If you need to find out more about a specific journal...
- Is it peer reviewed?
- What’s their editorial policy?
- What are their submission policies?
- What is the scope and focus of the journal?
Starting with the publisher's website is the easiest approach to get information about editorial and submission policies. Simply Google the name of the journal to find the publisher’s website and then look for About, Contact, Instructions to Authors, Author Guidelines, or Contribute links to get detailed information.
You can also check Ulrich’s International Periodicals Directory, a library database that provides bibliographic, access, and pricing information for newspapers, magazines, and journals published in the United States and internationally. It also distinguishes peer reviewed or refereed journals (refereed is just another word for “peer-reviewed”) from popular magazines. In Ulrich's, search for the title of a journal. Select the correct journal because you may see multiple versions with the same title. This is often the case when online and print versions exist, or the journal has changed publishers.
When you click on the journal title, check the description and make sure it relates to what your journal article is about. If you need to know whether the journal is peer reviewed or not, look for the term "refereed", which indicates the journal is peer reviewed.
For more information, see Determining Whether a Journal is Significant in Your Field or Determining Whether a Work is Significant.