writing in the disciplines

writing in biology

peer-reviewed journals

Peer-reviewed journals require that submitted manuscripts be reviewed by other experts in the field before they are accepted for publication. Peer review is currently held as the highest standard for quality assurance in scholarly writing. Not all article types in a peer-reviewed journal are subject to peer review, however. Exceptions may include editorials and book and article reviews.

Biologists distinguish among two types of peer-reviewed journal articles: primary and secondary. Primary articles report original research. Such original research is published in journals such as Nature, Ecology, and Molecular and Cellular Biology. The list of peer-reviewed journals is long, but many such journals can be searched easily through the National Center for Biotechnology Information and other biology databases.

Secondary articles are more general publications based on primary sources. Secondary sources include articles found in magazines such as Scientific American and American Scientist. While secondary sources may be appropriate for citations in critical essays, they are rarely appropriate for citation in research reports, literature reviews (themselves a kind of secondary source), or grant proposals. Textbooks are also secondary sources and are rarely cited by biologists. If you are writing for a class, it is a good idea to ask your instructor if you need to cite information from your textbook.

Non-peer-reviewed sources—articles in newspapers and popular magazines such as Time and Newsweek and popular books—are cited only in very particular circumstances. Because these texts generally lack the thorough citation and rigor required for peer-reviewed articles, they are only cited if the purpose of an essay or literature review is to analyze the presentation of biological content in the popular media. Unless otherwise directed by your instructor, avoid using such sources.