The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines peer review as:
a process by which something proposed (as for research or publication) is evaluated by a group of experts (peers) in the appropriate field
The peer review process helps ensure published academic information is of a high standard and maintains the credibility of the research.
Everyone wants accurate information they can trust. Expert peer reviewers aim to ensure articles and books published within academic publications are high quality by checking they are:
A significant focus within the Library collection is on scholarly, peer reviewed publications. The library also collects a wide range of other resource types, such as newspapers and trade journals that are not peer reviewed.
OneSearch and many other databases allow you to filter out non peer reviewed items from results lists.
Within OneSearch use the "Availability" filter to select "Peer-reviewed Articles". See the OneSearch guide for help with refining your search.
In some cases, based on your evaluation, you may wish to check the peer review processes of a particular publication.
Peer review can be used in scholarly journals reporting on research findings and methodologies and also be applied to books, reports, and conference proceedings related to any topic of research.
To check the peer review process for different types of resources you can:
The main aim of a peer review process is to ensure the quality of the scholarly theoretical and/or applied research knowledge to be published has been evaluated by expert peers in the field.
Though there may be slight differences in approach, each publisher will follow common peer review processes.
Classic peer review uses a double-blind peer-review process, which means that neither the authors nor the reviewers will know the identify of the others. Some issues with classic peer review have been identified and as a result, some alternative approaches are sometimes used.
Problems with Classic Peer Review |
Alternatives to Classic Peer review |
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Take a look at this excellent resource created by the University of Adelaide which demonstrates how we get from "something happened" to scholarly, peer-reviewed research.
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