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PART ONE: PERIODICAL LITERATURE
I. THE IMPORTANCE OF PERIODICAL LITERATURE
IN RESEARCH
In the previous lesson you learned that library catalogs (OPACs)
help you find books on a topic. This lesson will focus on another
important information source -- periodicals –
and the tool you use to find periodical articles: periodical
indexes. You’ve already used one of Skyline’s
largest general periodical indexes (the InfoTrac OneFile)
in Lesson 4, and you’ll get more practice with it in this
lesson’s exercise.
A periodical is publication such as a magazine,
journal, or newspaper. They’re called periodicals because
they’re published at periodic intervals, i.e. daily, weekly,
monthly, etc. They are extremely important sources of information
and are almost always included in research projects on any topic
because:
- They offer the most recent discussions and opinions, especially
on scientific, technological, and political topics.
- Topics too new or esoteric to be in a book or encyclopedia might
be found in periodicals.
- Many periodicals are grounded in a certain political or ideological
stance. Searching for periodical articles, therefore, will expose
you to differing viewpoints, especially on controversial issues.
- Periodical articles are more concise and narrowly focused than
books. Viewpoints and discussions that don’t warrant an
entire book can often be found in periodicals.
- Scholarly periodical articles offer references to other books
and articles that might be relevant to your topic.
- Periodicals provide a historical record of past ideas, opinions,
accomplishments, and social problems.
Periodicals are especially important to scholars because they facilitate
what is known as scholarly communication. When
researchers want to share their discoveries, scientific findings,
or intellectual discussions, they usually publish articles in academic
journals rather than books. Scholars and students, therefore, depend
upon periodicals to share ideas and learn about recent advances
in their field.
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