Journals and magazines are two kinds of periodicals
(publications issued periodically).
Both can contain well-researched and up-to-date material that is not yet
available in other formats, but journals and magazines differ from each other
in important ways.
| Journals |
Magazines |
| Audience: |
Audience:
|
- most often scholarly readers (i.e., professors, researchers, and students)
- people who work in a particular field
- others with assumed knowledge of the subject
|
- most often a general audience
- occasionally people in a particular trade
|
| Article Authors: |
Article Authors:
|
- experts in their field
- sign the articles they write and give their credentials
- not usually paid for articles; writing is a contribution to scholarship
|
- most often generalists or non-specialists
- sometimes do not sign articles
- usually paid by publishers for articles
|
| Purpose: |
Purpose: |
- to present original research, experiments, and information, usually quite focused
|
- to report, entertain, promote a viewpoint, and/or advertise
|
Writing Style:
|
Writing Style:
|
- often written in language particular to the field of study, assuming readers have some background in the field
- follows a standardized citation style format like APA, MLA, or Turabian
|
- written for anyone to understand
- often does not cite sources or cites using a non-standardized citation style
|
| Features: |
Features:
|
- often peer-review articles before selecting for publication
- include bibliographies or lists of references
- often include formal research methodology, with methods, data, and conclusion sections
- often provide illustrations that support the text, such as maps, diagrams, and tables
- contain few advertisements
|
- usually include no bibliographies nor lists of references
- often printed on glossy paper and profusely illustrated for marketing appeal
- may be laden with advertisements
|
| Titles: |
Titles:
|
- sometimes include the word “journal,” such as Journal of Psychology
|
-
sometimes include the word “magazine,” such as PC Magazine
|