Using Citation IndexesBall State University Libraries

In this tutorial…

Learn what a citation index is Learn how to use a citation index to

Track citations Research topics Locate lists of article references

What is a Citation Index?

A citation index allows you to trace interconnections among authors citing papers on the same topic, and determine the frequency with which others cite a specific work (an indication of its importance in the literature of the field).

Citation Indexes- based on disciplines

Arts and Humanities Citation Index (AHCI) Reference AI3 .A63

Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI) Reference Z7161 .S65

Science Citation Index (SCI) Reference Z7401 .S36 Latest two years in Science-Health Science Library Older issues in Bracken Library, Reference

Coverage

Each index will cover either a five year time span or only one year. Look at the front cover or spine of the index to determine the years that it includes.

Reading Citations

Most citations will provide the same information:

Names of author(s)- only last name and first/ second initials are given (EX: Smith A.J.)

Journal information Name of journal is always abbreviated Volume, Issue, & Page Number

Sample Citation

Journal Info

Author name

Parts of Citation Index

There are four parts to each citation index; and each part provides different information.

Source Index Citation Index Permuterm Subject

Index Corporate Index

Source Index

Use the Source Index to find current articles by known authors, and to locate full bibliographic descriptions.

Authors are listed alphabetically by their last names.

Source IndexArticle Citation

Works Cited (articles the author used in his/her research)

Citation Index

Use the Citation Index to find recent articles which cite earlier, known works.

The Citation Index is an alphabetical list of references given in bibliographies and footnotes of source articles, and is arranged alphabetically by the name of the first author.

Citation Index

Author name Author’s article

Citing article

(used Renoux’s article in their research)

Permuterm Subject Index

Use the Permuterm Subject Index to find current articles that have words of interest in their titles.

To locate the full citation for current articles you find listed in the Permuterm Subject Index you will need to then look up the author’s name in the Source Index.

A Note on Permuterm

What does Permuterm mean?

The citation indexes take two important terms find the title of each article to include in the subject index. One term is the Primary term (most important) and this is listed first in the subject index. It is paired with an additional important term.

Permuterm SubjectIndexPrimary

Subject Term

SA= see also references

Co-Terms

Author Names

Corporate Index

Use the Corporate Index to find current articles of interest when a corporate or academic institution is known to publish work on the topic.

The Corporate Index is divided into two sections: Geographic and Organization.

Corporate Index-Geographic

Items in this section are arranged by the location of the author’s organization:

Country and city (for foreign countries) State and City (for United States)

Corporate Index- Geographic

Location

Organization

Source Author & Article

Corporate Index- OrganizationThis section is arranged alphabetically by the

name of the organization and also gives their geographic location.

To locate articles from these organizations you would then need to look them up by location.

Corporate Index- Organization

Organization

Location

How does it all work

The following is an example of how one might use this resource.

The topic of my paper is self-efficacy. I’ll start by looking for articles using the Permuterm Subject Index.

Permuterm subject Index

Here is the subject listing for self-efficacy. I’m really interested in how this topic relates to beliefs. I then need to take the author’s name (Barling J) and look it up in the Source Index.

Source IndexHere is the entry in

the source index for Barling J’s article on self-efficacy and beliefs. It gives me the complete citation for his article; plus all of the other works that he used in his research.

Source IndexNotice the box

around Bandura A. If I want to see who else has used this same article in their research I can find Bandura in the Citation Index.

Citation Index

Here is the listing for Bandura in the Citation Index. Notice under “80 Cognitive Therapy RE” that Barling J is listed. Two other people also cited this same article. I can go back to the Source Index and look at their articles.

Source IndexThis is another

person who cited Bandura’s article.

Locating Items

To locate articles at BSU Libraries Look for the journal title using the Libraries’

catalog CardCat If BSU Libraries does not have the journal

volume you need OR you are a distance education student please request the article through Interlibrary Loan Services

Additional Help

Schedule an appointment with a Reference Librarian

Email a Librarian Live Chat Reference Desk (765) 285-1101