Foundations: Week Two. Discussion One
Scholarly Sources and the Walden Library
Scholarly information comes from a wide variety of sources including academic books, encyclopedias, handbooks, and journals. “Scholarly” is a broad term for publications written by and for researchers and scholars. These publications are typically not found in your local bookstore or public library because they are written for a very specific audience. They are mostly available in university and specialized libraries, not freely available online. This is why it is essential to learn to navigate the Walden Library and use it often!
During your time at Walden, you will be focusing on peer reviewed journal articles, a specific type of scholarly publication that goes through a specialized review process. These types of articles may report on original research or review the work of other researchers.
As you use the Walden Library to search the peer reviewed literature to support your discussion posts and assignments, it is important to understand how the Library is organized. Most modern libraries make their materials available electronically through searchable databases. Here in the Walden Library, you have access to specialized academic databases, many of which are specific to psychology and the social and behavioral sciences.
As part of this week’s Discussion, you will explore the databases in the Walden Library and compare and contrast peer reviewed articles found in these databases to those found online.
Learning Resources
This page contains the Learning Resources for this week. Be sure to scroll down the page to see all of this week’s assigned Learning Resources.
Readings
· OASIS. (2020, June 29).
Reading a research article assigned as coursework
Links to an external site.
. Walden University.
· Walden University. (2015d).
Evaluating resources: Resource typesLinks to an external site.
. Retrieved from
This web page provides specific information about evaluating various types of resources.
· Walden University. (2015e).
Foundations – library resources: Identifying & evaluating online resourcesLinks to an external site.
. Retrieved from
This web page gives you an introduction to the types of information you will find in the library databases. It provides tips on how to identify scholarly sources, such as peer-reviewed journal articles, and how to evaluate the reliability of other sources.
· Walden University. (2015g).
Foundations – library resources: Searching & retrieving materials in the databasesLinks to an external site.
. Retrieved from
This resource is an introduction to finding the sources you need in the Walden library databases.
· Walden University. (2015j).
Publication comparison chart: PublicationsLinks to an external site.
. Retrieved from
This web page defines and contrasts three categories of journals: scholarly, trade, and popular.
· Walden University. (2015i).
Peer review: General informationLinks to an external site.
. Retrieved from
This web page provides general information about how to limit periodical searches to peer-reviewed articles and how to verify a periodical is peer reviewed.
· Walden University. (2015f).
Foundations – library resources: Introduction to the Walden University libraryLinks to an external site.
. Retrieved from
The Walden Library an essential resource that will facilitate your success. This web page introduces you to the library’s services and resources.
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Document:
Study Notes: What Is Critical Thinking? (PDF)
Download Study Notes: What Is Critical Thinking? (PDF)
This Walden Writing Center publication explores various definitions of critical thinking.
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Spreadsheet:
Weekly Schedule (Excel)
Download Weekly Schedule (Excel)
One of the most valuable skills you can have as an online student is effective time management. Therefore, we ask that you
· download and save this sample weekly schedule,
· use it to create your own based on your work and personal responsibilities, and
· revisit the schedule at least once a month to ensure that it still reflects your time commitments.
To Prepare for this Discussion:
· Review Learning Resources for this week and familiarize yourself with navigating the Walden Library, searching Library databases, and limiting your searches to full text, peer review, and publication date.
· Search the “APA PsycINFO database” in the Walden Library and locate a peer reviewed article on a psychology topic you would like to explore relevant to your area of specialization in your program.
· Next, search the Internet and locate an article related to the same topic.
· Reflect on the sources of both articles, and evaluate each article using the evaluation methods listed in the Learning Resources.
INSTRUCTIONS: With these thoughts in mind:
Post a brief description of the articles you found. Next, compare and contrast the articles and explain the differences you noticed between them. Further explain how the use of peer review articles will improve the arguments in your scholarly writing. As a professional in the field of psychology, which article would you use as evidence to support your ideas? Provide the article title and journal name for the article you find in the Library and the URL for the article you found online.
Be sure to support your postings and responses with specific references to this week’s Learning Resources.
