As we have already discussed, researchers choose a number of different ways of communicating their research. In order to determine if the material you have found is relevant, it's helpful to be able to tell what type of material it is. Here we will go over some common publication types.

Journal article

Journal articles are often published in academic journals. They are always reviewed before publishing, often by experts in the same field (peer review).

Read more about what a journal article is on the library's website.

Dissertation (or thesis)

A dissertation is academic research work, often published in book form, detailing a research topic and a result. There are two different types of dissertations in academia, a licentiate dissertation and a doctoral dissertation. A licentiate degree is about the equivalent of half a doctorate. Both are reviewed by an opposition committee.

Report

Research results are also sometimes published in the form of a report, issued by different institutions. Their main purpose is to recount for ongoing or completed research. These reports are usually not peer-reviewed, and therefore cannot always be said to be scholarly.

Conference proceedings

Researchers often attend conferences (or symposiums) in order to present their research. The presentations are usually accompanied by the publication of a conference proceeding. These are often peer-reviewed.

Scholarly books or anthologies

Researchers can also publish their research in books, or as single chapters in an anthology (a book where different authors have written different chapters). Anthologies often have one or more reputable researchers as editors.