles by academics or experts in a discipline.
  The articles often undergo peer-review, which means they are evaluated by other experts before approved for publication.
• Trade or Professional Journals are written by and for professionals in an industry but are not strictly research related.  These are very important for members of the profession in order to keep up with industry news and trends. They may contain data or other information useful for research.
• Magazines are considered "popular"; the articles provide information and entertainment for the general public

See this chart: Scholarly Journals vs. Popular Magazines vs. Trade Journals

1. Select Peer-Reviewed or Scholarly when you search

Omnivore ArticleSearch, and most databases, have a button to check when you search or limit/filter your search results.
Omnivore Articles screenshots 

2. Confirm that it is a Research Article

Limiting your search results to articles published in peer reviewed scholarly journals is the first step. 
Scholarly Journals include other types of documents, such as essays, literature reviews, book reviews, commentary, letters to the editor, announcements, etc. So...

How do I know if it is a research article? 

A research article reports the original work of a scholar and will present evidence and conclusions.

Read the Abstract (summary of the article) or Introduction (first paragraph)  to identify the type of article and the topics covered. 

A research article must have:

• a named Author
• a Bibliography or References
• PDF format available
• more than a few pages

Start with Multidisciplinary Databases to explore your topic. Click here for more Databases

To access Databases off-campus, use your CIA email username and password.

Library Databases for Articles, EBooks and more can be accessed off-campus by CIA students, staff and faculty from anywhere in the world with an internet connection!

Sign in to Omnivore or select a database, then enter your CIA username and password (the same login id that you use for email, MainMenu, Moodle. etc.)

NOVELNY databases can be accessed from anywhere within New York State.