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Citation Management Tools

Creating a Bibliography Using Zotero Web

Creating a bibliography using the Zotero website by following the steps below.

  1. Highlight all of the articles that you want to include in the bibliography
  2. Click on the "Create Bibliography" button that looks similar to a stack of books (pictured below).

Zotero Bibliography Button

  1. A pop-up will appear where you can select the citation style that you would like to use. 
  2. Select "Copy to Clipboard"
  3. After you have copied the bibliography you can then paste it directly into your word processor of choice

Image of Zotero website with the articles selected and the bibliography button highlighted in a red box with a red arrow

image of the pop-up that appears after clicking the bibliography button.

Creating a Bibliography using the Zotero Desktop Application

Creating a bibliography using the Zotero application is very similar to creating a bibliography on Zotero web.

  1. Select the articles that you would like to include
    1. You can do this by holding the "Ctrl" button on your keyboard while you select the items to be included
  2. Select "Create Bibliography from Item."
    1. If you would like to include all items from a particular folder simply right click on the folder name and select "Create Bibliography from Collection."

an image of the Zotero application with the right click menu open with the "Create a bibliography" option highlighted with a red box and arrow.

  1. Select the citation style you would like to use 
    1. Ensure that you have selected "bibliography" under "Output Mode" as well as "Copy to Clipboard" under "Output Method."
  2. Select "OK" at the bottom of the window.
  3. Paste the bibliography into your word processor.

image of the Zotero app. bibliography popup with the settings highlighted in a red box

Creating an Annotated Bibliography

Choosing your citation Style

There are two annotation styles in the Zotero Style Repository, Chicago and APA. To download the annotation style of your choice do the following:

  1. Search for "annotation" in the Zotero Style Repository
  2. Click on the annotation style that you would like to use (Chicago or APA)
  3. Click "Confirm" to confirm download 

Writing Your Annotation

When writing your annotation in Zotero you will first need to:

  1. Click on the resource that you are annotating
  2. On the right hand side of the Zotero application window under the info tab, scroll down until you see the "Extra" field
  3. In the "Extra" field you will write your annotation for this resource
  4. Repeat for all resources to be included in your annotated bibliography. 

Image of the Zotero Application with the "Extra" field highlighted in a red box

Select References to be Included

After writing the annotations you are now ready to select the references that you want exported.

  1. Click on each reference you want to include while holding the "Ctrl" button on your keyboard 
  2. After selecting all of the references to include you will right click using your mouse
  3. Select "Create Bibliography from Selected Items..." on the menu that appears.

Image of the Zotero Application with articles selected and the right click menu open. the Create a bibliography potion of the menu is highlighted in a red box with a red arrow

Exporting your Annotated Bibliography

A popup like the image below will now open. You will need to select the citation style of your export (ensure that you select the annotation version of the citation style), as well as "Bibliography" for the output mode and "Copy to Clipboard" for the output method. After clicking on "OK" at the bottom of the window you are now ready to paste your annotated bibliography into the word processor of your choice. 

Image of the Create citation/bibliography window