Literature Reviews

You will be looking through a large amount of materials for your review. The research process can take time, and it is easy to lose track of a citation or remember how you accessed a source. It's best to keep a search log -- a notebook, note cards, an online document, a citation manager (see box below), or whatever format you prefer -- to track: 

• Where you searched (library catalog, name of database, Google Scholar, etc.)
• When you searched
• Search terms and combinations of terms that were successful
• Search terms and combinations of terms that were not successful
• Searches or leads you want to pursue next

Zotero is an application that collects, manages, and cites research sources. It's easy to use, connects with your web browser to download sources, and best of all it's free.

You may have used a citation generator such as EasyBib, EndNote, Scribbr, or Citation Machine, but Zotero can create more accurate citations and do much more!

View our Zotero guide for instructions on how to download and use Zotero.