Dissertation Techniques 2011 Sue Bird Bodleian Subject Specialist (Geography)

Dissertation Techniques  Plagiarism v. Referencing  SOLO, OLIS & OXLIP+  Reference works  Databases  Searching techniques

Plagiarism All academic work will inevitably at some point involve the use and discussion of critical material written by others with due acknowledgement and with references given. This is standard critical practice and can be clearly distinguished from appropriating without acknowledgement and presenting as your own material produced by others, which is what constitutes plagiarism. (Modern History and English - Preliminary Exams Handbook 2003/4)

Avoiding Plagiarism "... You must always indicate to the examiners when you have drawn on the work of others; other people's original ideas and methods should be clearly distinguished from your own, and other people's words, illustrations, diagrams etc. should be clearly indicated regardless of whether they are copied exactly, paraphrased, or adapted......The University reserves the right to use software applications to screen any individual's submitted work for matches either to published sources or to other submitted work. Any such matches respectively might indicate either plagiarism or collusion Although the use of electronic resources by students in their academic work is encouraged, you should remember that the regulations on plagiarism apply to on-line material and other digital material just as much as to printed material..." Section 9.5 Proctors' and Assessor's MemorandumProctors' and Assessor's Memorandum

Good academic practice So by following the citation principles and practices in place in your subject area, you will develop a rigorous approach to academic referencing, and avoid inadvertent plagiarism.

Referencing and Citation 2 main ways of organizing your references a) Parenthetical or author/date – often called the Harvard system b) Footnotes on a page or endnotes for a chapter N.B. This is not to be confused with the computer package of the same name.

References / Bibliography Be uniform in your referencing system:- Probably use the Harvard system as suggested on the School’s web-site – but whatever you do use – just be consistent. hs/dissertation/referencing.html

Citation practice Also large number of manuals available to give guidance and sound practice. 1:Doing a literature review / Chris Hart (London, 1998) [H 62 HAR ] 2:Manual for writers / Kate Turabian (7 th ed. Chicago, 2007) [LB 2369 TUR ] 3:Communicating in geography & the environmental sciences / Ian Hay (3 rd ed. Oxford, 2006) [G 70 HAY ]  4:Cite them right /Pears & Shields (2010 ed.) [LB 2369 PEA]  5: Complete guide to referencing & avoiding plagiarism / Neville (1 st ed. 2007) – available on-line via NetLibrary

References / Bibliography Organize your research and manage your database of references Include citations while you write your paper Build a bibliography in a variety of styles Import references from many different data sources Create bibliographies in different document formats (Word, RTF, HTML, etc.)

References / Bibliography EndNote system:- Web version available within the Oxford domain Also a software package that you purchase from O.U.C.S. but you then have it permanently Courses laid on (

References / Bibliography RefWorks Refworks is a free (even after you leave Oxford) web- based bibliographic software package. Being web-based means no software to download and update, and you can access your personal account from any computer connected to the web. Courses laid on by the Computing Services (

Dissertation Techniques SOLO : S earch O xford L ibraries O nline Search and discovery tool for the Oxford Libraries' vast collections of resources. Mainly OLIS (Oxford's union catalogue of printed and electronic books and journals)OLIS Title link over 1,000 databases on OxLIP+OxLIP+

E-Journals I didn't check for the hard copy - so used to getting online access!

Newspapers Electronic newspapers Some are freely available. Alphabetic list on OxLIP+ Best source for the “Text Only” of huge range of newspapers and magazines is Nexis UK. Goes back approximately 10 yrs in most cases and is very current i.e. today’s daily news items

Newspapers Legal information, cases etc. Lexis Library (LNB) WestLaw – both UK & US editions Both databases require SSO log-in (if necessary ask the Law Library for help)

Dissertation Techniques Use SOLO or OxLIP+ to access Reference tools Abstracting and Indexing services

Reference Sources General reference tools CREDO Reference : Reference works incl. Dictionaries, encyclopedias etc International Encyclopedia of Human Geography (This is a database not a book!) Dictionaries. OED; Oxford Reference On-line

Bibliography : Biondi, F., A. Gershunov, and D. R. Cayan “North Pacific Decadal Climate Variability since 1661.” Journal of Climate 14.1 ( 2001 ), pp.5–10. DOI: / (2001) CO;2.

E-books Reference books  Blackwell Reference Online  SAGE Reference Online Text books  NetLibrary Oxford Scholarship Online Taylor & Francis Online eBooks Library

The Blackwell Companion to Globalization edited by: George Ritzer (under Sociology)

Dissertation Techniques Abstracting and Indexing Services (for finding the actual journal articles) Vast range. SCOPUS (includes GEOBASE) OVID SP Cambridge Scientific Abstracts Web of Knowledge

Bibliographic Databases  Excellent for locating journal articles, book chapters and book reviews (NB. References only,)  General or specific subject coverage  Different interfaces but similar functionality  Not tied to library holdings  Frequently will provide a link to full text

Databases vs. Search engines Contents are indexed by subject specialists Subject headings Limiting functions e.g. publication types, language Allow you to View Search history Combine searches Mark and sort results Print/save/ /export Save searches Set up alerts Searches done by automated “web crawlers” No thesaurus / subject headings – just free text searching No limiting functions Usually none of these!

Search Strategies Boolean logic Truncation Wild cards Synonyms Which language are you using?

Boolean connectors AND – combines terms to restrict results OR – useful for covering synonyms NOT – excludes unwanted areas of research

OR, AND, NOT Biodiversity Climate change Amazonia

SCOPUS Includes data from GEOBASE THE bibliographic database for the Earth, Geographical and Ecological Sciences

Databases vs. Search engines Contents are indexed by subject specialists Subject headings Limiting functions e.g. publication types, language Allow you to View Search history Combine searches Mark and sort results Print/save/ /export Save searches Set up alerts Searches done by automated “web crawlers” No thesaurus / subject headings – just free text searching No limiting functions Usually none of these!

Bibliographic Searching Search Tip : 1 Important to remember that although each database covers thousands of journal titles no single database is ever comprehensive. If you are having difficulty finding material on a topic use the keywords you find in any relevant reference and search again.

Bibliographic Databases

OVIDSP CAB Abstracts – biogeography EconLit – economic geography Forest Science – biogeography GeoRef – physical geography & geology Zoological Abstracts Archive ( )

Bibliographic Databases Cambridge Scientific Abstracts Various useful databases (not just science) Ecology Abstracts EIS: Digests of Environmental Impact Statements Environmental Sciences & Pollution Management Oceanic Abstracts IBSS: International Bibliography of the Social Sciences Sociological Abstracts CSA Worldwide Political Science Abstracts

Bibliographic Databases Web of Science/Knowledge Includes Science, Social Science & Arts and Humanities Citation Indexes Citation indexes can be used in the same way as any other abstracting and indexing service. Their extra facility is the option to search the bibliographies of any articles- a citation search. Academics use the citation index to find out who has cited their work.

Dissertation Techniques Search :- Teleconnect* & “La Nina” Scopus = 25 articles Ovid = 13 (after de-duplication of 15 articles, etc.) C.S.A = 20 (23 before de-duplication) W.o.K. = 29 articles Total = 87

Dissertation Techniques Search :- Teleconnect* & “La Nina” Scopus = 25 articles Ovid = 13 (after de-duplication of 15 articles, etc.) (Refworks folder now up to 29) C.S.A = 20 (23 before de-duplication) (Refworks folder now up to 36) W.o.K. = 29 articles (of which 19 have now already been found) RefWorks de-duplication = 46 unique items

Dissertation Techniques Search Tip : 1 Important to remember that although each database covers thousands of journal titles no single database is ever comprehensive. If you are having difficulty finding material on a topic use the keywords you find in any relevant reference and search again.

Dissertation Techniques Search Tip : 2 Use Boolean Logical Operators AND, OR, NOT also proximity operators Adj (literally adjacent); Near(same sentence); With(same field) Field descriptors: AU(author); TI(title); AB (abstract); SO(source or reference); DE (general descriptor) etc are likely to be specific to each database and won’t operate in ‘cross searches’ Combining searches: #1 and #2

Dissertation Techniques Search Tip : 3 Take time to explore the various databases & platforms available. Some will be more useful to you than others. Scopus OvidSP Cambridge Scientific Abstracts Web of Knowledge

Dissertation Techniques Search Tip : 4 Consider subject synonyms & British and US spellings. Apply truncation, usually * to find plurals/alternative word endings and ? to replace a single character. Expand search by following hypertext links esp subject headings Use tagging facilities within database to mark articles for printing, ing, downloading or exporting. Authors names: Check the online help for formats. Use the database index to find different forms of author’s name, otherwise truncate first initial.

Dissertation Techniques Three ways to keep up to date: alert – you can specify a search to be repeated and the results ed to you at chosen intervals or Zetoc will tell you when the next issue of a journal is available. Saving and rerunning searches – you save a search and run it again in the future. Citation Alert – you will receive an every time a particular article is cited in another WoK or Scopus indexed article.

Dissertation Techniques Apart from Bibliographic Electronic Resources there are some factual databases available via OxLIP+ e.g.:- World development indicators, EIU Country Reports, Demographic Yearbook etc. If they are CD-ROM based they may require you to download software

Further assistance: This presentation available on-line More courses available: Other presentations

Dissertation Techniques Please ask a Librarian if you get stuck trying to use any of the resources or would like advice on the most suitable databases for your enquiries. GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR DISSERTATIONS!