Trends in Use of Citation Management Tools for Thesis and Dissertation Production

Abstract

Title: Trends in Use of Citation Management Tools in Theses and Dissertations Authors: Charles J. Greenberg, Special Projects Librarian, Cushing/Whitney Medical Library, Yale University Length of presentation: 20 minutes Objective: Citation Management (CM) tools for scholarly writing predate the web browser. The advantages of current cloud-based tools, either free or subscription, support the expectation that every academic candidate for an advanced degree has an opportunity to use CM tools. CM improves the efficiency of scholarly writing and improves the formatted appearance of the electronic thesis or dissertation (ETD). The expanding range of desktop and cloud-based CM alternatives may demand student attention and potentially detract from the completion process. Do universities with ETD programs use their academic libraries to support the CM selection process, or do universities limit choices? How have universities supporting ETDs reacted to the emergence of new credible CM applications that offer attractive options for certain disciplines or devices? Methods: A brief survey was distributed to the ETD support community and social networks to ascertain the impact of burgeoning choices in CM for both students and the ETD administrative staff. Results: Pending survey and analysis Conclusions: Pending survey and analysis