 A scholarly or academic journal is a publication that primarily consists of articles reporting original research. Each journal focuses on a particular discipline or field. For example, the Journal of Criminal Justice has articles with titles like Conflict Theory and Racial Profiling or Implementing Intelligence-led Policing. While the Journal of Marketing Research will have articles with a much different focus. One of the main differences between these types of publications in popular magazines like Time or Newsweek is the publication process. Before an article is published in a scholarly journal, it undergoes peer review. This means an author submits his or her work to the journal. Then, a handful of experts within that field will read and review the manuscript. Sometimes the manuscript is rejected, but sometimes it's accepted and published in the journal. The peer review process is meant to ensure a high standard for scholarly journals. While scholarly journals are publications, it's important to note that you will most often find articles from these sources online in library databases. As a student, you will use articles from scholarly journals as sources in research papers and to guide your own research ideas. In the workplace, scholarly research will influence your daily life as new research findings are uncovered, revealing advances in areas like health care and technology or best practices for business or even teaching elementary students. To summarize, a scholarly journal contains articles that have undergone peer review and report on research within a particular field. Reading scholarly journal articles connected to your area of study helps you learn about advances in your own field and may spark your own research ideas.