Trade journals contain articles written by professionals in their field and focus on long form research, while peer reviewed journals have articles that are evaluated by other experts in the field before publication. Journal articles are useful resources as they contain leading information from academics and experts, have been approved as high quality, are often available online, and can help students learn different writing styles like research methods, literature reviews, and data analysis from examples. Journal abstracts are short summaries that highlight the methods and main findings of articles.

1. What are journals?
Trade journals
• A scholarly journal
• Articles written by working professionals
• Long research articles
“Peer reviewed” journals
• Where articles are refereed by other experts
and passed for publication

2. Why use journal articles?
• Content = leading edge
• Written by academics and experts working in the
area
• Been approved by other academics so must be of a
certain quality
• More accessible – most online through Discovery
• No problem with availability (unlike printed books)
• Help improve marks – going beyond the required
reading
• Different styles used throughout article e.g. research
methods, literature review, data analysis, conclusion
• Learn about different styles of writing and how to do it

3. What is a journal abstract?
• An summary of a journal article
• Highlights methods and main findings