Who writes these articles?
Experts in their fields. Depending on the discipline, that could mean folks who work at universities or it could mean they work in their field (in a lab or practice, perhaps for the government).
What is the peer review process?
An editing process that is unique to academic journals. An author submits an article to a journal for consideration. The journal asks a panel of the author's peers (those engaged in the same research question as the author to ensure a high level of familiarity with the content) to evaluate the article in what is called a double blind process (the author does not know who is reviewing the article and the reviewers do not know the author's identity or affiliation).
What do the reviewers look for when deciding whether or not to publish an article?
This depends on the discipline since all disciplines have research methodologies and common knowledge specific to their field. The review process goes beyond feedback on writing and fact checking. The reviewers are most concerned with sound research methods, ethical research and citation practices, engagement with the existing scholarly conversation around the topic and ensuring that the research is a new and meaningful contribution to the field.
Why do they write in these journals and not in magazines or newspapers or in books?
The most rigorous research happens in these journals. Publishing in these journals assures that your research will be read and cited by experts within your field of study. This research is the most up to date - once research is published here, it can be referenced for a general audience in newspapers or magazines, or it may be referenced in a more comprehensive work, such as a book. Having an article published in a journal is prestigious and may be a factor in getting and keeping one's job at a university. No, authors do not get paid by these publications.
How do I access these journals?
These journals are very expensive to subscribe to. UT subscribes to more collections than all but nine colleges in the country. You can search within the databases recommended on this guide.
