Empirical articles can contain data derived from surveys, experiments, questionnaires. The definition of empirical research is the use of data derived from actual observation or experiment and it can be quantitative (data that can be measured) or qualitative (data that cannot be measured).
Here are some guidelines to determine if your article is an empirical article:
• What is the name of the journal?
Popular magazines like Newsweek or Life Magazine don’t publish empirical
research articles; publications like the Journal of Educational Research or the
Journal of Educational Psychology do.
• How long is the article?
An empirical research article is usually substantial, not 1 or 2 pages.
• Does the article contain references to other works?
Serious researchers always cite their sources.
• Does the abstract of the article contain variations of the words study, measure,
subjects, data, survey, or statistical to describe the empirical research?
These guidelines can help you determine if an article is empirical or not.