What are some of the characteristics of research articles?
What to look for
Author
Usually lengthy (5-20 pages)
Type of Publication (academic, scholarly, juried, or peer-reviewed journal)
Cites other sources
Reports on original research
May include charts, graphs, numbers, etc.
Research Articles
Reading Sources
Courtesy to your reader
Is my source relevant?
If it's a research study, make sure you understand the research question, methods, and results. Avoid just picking an article based on it's title or parts that seem like they might fit with your topic!
Annotated Bibliography
Annotated Bibliography
Describes why the source is useful for researching a particular topic or question
May critically examine the strengths and weaknesses of what the author is presenting.
Summarizes the author's main points.
Secondary & Web Sources
Secondary & Web Sources
Secondary & Web Sources
What to look for with secondary/web sources
Relevant to research question?
Author (journalist? scholar? researcher?)
Site purpose?
Audience?
'About us' link
What kind of publication is it? (newspaper, report from a research organization, magazine, blog, conference talk)
Search Demo
guides.temple.edu/youthcultures
Library Research Overview Jackie Sipes, Education Librarian jsipes@temple.edu
