Examining Scholarly, Trade, and Popular Information

This activity will help you understand the difference between scholarly, trade, and popular sources of information. 1) These three articles deal with the topic of Christianity. One article appeared in a scholarly journal, another in a trade journal, and another in a popular magazine. Follow the links (or find via E-Journal finder) to the articles in one of the library databases and answer the questions below. Robinson, Anthony B. (2010). God at the Center. Christian Century (127)7, 30-33. Hall, Todd, Fujikawa, Annie, et al. (2009). Attachment to God and Implicit Spirituality: Clarifying Correspondence and Compensation Models. Journal of Psychology & Theology, 37(4), 227-244. Godsey, Heather, Pickrel, Lara Blackwood. (2009, December 14). Oh, God! Oh, God! Oh, God!: Young Adults Speak Out About Sexuality & Christian Spirituality. USA Today, p.7d. 1a) How do these three articles differ? Remember to consider clues such as language, article appearance, references, authors credentials, and audience.

1b)

Which article is scholarly, which is trade, and which is popular?

2)

Find one scholarly and one popular article relating to your own topic using the Academic Search Complete database or any other journal article database of your choice. 2a) How do these two articles differ? Remember to consider clues such as language, article appearance, authors credentials, and audience.

2b)

Which article is scholarly and which is popular?

NOTE: This activity was adapted from a handout created by Pamela Jackson at San Diego State University