How To Read a Scholarly Journal Article

Main ideas / lessons conveyed

• Reading scholarly journal articles is different from reading novels: you don’t need to start at the beginning and read every word in order.
• Use a clear research focus (topic statement or research question) before opening the article.
• Use targeted search keywords to find relevant sources in academic databases (e.g., EBSCOhost).
• Skim and selectively read key sections to quickly assess relevance and extract usable information.
• Pay attention to scholarly terminology used by researchers (helpful for future searches).
• Scholarly articles follow recognizable structure, and each section serves a specific purpose:
  • Abstract helps determine relevance.
  • Introduction provides context and outlines main points.
  • Results/Statistics reveal the study’s findings.
  • Methods explains how the study was conducted and who participated.
  • Discussion/Conclusion summarizes what the researcher discovered and interprets findings.
  • References support deeper follow-up and verification.

Methodology / step-by-step approach

1. Start with a clear topic statement / research question

   • Example research focus given:
     • “how to use social networking sites like Facebook and YouTube contribute to bullying in schools and how can this situation be prevented?”

2. Find an article using search keywords in an academic database

   • Example database mentioned: EBSCOhost
   • Identify keywords related to your topic (e.g., key terms used in professional literature such as “cyberbullying”).

3. Open the full text and use an efficient reading order

   • Step 1: Read the Abstract

     • Determine whether the article is relevant to your question.
     • Note what the study is about and the general findings.

   • Step 2: Read the Introduction (by skimming)

     • Scan quickly for key ideas (instead of reading word-for-word).
     • Highlight/underline ideas you may later paraphrase or quote.
     • Watch for how the author situates the work by referencing prior studies.
     • Note potential flaws the author discusses (as evidence of honesty/critical analysis).
     • Remember the study has gone through peer review (increasing confidence in findings).

   • Step 3: Jump ahead to the Discussion/Conclusion

     • It’s acceptable to “peek at the ending” because you’re not reading a novel.
     • Highlight/underline findings that catch your interest.

   • Step 4: Revisit Results for more detail

     • Read the results in more detail based on what you found interesting.
     • Use statistics for quick visual understanding (optionally glance at tables first).
     • Then read the narrative explanation to understand “why” the statistics mean what they mean.

   • Step 5: Check the Methods section

     • Identify what type of research it is (e.g., survey).
     • Learn how it was conducted.
     • Review details about participants.

   • Step 6: Review what the author recommends

     • Look for suggestions for future research.

   • Step 7: Do not overlook the References

     • Use references to explore related work and expand understanding.

4. Use the extracted information for your own research outputs

   • After a quick review, you should be able to quote and summarize relevant material for a research paper.
   • Optionally return later and read start-to-finish if needed.
   • Having a clear research focus and knowing which sections to read saves time.

Specific example article used in the subtitles

• Article title: “Parental mediation: Online activities and cyber-bullying”
• Author mentioned: Mesch
• Journal mentioned: Cyber Psychology and Behavior
• General emphasis from the example:
  • Parenting/parental mediation is presented as an important factor related to cyberbullying.
  • The study includes statistics (with discussion of relationships involving parental education and bullying likelihood, as described).

Speakers / sources featured (as mentioned in the subtitles)

• Speaker/Presenter (unnamed): explains the method (refers to “I’m going to walk you through…” and gives step-by-step guidance).
• Researcher / article author: Mesch
• Journal source: Cyber Psychology and Behavior
• Database source: EBSCOhost
• Concepts/terms source within scholarship: the term “cyberbullying” as used by professionals (no individual author specified).