4 Types of Journals and Publications in Research

There are many types of journals being published today that cater to the student, research and academic community. Some of the basic types of journals include academic and scholarly journals, trade journals, popular scientific magazines, and newspapers. Academic and scholarly journals are typically available at libraries where they can be accessed by faculty, students, and research scholars. These types of journals are also often available online either through open access or with different subscription categories for students, researchers, and institutions. Other general publications, scientific and trade magazines, and newspapers are more easily available and can be found at public bookstalls and supermarkets. These are more popular than academic journals as they cater to a wider segment of the population and offer general information and current affairs covering sports, politics, business and entertainment.  

Various types of journal publications across the world  

1. Academic and scientific journals

These types of journals are periodical, often discipline-specific, publications targeted at researchers, students, and experts in the academic and scientific community. Their main objective is to report and disseminate original research and study findings. These types of research journals maintain strict quality controls prior to publication, putting each research article through a stringent peer review process that checks the overall manuscript quality and validates the research being presented. The style of writing academic articles also differs from more popular magazines and newspapers. Researchers must not only ensure they follow the basic academic writing conventions, but also follow the recommended manuscript structure that comprises of an introduction, methodology, results and discussion, along with an abstract and bibliography. These types of journals in research are eagerly awaited and read by the academic community as they tend to feature significant work that adds to the knowledge in a particular field, from a deep analysis to solve crucial problems to varying perspectives on existing issues. Some well-known examples of academic and scientific journals are the American Sociological Review, Nature, and The British Journal of Social Work.  

Apart from the traditional subscription-based journals, the scholarly publishing landscape has seen a surge in open access publishing. These types of journals aid the rapid dissemination of science and serve as platform for researchers and others to freely share, learn from, and discuss new findings. There are broadly three types of journals under the open access peer-reviewed journal category.  

(i) Hybrid journals are traditionally subscription-based journals that provide authors with a choice to publish articles as open access on payment of a specified fee. Once paid, the article is made available to the public at no cost to them; however, other articles in this type of journal stay behind paywalls and are accessible only to those with subscriptions. 

ii) Mega journals are usually more inclusive in their publishing strategy. These types of journals in research accept submissions across academic disciplines from life sciences to social sciences and arts among others. All submissions to mega journals undergo peer reviews, where the technical and scientific soundness of the work being presented is thoroughly checked. However, lower article processing charges and faster turnaround times than traditional journals¹ make these types of journals a great option for researchers to quickly publish their work and reach a wider audience. 

(iii) Overlay journals are slightly different from the above two types of journals as its submissions are curated from various open access repositories. They are not bonafide published journals per se but provide links to the work of researchers on specified open access repositories by providing volume and issue details of the concerned journal. The advantage that these types of journals offer is that they are quality controlled, affordable, and a resourceful source of information. By curating significant research in top publications, these types of journals enable students and researchers worldwide to easily access the most relevant articles across disciplines. 

2. Trade journals

Trade journals publish topical issues and professional matters related to a particular field and are primarily intended for members of a specific business or profession. These types of journal publications cover new trends, techniques, standards, or products in a particular industry. Unlike academic journals, articles published in trade journals do not undergo peer reviews but are instead evaluated by journal editors to ensure adherence to writing style and readability. Advertising Age, Nursing Times and Drug Times are a few examples of trade journals.  

3. Popular scientific magazines

These publications provide information and facts through well-written articles that are designed to be understandable and more interesting for non-academic audiences. Usually, the topics cover contemporary findings and new information stemming from early research work like developments in green technology, climate change, and sustainable agricultural practices. These types of journal publications are targeted at a wider cross section of readers to bring them up to date on developments across various fields of science. Some of the more popular scientific magazines include National Geographic, Discover Magazine, and The Scientist. 

4. Newspapers

These are general broadsheets that inform readers about recent developments; they are usually published daily and cover a range of topics such as politics, economics, science, culture, society, entertainment, and sports. It also contains news, analysis and opinion pieces by prominent experts across different fields. Newspapers are the most accessed and read by the general public not only because they are low cost but more importantly because they provide a good overview of day-to-day developments across various fields written in a way that is simple to understand. The Washington Post, The New York Times, and The Telegraph are a few of the popular newspapers.  

Whatever the type of journal publication, they all have one thing in common – they play a critical role in and contribute to the sharing of information and knowledge among readers. 

References

1. Adewusi, D. What Is a Mega Journal? Characteristics & Examples. Science & Research, Scientific Editing [Accessed Jan 1, 2023] https://www.scientific-editing.info/blog/what-is-a-mega-journal/  

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