What's an "academic" or "peer reviewed" article?

For a research essay assignment, an instructor might ask you to find an academic, scholarly, or peer-reviewed article. These terms are usually used interchangeably. Articles are pieces of research that are published in journals. Journals usually publish multiple issues each year, like magazines, so they hold very current information. 

Before publication, peer-reviewed articles are examined by researchers in the field of interest, to make sure that the information is credible.

If your assignment asks for empirical research, you are looking for an article that has original findings. Usually, these articles will have headings such as: methods, results, and discussion.

Blog posts, newspaper articles, magazine articles, or association websites do not typically qualify as academic material and are usually not used for academic assignments, even though they may be otherwise credible sources.

Research articles are easily accessed through databases (websites) provided by the University of Manitoba Libraries. To find and access journal articles, type your topic into the search box on the Libraries' homepage, which searches many databases at the same time.