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Introduction to Research

This guide will give you a brief introduction to starting your research assignment at the Sprague Library.

What is Scholarly?

Scholarly is a term used to describe information which is produced by experts in a certain field, often academics or researchers at colleges and universities. Your professors will ask you to use scholarly sources for your assignments. A peer-reviewed article is one example of a scholarly source.

Scholarly Publications

  • Written by experts such as academics or researchers.
  • Other academics/researchers are the main audience.

Scholarly Examples:

Popular Publications

  • Written by journalists.
  • The general public is the main audience.

Popular Examples:

Trade/Professional Publications

  • Written by people working in the profession.
  • Other people in the profession are the main audience.

Trade/Professional Examples

For further reading, check out the Rutgers Libraries' webpage on scholarly articles that describes and gives some examples of both scholarly and popular information.

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