USU LibrariesHOW TO READ A SCIENTIFIC ARTICLE

SCIENTIFIC ARTICLES

Scientific articles are complete descriptions of new scientific research written by experts in the field.

Scientific articles are the final step in the scientific process as they disseminate results. Dissemination is important because it keeps scientists in check and allows for a replication of scientific work. These articles are published in journals and are the way scholars communicate their findings with each other and the public.

WHY READ SCIENTIFIC ARTICLES?

You probably have a textbook and a whole list of assigned readings for your course. Which might make you ask yourself, "ugh, why do I have to read complicated scientific articles on top of this?" Scientific articles are...

Current

Unlike your textbook which might be several years old, scientific papers give you the opportunity read cutting edge research the moment it is published. They allow you stay up to date on current trends in scientific research and advances in the field.

Contain Data

Textbooks and news articles summarize research, whereas scientific articles contain the complete study - including summaries of raw data. This is important if you need exact results for your own research.

These articles are written by the members of the research team who share their methodology which should enable you to replicate their study and validate results.

Peer-Reviewed

Scientific articles are written by experts in the field and go through a peer-review process. This means other experts in the field have reviewed the study prior to publication to confirm the article's scientific quality. This helps ensure the articles are grounded by evidence.

Relevant

Scientific research articles take a deep dive into narrow scientific topics. Your textbook might introduce a topic briefly but by locating scientific articles you can find more in-depth and current research on a specific topic!

Complete the 'Test Yourself' quiz below then click the "next" button in the lower right hand corner to move through the tutorial.

TEST YOURSELF

Which of the following is NOT a reason scientific articles are useful?

Scientific articles are more up to date on current trends than textbooks

Try again! Scientific articles are often more up to date than your textbook.

Scientific articles are short summaries of scientific research

Correct! Scientific articles are not short summaries of scientific research - they are complete records of research including data and methodology.

Scientific articles allow you to focus in on a specific topic relevant to your interests

Try again! Scientific articles focus on narrow topics of scientific research which allow you to take a deeper dive into a topic of interest.

Scientific articles go through a peer-reviewed process

Try again! Scientific articles go through a peer-reviewed process which helps ensure they are high quality and scientifically valid.