Compare
| Criteria | Scholarly journals | Trade journals | Popular magazines |
|---|---|---|---|
| Intended audience | Researchers, professionals, and academics | Professionals/tradespeople in specific businesses, industries, or associations | Non-experts |
| Article authors | Scholars with a high level of education in their areas of specialization Authors are named and their credentials and any institutional affiliations are given |
Staff members, practitioners, freelance writers Authors are usually named |
Staff members, journalists, freelance writers Authors may be anonymous |
| Editors | Editorial boards comprised of scholars, typically these are not paid positions | Editors work for the journal | Editors work for the magazine |
| Publishers | Typically a scholarly or professional organization or university press | Often a trade organization | Commercial, for profit |
| Article content | Original research, in-depth study, literary criticism and theory | Industry trends, new products or techniques, and organizational news | Personalities, news of current events, and general interest articles |
| Writing style and language | Uses discipline-specific terminology requiring the reader to have fairly advanced knowledge of the subject area | Includes trade/industry-specific terminology | Easy to read, simple language |
| Advertisements | Very few and then pertaining to books or upcoming conferences | Moderate number, mostly trade-related | Heavily interspersed with consumer products |
| Article appearance | Length: typically 10-35 pages Leads with an abstract/summary Very little white space, typically contains graphics, figures, tables, and sections on methodology, discussion, and concluding remarks Bibliographies/reference lists are present |
Length: typically 2-5 pages May lead with an abstract/summary Includes pictures and illustrations, draws on authors' personal/professional experiences May include short bibliographies/reference lists |
Length: typically 1-2 pages Includes colour pictures/photographs Rarely includes bibliographies/reference lists |
| Examples | Journal of Computer and System Sciences | Computer World Hotel Management |
Maclean's Time |
