Cited reference searching refers to the act of searching for works which were included in another work's bibliography or reference list.
Cited reference searching is a unique research strategy that allows scholars to uncover valuable information:
Trace the history of an idea within a discipline:
Track important researchers, authors, and articles, and more:
Cited references can be searched in specialized databases, familiar databases, and even freely on the web:
Why search here?
Scopus indexes scholarly articles, providing full citations and abstracts of research output from the most respected and highly-cited journals, across the disciplines, from science and mathematics to arts and humanities. You can track ideas by following links to cited articles, view article metrics to get a view of the perceived impact of individual articles, and examine larger trends in research by using Scopus's robust analysis and visualization tools.
What's included?
Content from over 5,000 publishers from around the world. Click the green link that says "Find Full-Text" to determine if the library has access to the article. Remember, if we do not have the entire article, it can be requested through Interlibrary Loan.
Search Scopus like any other Library database for articles by specific authors, within specific journals, about specific topics, or with specific titles:
One you have discovered some relevant articles and publications, explore cited and citing references to find more on your topic. Most databases allow you to link backwards to items cited in a particular article. Scopus takes this idea one step further, allowing you to easily link forwards to articles which cite your selected article. These features allow you to gain a more coherent view of the scholarly landscape on a subject, by seeing how articles and studies build off one another.
Finding out what sources cite a work and how often is also useful in determining how influential it is within a scholarly discipline. The more times a source has been cited, the more respected OR controversial the publication likely is; however, if the work was just published, the number will not be high because there has not been enough time for a published responses to be generated:
If there is a author you keep coming across or want to know how frequently they have been cited by other scholars, try searching by Authors in Scopus:
Use this free, web-based source to find scholarly articles and books from many disciplines. Be aware that Google Scholar is not comprehensive in its coverage of any one discipline, nor are the publications included systematically chosen. It is a fantastic tool for interdisciplinary research and a wonderful companion to traditional library databases.
Many results link to freely available full text, others include a link to check full text availability from the Simmons University Library. Remember, if we do not have the entire article, it can be requested through Interlibrary Loan. Also notice the citations listing: in each search result, there will be a link that says "Cited by 55" or "Cited by 32". Click that link to see articles that cited the article you've found, or search for articles you've found elsewhere using Google Scholar to see where they've been cited (again, this resource is ideally used in addition to other library resources.
Execute a search in Google Scholar. To Search Google Scholar:
Many of the results listed for your search will include a link citing publications. It will read Cited by [#] The number indicates the number of other sources indexed by Google Scholar that have cited the publication. From within the results list in Google Scholar, click on Cited by [#] to see the specific publications that have cited an article.
Here are some strategies for employing cited references into your research:
Many standard databases like Academic Search Complete and APA PsycINFO include cited reference search capabilities. While these are not as comprehensive as Scopus, they are integrated into the searches you are already doing.
Many of the Simmons Databases offer information about cited references, most are embedded in standard results lists:
EBSCO databases such as Academic Search Ultimate, Medline, and Business Source Premier:
- To find citations for publications by a specific scholar, enter his or her name in the field labeled Cited author
- To see citations for contents with a specific publication, enter a journal or book title in the field labeled Cited Source
- To see citations for a specific article, enter the title in the field labeled Cited Title
- To see books and articles published within a date range, specify dates in the field labeled Cited Year
- To see citations for an element in any part of a citation, enter a keyword in the field labeled All Citation Fields
- Combine any or all of these searches to create a search
OR
ProQuest databases such as Dissertations & Theses
CSA databases such as APA PsycINFO and Sociological Abstracts
Here are some strategies for employing cited references into your research: