Cite My Sources

When to Search Using Citations

Citation searching is useful when you want to analyze literature in a way that keyword or subject searching does not allow, such as when you are exploring a new area of study and are either studying the current state of research in that area or are still learning the language of the topic.

Citation searching is good for:

• Gathering relevant literature quickly
• Identifying good and appropriate keywords for future searches
• Using the knowledge and research of the original author, through citation, to save time
• Mapping out a scholarly conversation in a particular area

There are limitations to searching citations:

• Citation search engines skew heavily towards scholarly articles and may not capture the full conversation (i.e., it will exclude popular media or books).
• Citation practices vary by discipline, and citation practices by a small group of people can perpetuate poor citation ethics by self-citing or only citing one another.
• If you want to find cross-disciplinary or interdisciplinary information on different topics than the starting article discusses, also perform keyword searches.

The first step in most citation searches is to locate a starting article or author. For many students, a great place to find a starting article is on your syllabus.

Meme retrieved from Foley Library Libguides, actual origins not certain (ironically).

Forward Citation Search

Starting Citation: 

Reyns-Chikuma, C., & Lazreg, H. B. (2017). Marjane Satrapi and the graphic novels from and about the Middle East. Arab Studies Quarterly, 39(1), 758-775.

1. Enter the title into Google Scholar.

2. Underneath the search result, there will be a link that says, "Cited by ____"

3. Click that link to see articles that cite back to the article you searched.

Once you click on the "Cited by ____" you can perform an additional keyword search by checking off this box under the search bar: "Search within citing articles."

Content adapted from Brown University Libguides.