What is an academic source? Examples, resources, and more (2023)

• An academic source discusses research in a specific academic, clinical, or scientific field.
• Using academic sources lends credibility, authority, and impartiality to your research.
• A process called peer review is considered the gold standard in scholarly or scholarly sources.
• At the University of Phoenix, theresearch center companyconducts multidisciplinary research in areas such as leadership, diversity in the workplace, and other real-world issues.

Whether you're working on a college thesis, an annual report, or a blog post, your credibility may depend on the sources you choose to research and back up your claims. It's a big leap from a Twitter thread to an academic source.

What makes a typeface academic? Read on to learn how to tell if a font is academic. Plus, learn how to find these sources, find out why you would use them, and listen to the scholars who wrote them.

An academic journal, sometimes called an academic source or scientific journal, presents and discusses research in a specific academic, clinical, or scientific area.

Examples of scientific sources are:

• magazines
• books
• conference presentations
• video conference

"When I think of scientific material, I think it's essentially written by scientists for scientists," says Shawn Boone, EdD, associate dean of research at theFaculty of Doctoral StudiesanUniversity of Phoenix(UPX).

Here we go! Academic sources defined.

But wait. Finding reliable, quality sources can be intimidating. Do not worry. A University of Phoenix faculty member who writes academic articles shares tips on how students and non-academics alike can make journals work for you.

But first a different definition is needed.

Scientific journals are often peer-reviewed. A peer-reviewed source is a source that has been vetted (verified) by other experts (peers) in the field.

Peer-reviewed journals are sometimes also called peer-reviewed journals. In this case, the "reviewers" are reviewers tasked with filtering out poor quality, flawed methodology, and lack of rigor.

Afterwiley, a publisher of peer-reviewed journals, uses the peer-review process to assess the validity, quality, and originality of articles for publication.

Boone, who has published scholarly articles and served as a reviewer, looks for these criteria when reviewing:

• Rigor in design strategy
• continuity of theory
• absence of confirmation bias
• credibility
• validity
• writing quality

The peer review process is not without its critics, i.e. reviewers sometimes reject innovative ideas, potentially leading to thinking conformity. Even in the case of something new like COVID-19, researchers are tasked with building the plane in flight and studying a phenomenon about which little is known.

Despite shortcomings, peer-reviewed publications are widely regarded as the gold standard among scholarly sources.

Examples of peer review sources are:

• leadership research journal
• From the Higher Education Magazine
• Educational Inspectorate Magazine
• JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association))
• Das New England Journal of Medicine

Credibility:When writing a research paper as a student, academic sources help build credibility.

Authority:An academic source can be more reliable than a news report or book. Although a journalist or author may interview experts, it is actually an academic source.esan expert.

Impartiality:An academic source provides results that have been authenticated and must be free of confirmation bias.

That last point is crucial, says Rodney Luster, PhD, a widely published researcher and regular contributor topsychology today, e Präsident des UOPX Center for Organizational Research and Leadership Studies.

"We all have a passion for the things we want to write about," says Luster. "If we are not careful, confirmation bias (interpreting new knowledge as confirmation of our beliefs) can arise."

True academic sources do not allow this.

Then perhaps you are convinced. Academic sources are the way to go the next time you need to present a research-based project.

But how the hell do you quote them? Because if you're like most people, terms like regression analysis, research methodology, and theoretical constructs are enough to grab your attention.

Glamor has good news. Three basic components of scientific research can provide the insights you need to effectively (and intelligently) cite scientific sources:

• title. This is often where the most important insight or idea is expressed.
• the summary. A summary of the investigation, a summary gives the starting point, what the researchers were looking for and what they came up with.
• The conclusion. Researchers explain what they found and may even tell the industry what needs to happen (e.g. action or more research).

If you're wondering how to tell if a source is academic, these characteristics are shared by academic references:

• The source reports or relates research or ideas (rather than trying to sway opinion or trick the reader into buying a product).
• Authors are clearly identified and have authority or expertise in their field.
• Sources are always cited, usually in an extensive bibliography.
• The methodology is described.

It is important to note that not all journals are academic. Some are "predatory", meaning that authors have to "pay to play": they charge authors a fee to publish their research. Avoid these. You can recognize them by looking for the entry submission requirements.

(Note: "Pay-to-play" differs from an "open access" article, where the author pays a fee to make the article available to the public, rather than just subscribing.)

Most academic sources provide evidence of its validity. Look for these criteria:

• The journal title or description says "peer-reviewed".
• Journals require three copies of submissions (probably for peer reviewers).
• Researchers in this field write the articles.
• References are clearly listed in a bibliography.
• Journal articles generally follow this format: abstract, literature review, methodology, results, conclusion, references.
• There is no advertising.

With scholarly resource sites, it's now easier than ever to find the research you need to support your project.

Academic Googleis a powerful resource for finding scholarly sources in your field of interest. Type "headache" and it pops up 824,000 articles in 0.03 seconds. (That really gives you a headache, doesn't it?)

If you are a student who wants to write a well-informed article written by experts, other tools may come in handy. Here are some ideas:

• Consult the bibliographies of books or articles in your area of ​​interest.
• Look for digital libraries and publishers such asJStorGenericName,ProQuest,Esmeraldajwiley.
• Check aUniversity of Phoenix Research Center, which lists peer-reviewed journals and publishers in the field of education.
• Explore links to a growing body of research created by UOPX scientists fromCenter for Leadership Studies and Organizational Research, aCenter for Educational and Instructional Technologyit's atCenter for Diversity and Inclusion at Work.