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A scholarly journal publishes authoritative articles by academics or experts in a discipline. The articles usually undergo peer-review, that is they are evaluated by other experts before publication.
For more on the different types of periodicals:
Distinguishing Scholarly from Non-Scholarly Periodicals: A Checklist of Criteria from Cornell University Library
Scholarly Journals vs. Popular Magazines Chart from Duke University Libraries
Why do I find only an abstract? The library's subscription doesn't always include every resource in a particular database. If you search a database and find only an abstract but want the entire article, you can request it through Interlibrary loan.