Scholarly articles come in many different formats each with their own function in the scholarly conversation. The following are a few of the major types of scholarly articles you are likely to encounter as you become a part of the conversation. Identifying the different types of scholarly articles and knowing their function will help you become a better researcher.
Original/Empirical Studies
- Distinguishing characteristic: Empirical studies contain original research. They contain a thesis or interpretation supported by relevant data.
- Note: Empirical studies can be subdivided into qualitative studies, quantitative studies, or mixed methods studies. See below for more information
- Usefulness for research: Empirical studies are useful because they provide current original research on a topic which may contain a hypothesis or interpretation to advance or to disprove.
Literature Reviews
- Distinguishing characteristic: Literature reviews survey and analyze a clearly delaminated body of scholarly literature.
- Usefulness for research: Literature reviews are useful as a way to quickly get up to date on a particular topic of research.
Theoretical Articles
- Distinguishing characteristic: Theoretical articles draw on existing scholarship to improve upon or offer a new theoretical perspective on a given topic.
- Usefulness for research: Theoretical articles are useful because they provide a theoretical framework you can apply to your own research.
Methodological Articles
- Distinguishing characteristic: Methodological articles draw on existing scholarship to improve or offer new methodologies for exploring a given topic.
- Usefulness for research: Methodological articles are useful because they provide a methodologies you can apply to your own research.
Case Studies
- Distinguishing characteristic: Case studies focus on individual examples or instances of a phenomenon to illustrate a research problem or a a solution to a research problem.
- Usefulness for research: Case studies are useful because they provide information about a research problem or data for analysis.
Adapted from Types of Scholarly Articles from Tufts Libraries.