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Better Living (and Research) Through Citation Databases

Citation indexes give users the opportunity to follow a line of research over a period of time. Citation indexing allows users to see who has cited a particular article since its publication. Traditionally, citation indexes have been large multi-volume print publications, but faculty, staff, and students of Mississippi State University can now access Science Citation Index, Social Sciences Citation Index, and Arts and Humanities Citation Index via the libraries' website. However, not all years are available via the website in exactly the same format. MSU has the following citation indexes in the following formats:

  • Arts & Humanities Citation Index
    1977-2002: Available in print, Mitchell Memorial Library Reference Room, Call Number AI3 .AY
    2000-present: Available via Web of Science database, MSU's Libraries website. Go to Indexes/Databases, Arts & Humanities Citation Index in the long alphabetical list.
  • Science Citation Index
    1970-1995: Availabe in print, Mitchell Memorial Library Reference Room, Call Number QZ7401 .S365
    1992-1999: Available via CD-Rom version, MSU's Libraries website. Go to Indexes/Databases, Science Citation Index in the long alphabetical list.
    2000-present: Available via Web of Science database, MSU's Libraries website. Go to Indexes/Databases, Science Citation Index in the long alphabetical list.
  • Social Science Citation Index
    1974-1997: Available in print, Mitchell Memorial Library Reference Room, Call Number HZ7161 .S65
    1993-1994, 1996-1999: Available via CD-Rom version, MSU's Libraries website. Go to Indexes/Databases, Social Science Citation Index in the long alphabetical list.
    2000-present: Available via Web of Science database, MSU's Libraries website. Go to Indexes/Databases, Social Science Citation Index in the long alphabetical list.

This tutorial explains how to use the CD-Rom versions of the Science Citation Index and Social Science Citation Index. Here's how:

Step 1: Getting to citation indexes
Click on the Indexes/Databases Link on the Libraries' Homepage and choose the Science Citation Index or Social Science Citation Index from the database list. If working from home, use the setup instructions to download the software needed to run the database before you click on the link. If you are working in the library, click on the link for the database. You may be asked to verify that you are a current MSU faculty member, staff member, or student.

       


Step 2: Choosing the years to search
Choose the database you wish to search from the Database Menu. The database will then give you choices of which years you want to search. Choose the years to search. You can click on more than one year if you want to search multiple time periods. Remember, this year refers to the year that the citing article was indexed, NOT the year that the cited article was published. 
      



Step 3: Searching the database for cited references

Once you are on the search screen,

Once you have added your cited author/reference to your query,


Step 4: Viewing your results
The results will list all of the articles that cite your chosen article. Use the drop-down View menu to change the information that you can view for each record. The Full Record option will show all the information including abstracts and cited references. Use the PIC (Personal Inventory Checklist)  check box to mark records you want to keep. This list can be made up of records you have chosen from multiple searches. You can print or save a set of search records or your PIC list. 

 

Step 5: Printing your results
In order to print out our records the way you need be sure to check these four settings on the print menu.

  • What to Print - Make sure to specify a particular set of search results or your PIC list.
  • Page Range - Leave this set to All. You can specify particular records to print below.
  • Record View - Regardless of how you are viewing your records on the screen, you need to set this menu to the way you want the records to be printed out.
  • Records to Print - Here you can specify particular records to print within a set of search results or a PIC list.

 

More information
As a reminder, we have the following subscriptions, for the following years, in the following formats:

  • Arts & Humanities Citation Index
    1977-2002: Available in print, Mitchell Memorial Library Reference Room, Call Number AI3 .AY
    2000-present: Available via Web of Science database, MSU's Libraries website. Go to Indexes/Databases, Arts & Humanities Citation Index in the alphabetical list.
  • Science Citation Index
    1970-1995: Availabe in print, Mitchell Memorial Library Reference Room, Call Number QZ7401 .S365
    1992-1999: Available via CD-Rom version, MSU's Libraries website. Go to Indexes/Databases, Science Citation Index in the long alphabetical list.
    2000-present: Available via Web of Science database, MSU's Libraries website. Go to Indexes/Databases, Science Citation Index in the alphabetical list.
  • Social Science Citation Index
    1974-1997: Available in print, Mitchell Memorial Library Reference Room, Call Number HZ7161 .S65
    1993-1994, 1996-1999: Available via CD-Rom version, MSU's Libraries website. Go to Indexes/Databases, Social Science Citation Index in the alphabetical list.
    2000-present: Available via Web of Science database, MSU's Libraries website. Go to Indexes/Databases, Social Science Citation Index in the alphabetical list.

For a list of journals indexed in these databases, check out the ISI website at http://www.isinet.com/isi/journals/. And, as always, for more information, always feel free to ask a librarian! You can email us at Email a Librarian, call us at 662-325-7667, fill out a web form at http://library.msstate.edu/reference/ask_a_librarian.asp, or drop by the library in person. We are located on the 2nd floor of Mitchell Memorial Library in the Reference Room.

Created by Beth Ashmore. If you need additional access to information not covered on this page, contact Deborah Lee at (662) 325 - 0810 or email dlee@library.msstate.edu.