What are periodicals?
What are Periodicals?
Periodicals are resources that form what is called the periodical literature - the articles, editorials, and book reviews contained within them. They get their name because they follow a recurring publication schedule over a year and subsequent years. They follow volume number (year) and issue number (date) order. Periodicals are also referred to as serials, quarterlies, weeklies, journals, papers, proceedings, reports, reviews, bulletins, and magazines.
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All periodicals focus on a type of content. There is popular content encompassing everything from fashion to entertainment. Other content types include news and current events, academic research, and sports. Periodicals may further address a specific subject aimed at a specific readership. Example: periodicals meant for children that deal with the environment, or periodicals intended for military chaplains.
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Newman Library’s periodical collection supports the NTC curriculum. Its focus is academic research in a number of subjects such as theology and biblical studies. Its use is intended for students and faculty. In the library collection, one will find such titles as Studies in Religion, the Catholic Biblical Quarterly, the Journal of Catholic Social Thought, and Theology Today.
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It is important to note that with academic periodicals, articles are subject to editorial or peer review. This ensures they meet academic standards in both research and writing. The review process provides a higher degree of reliability than something self-published or posted on a blog.
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Editorial review does not mean, however, that an article's content is agreeable to everyone who reads it. Articles not only contribute to the research in a discipline, they also give voice to opinions, represent certain perspectives, or support types of research. They can also become a forum for disputed ideas, concepts, or interpretations - even for the work of a particular scholar. One realizes quickly that scholars disagree with each other! But then this is the purpose of research: the fair exchange of ideas.
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Articles offer either a specificity not readily found in books, or good overall summaries of subjects in a short amount of space. They can vary in page length from 2 to 3 pages to 30–40 pages. They are often more current than books, as books take longer to publish.
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In addition to articles are Book Reviews, whereby a scholar, who works in the same discipline, evaluates a book. A book review can be helpful when dealing with a controversial title, wanting a summary of a book’s main points, or in knowing - according to the reviewer’s opinion - whether a book is good (or not) and why. It can also help when needing to know more about an author’s background and focus of research