Written and maintained by CASRAI Editorial Board
Last updated
Short Answer
No, Psychology Today is not a peer-reviewed academic journal, and it is not a scholarly source for scientific research. It is a consumer magazine and website. Its articles are reviewed by its own in-house editors, not by independent academic peers who judge the methods and statistics before publication.
This also answers the related questions “is Psychology Today a scholarly source?” and “is Psychology Today a peer reviewed journal?”: no to both. Understanding what makes a source scholarly helps literature reviews and grant applications cite primary studies rather than popular commentary.
How Psychology Today’s Editorial Review Works
Psychology Today began in 1967 as a print periodical and is now a media organization with a website that includes articles, blogs and therapist directories. On its editorial process page, checked 2026-11-07, the publication describes a different system from academic peer review:
- In-house editorial review: Content by expert authors is “reviewed, edited and fact-checked for accuracy,” and each piece is checked by one or more members of the in-house editorial team.
- Expert author community: The site publishes dozens of articles and news items written daily by contributors with domain expertise. The page does not describe external peer review of individual posts.
- Reference material: Reference content is reviewed by credentialed psychologists (Ph.D.s) or graduate students, according to the same page.
Compare this with the models in single-blind, double-blind and open peer review, where independent subject experts assess design, statistics and ethics before an article is accepted.
What Is Reviewed and What Is Not
| Type of content | Review described | Scholarly status |
|---|---|---|
| Articles by expert authors | In-house editorial review and fact-checking | Popular media; not peer reviewed |
| Reference material | Review by credentialed psychologists or graduate students | Popular reference; not a journal article |
| Peer-reviewed journal article (for comparison) | External review by independent scholars before publication | Scholarly primary research |
A Psychology Today piece often summarizes a study first published in a research journal. In psychological science, the original study is the scholarly record and the magazine piece is secondary commentary.
Indexing and Recognised Lists
Lists of scholarly journals have entry rules that a magazine does not meet. The Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), for example, states that it only accepts open access journals and that “all articles must pass through a quality control system (peer review) before publication” (DOAJ application guide, checked 2026-11-07). Psychology Today is a magazine, not a journal of this kind. Check any specific index, such as Scopus or Web of Science, directly on its own site before relying on a claim about coverage.
How to Check a Specific Article Yourself
- Identify the outlet. Is it an academic journal with an editorial board, or a magazine or blog?
- Look at the structure. Empirical research papers usually follow an Introduction, Methods, Results and Discussion layout with participant details and statistics; magazine pieces read as journalism.
- Trace the study. If the article describes research, find the named authors or DOI and retrieve the original paper through a database such as PubMed or via a PsycINFO search strategy.
- Check the journal’s own policy. Read the journal’s website for its peer review description before treating the paper as peer reviewed. Preprints on servers such as PsyArXiv are not peer reviewed either.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Psychology Today a peer-reviewed journal?
No. It is a consumer magazine and website whose content goes through in-house editorial review, not scholarly peer review.
Is Psychology Today a scholarly source?
No. It is a popular publication. Its pieces can point you to research, but the original studies are the scholarly sources.
Can I cite Psychology Today in a university paper?
That depends on your instructor’s rules. If a course requires peer-reviewed references, a Psychology Today article will not satisfy it, but it can help you find the primary studies it discusses.
How do I find the peer-reviewed research behind an article?
Note the researchers or study named in the text, identify the journal that published it, and search for that paper in PsycINFO, PubMed or Google Scholar.
Sources
- Psychology Today: Editorial Process (checked 2026-11-07)
- Directory of Open Access Journals: Application guide (checked 2026-11-07)
- Wikipedia: Psychology Today, stating the magazine is not peer-reviewed (checked 2026-11-07)
