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Aviation & Engineering Technology

A Research Guide to Two Disciplines: Aviation and Engineering Technology

Journals

Use Citation Linker if you know the following information about an article in a journal:

  • Journal name
  • Year of publication
  • Volume
  • Starting page

 

Article Types - Peer-reviewed; Journal Types; Reading Technical Articles

Characteristics of Peer-reviewed Articles

  • Not all scholarly articles are peer-reviewed
  • Refereed is just another word for peer-reviewed
  • Peer-reviewed articles are reviewed and evaluated by experts in the field before they are accepted for publication
  • Articles that are peer-reviewed are published in a peer-reviewed journal

Tutorials — Journal Citations & How to Verify a Peer-Reviewed Article

How to identify a peer-reviewed article

In order to verify whether an article is peer-reviewed, you need to check whether the journal in which the article is published is peer-reviewed. There are two ways figure out whether a journal is peer-reviewed: 

1. Long Way — Search for the journal title on Google; go to the journal's website and search (Ctrl + F on Windows; Cmd + F on Mac) for the words peer review. Look on the website for information about the editorial policy, submission process or requirements for author’s submission. This section of the website will often give insight into whether or not the journal has a peer-review process. 

2. Preferred Way — Go to Ulrich's Periodicals Directory and search for the journal title.


Steps to find journal titles in Ulrich's Periodicals Directory

1. Go to library.sjsu.edu

2. Click on Articles and Databases under OneSearch.

3. Search for 'Ulrich' on the Articles and Databases page.

4. Click on Ulrich's Periodicals Directory

5. Search for the journal title on Ulrich NOT the article title

6. Click on the journal title link

7. You should be looking for the word "Refereed" (another synonym for Peer-reviewed). If it says "Yes" to Refereed, it is peer-reviewed.

In Engineering trade journals/magazines are as important as scholarly articles. However, trade journals are not peer-reviewed, only scholarly journals are. The information in a peer-reviewed article is thorough and reliable but it takes a long time to get published. Trade journals provide brief information on discoveries, inventions, and updates.

 

Scholarly Journal

Journal of Biotechnology

Biosensors Journal

Trade Journal/ Magazine

Industry Week

IEEE Spectrum

News

Scientific American

New York Times

Popular

People

Glamour

Purpose

To inform and report on original research or experimentation

To provide news and updates to people in a particular industry or profession

To provide general information to a lay audience

To entertain or persuade

Peer-reviewed?
Some are
Never
Never
Never
Cited Sources
Has substantial bibliographies
Occasionally include brief bibliographies
Rarely include bibliographies
Rarely include bibliographies
Authors
Scholars or researchers in the field, specialty
Practitioners and educators within the industry or profession
News reporters or free-lance writers
News reporters or free-lance writers

Article Appearance

Articles are lengthy and structured into sections: abstracts, lit. review, method, architecture, results, conclusions, bibliography

Contains graphs, charts, photographs supporting the research

Photographs and illustrations used to support the article but also for aesthetic purposes to draw in readers

Articles are usually brief and do not follow a certain format

Photographs and illustrations used to support the article but also for aesthetic purposes to draw in readers

Articles are usually brief and do not follow a certain format

Photographs and illustrations used to support the article but also for aesthetic purposes to draw in readers

Articles are usually brief and do not follow a certain format

Adapted from Meriam Library, California State University, Chico

How to Read a Technical Paper