What Are Journal Articles? & Why Should You Use Them?

Journals are the academic version of magazines that focus on a particular topic. Each journal may publish a number of different volumes and issues every year; each volume/issue will contain a variety of academic articles on the topic. Sometimes academic journals may be referred to as periodicals or serials. The library subscribes to a broad range of electronic journals in your subject; you can access journals for your research by logging in with your University User ID and Password.

Many journals are peer reviewed, which means that experts on that subject have checked the quality of the content. Journal articles can build on previous research and they include in-depth findings and analysis of a topic. You can achieve higher marks for your work by finding and using appropriate journal articles, as higher education marking criteria includes using a range of information resources. As journals are published regularly, they often include the latest primary research and are therefore much more up to date than books.

You can find help to get started using journal articles here. You can find more advanced hints and tips here. If you need any further help or assistance, you can ask a question 24/7 through Library Talk.