This document discusses different types of periodicals and their formats. It defines periodicals as publications issued regularly rather than as one-time publications like books. The major types of periodicals are newspapers for current news, magazines for analysis of events over time, scholarly journals for peer-reviewed academic research on specific topics, and trade publications written for professionals in particular fields. Periodicals can be in print or electronic formats, with electronic databases providing larger collections and more full-text access than typical print holdings.

1. Periodical Types
and Formats

2. Scholarly, General, Trade, and other
Periodicals
Periodicals:
 Any type of periodical publication, includes:
 magazine,
 newspaper,
 scholarly journal,
 trade publications
 ‘Periodical’ means published periodically, or more than once,
versus the one-time publication of a book format.
Links:
 http://library.buffalo.edu/help/research-
tips/evaluate/periodicals.html
 http://library.riohondo.edu/Research_Help/Orientation_Hand
outs/MagazinesvsJournalsFall2010.pdf

3.  Periodicals – refer to sources that are published
‘periodically’ instead of once [such as a book]

4. Formats of Information
Periodicals include
Newspapers
Magazines
Scholarly journals
and
Trade Publications
See pp. 25 – 29 text for discussion of
Formats of Information

5. Periodicals vs. Books
Published multiple
times [weekly, monthly,
quarterly]
Published once
[unless revised]

6. Distinguish Periodical
Types
Why distinguish periodical types?

7. Assignments will require different periodical
types
Your professor will ask for “‘six references, with 2
magazines, 1 newspaper article, and 3 scholarly journals”

8. Major types of periodicals:
 Newspapers: contain updated information on current
news and event.
 Magazines: examples include Time and Newsweek,
include analyses by reporters,
 Scholarly journals: academic and research studies on
specific topics.
 Trade Journals: trade journals are written for specific
professions and fields [i.e., nursing, automotive
technology, construction]

9. Newspapers
•Newspaper
stories often
recount
single events
•--the latest
political
election
•--a single
police
incident

10. Magazines
•Magazines
features
analyses of a
series of
events
•--usually over
specific time
period [effects
of climate
change, or
events over
the course of a
political
election]

11. Scholarly Journals
•Journals
feature studies
of specific
problems or
areas
--Peer-
reviewed
(usually)
--Often
published
quarterly or
sometimes
twice-yearly

12. Trade Publications
Often what
appear to be
journals are
actually trade
publications in
areas like
automotive
technology,
construction
technology,
etc.

13. Trade Publications
•Trade
Publications
--may look
like scholarly
publications,
but are
often
formatted
like
newspapers
or
magazines.

14. Trade Journals = practicing
professionals
 Trade Journals are
written for
practitioners within a
specific field, and
should not be confused
with scholarly journals

15. Technical, Scholarly or
Popular?
General/Popular
 Intended for non-expert
public
 Information not
reviewed by experts
 Characterized by brief
factual reporting
 Broad information on
topic
 Magazines/newspapers
Scholarly
 Practitioners,
researchers in subject
area
 Information reviewed by
experts
 Latest research and
scholarship
 In depth analysis
 Journals/peer-reviewed
See more information about periodical types at
http://library.riohondo.edu/Research_Help/Orientation_Hand
outs/MagazinesvsJournalsFall2010.pdf

16. Periodical Types
 See links for periodical types:
 http://www.tarleton.edu/departments/lib
rary/library_module/unit6/6types_lm.htm
l
 http://www.lib.umd.edu/guides/journals.
html (scholarly journals and trade
publications)

17. Print Periodicals
 Most periodical collections were in print format, prior to
online databases:

18. Print Periodicals vs.
Electronic Databases
RHC Print
collection:
 approximately 200
periodical titles
 http://library.rioh
ondo.edu/Researc
h_Help/Periodical
HoldingsList2011_
2012.pdf
ProQuest:
 over 2200
periodical titles
Academic Search
Premier:
 4,600 titles, with
3,900 full text
RHC Print Periodical Collection Compare to Electronic Databases
To compare RHC collections in print versus electronic:

19. Full Text - Electronic and
Print Periodicals
Print
 Print
periodicals are
always full text
 [obvious, when you have
a periodical in front of
you it contains all
articles published with
the magazine].
Electronic
 Electronic articles
may be full text, or
offer only the citation
 In that case, you must
search out the print
copy of the article
 However, this is less
and less true, as more
databases become
more comprehensive

20. Electronic - Full text vs.
Citation
 ProQuest and
other periodical
databases offer
usually around
60% of their
collections full
text.
Not ALL results will be full-text.
See example from Ebsco:
NOT Full text [citation only]
Full text in HTML and pdf

21. Electronic - Format Types
PDF
HTML