Research Guides: Architecture: Design Research: Types of Sources

Types of Journal Articles

Scholarly/Peer Reviewed

Journals provide reports of original research; in-depth analysis of issues related to the academic discipline. Articles are written by scholars or researchers in the field and use the most focused sources, get right to the interesting points, and yet have rich background as well. Articles undergo peer review before acceptance for publication to insure research reported is of high quality and validity. Articles are always documented by formal citation of sources.

Examples

Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians

ARQ: Architecture Research Quarterly

Design Journal

Environment & Planning

Journal of Architecture

Journal of Architectural & Planning Research

Journal of Urban Design

Journal of Planning Literature

Places

Town Planning Review

What does a Scholarly/Peer Reviewed article look like?

Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals
The Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals database offers a comprehensive listing of journal articles on architecture and design, including bibliographic descriptions on subjects such as the history and practice of architecture, landscape architecture, city planning, historic preservation, and interior design and decoration. The index contains more than 440,000 thousand entries surveying over seven hundred American and international journals. These include not only scholarly and popular periodical literature, but also publications of professional associations, American state and regional periodicals, and the major serials on architecture and design of Europe, Asia, Latin America, and Australia.
JSTOR
Jstor will provide direct access to articles and their illustrations.
ARTstor
Repository of hundreds of thousands of digital images, from across many periods and cultures. Architecture, painting, sculpture, photography, decorative arts, design, and other forms of visual culture are represented. Provides tools to actively use images for scholarship, teaching, and learning.
Academic Search Ultimate
Good database for urban planning and historic preservation topics.

Trade/Professional

Journals written for those in a profession. They provide industry news, trends & product information, and career news. Articles may be written by experts or paid writers, most are not peer-reviewed. They may contain some references and interviews but not formal citations, usually contain advertisements. Journals may be in a newspaper format.

Examples

The Architectural Review and American Builder's Journal

Architect

Architectural Record

Building

Building Design & Construction

Blueprint

Detail

Interior Design

Innovation

What does a Trade/Professional Journal look like?

Popular Magazines and Websites

Magazines and websites are written for the general public, to sell products and to entertain or educate the reader. They provide news on current trends, events and popular culture. Articles are usually short, rarely cite any sources, contain many advertisements and written by staff writers They are not peer reviewed.

Examples

Architectural Digest

Casabella

Dwell

House Beautiful

Marg

Old House Journal

Wallpaper

Encyclopedias

Encyclopedias provide general information about a subject. They are not the product of academic research, and therefore are not a scholarly source.

Wikipedia, may, however, be a source for other sources. Check the Wikipedia page bibliography., usually located at the bottom of the page.

Examples

Wikipedia

Encyclopedia Brittanica

What does an encyclopedia look like?

* Adapted from Georgia Tech Library's Architecture Guide http://libguides.gatech.edu/c.php?g=54066&p=351349