Scholarly articles provide a concentrated discussion into a subject area. If you'd like to start with an overview, look toward a book or an encyclopedia article in reference.
Boston College Libraries subscribes to an array of full text article databases and indices (lists of scholarship on different topics). These different access points have overlapping but not identical coverage. Consider running your searches in multiple different databases. Don't forget that you can also order material through Interlibrary Loan (ILL) if we don't have full text at BC.
Need to check whether a journal article is peer reviewed? Check out Ulrichsweb Global Serials Directory. Look up your journal's name and if Ulrichsweb includes a 
symbol, you know it's been peer reviewed (also called "refereed").
