Citation Management Software

Jennifer Anderson ∙ Regina VertoneThe Sage Colleges Libraries

anderj6@sage.edu ∙ vertor@sage.edu

Citation managers:

• Collect bibliographic information during research process

• Organize sources in folders, allow tagging and searching

• Format & Cite sources during writing process

Citation managers turn articles, books & other sources

Into formatted citations:

Advantages of using CMs:

• Save time, more focus on research

• Cite sources and avoid plagiarism

• Synthesize research

• Discover new sources

• Collaborate with private or public groups

• Build a repository of sources in subject area

Saving bibliographic info

Through web browserDirect export from databases Entered manually

Citation managers capture bibliographic info:

Saving Bibliographic Info:

Organizing sources

Citation managers allow users to:Create folders Save notes relating to each sourceTag sourcesSearch full-text for keywords across sources

Citations stored in Mendeley:

Access to MendeleyGo to http://www.mendeley.com/Sign up an account under your nameDownload the desktop programFREE software

Citing sources

Import in-text citationsFormat citations in a number of stylesAutomatically generate and format bibliography

Integration with MS Word allows users to:

Importing citations in MS Word:

Other features:

PDF storage and annotationDiscovery of related research sourcesConfirmation of citation informationGroup collaborationSocial networking

Some citation managers enable:

Consider when choosing a CM:Your specific research needs:

Are you working with a large number of PDFs?Will you need to collect a wide array of sources

(articles, books, web sites)?Do you need to share research with a group?

Price (free vs. fee-based):If the tool is free, consider privacy issues, data

backup, customer support

References Childress, D. (2011). Citation tools in academic libraries: Best practices for

reference and instruction, Reference and User Service Quarterly, 51

(2): 143-152.

Hensley, M. K. (2011). Citation management software: Features and futures

Reference & User Services Quarterly, 50(3): 204-208.

Mead, T.L., & Berryman, D.R. (2010) Reference and PDF-manager software:

Complexities, support and workflow, Medical Reference Services

Quarterly, 29(4): 388-393.

References MacMillan, D. "Mendeley: Teaching Scholarly Communication and

Collaboration through Social Networking." Proceedings of the IATUL Conferences. Paper 37. http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/iatul/2012/papers/37

Rapp, D. (2011). Product watch: Reference management tools. Library Journal,

38-39. Retrieved from http://lj.libraryjournal.com

Zimerman, M. (2010). Citations and RefWorks. Reference Librarian, 51(1), 79-

87.