Learning how to write research papers and essays can be overwhelming for students with low vision or print disabilities that impact access to standard print. Inserting citations is something I especially struggled with when I was first learning to write research papers, as they require specific formatting and could be tedious to document, and I tried several workflows before finding something that was effective and efficient. As part of my Writing Success series, here is how I create citations for research papers and organize bibliographies and works cited pages with low vision.
First, organize sources in one place
Before I start citing anything, I find it helpful to organize all of my research sources in one place so I can read the original documents at any time or access them in an alternative file format. I share a few different reference managers that can be used for organizing larger collections of citations, but for students who have fewer sources or that don’t need a powerful citation tool, I recommend keeping all sources for a paper in a digital bookmarking application like Wakelet or another library/database program.
In addition to maintaining online bookmarks, I also download copies of articles as a PDF, TXT, or RTF file so I have access to an offline backup if needed.
Related links
- Wakelet Accessibility Features For Low Vision
- Online College Library Resources For Digital Access
- How I Read Research Sources With Assistive Technology
Take notes for individual sources
Another strategy that helps for creating citations is to take notes on individual sources, which I do using Microsoft OneNote or a similar program. By having each source on a separate page/document, I can compare pages and identify shared topics or themes, which can help when citing multiple works or sources parenthetically later on.
Related links
- How I Outline Research Papers With OneNote
- How I Use Microsoft OneNote With Low Vision
- How I Write Research Papers On Accessibility Topics
Use placeholder text and find/replace for in-text citations
My favorite strategy for quickly formatting in-text citations is to use placeholder text while I am writing and then use find/replace after I finish writing to replace the placeholder text with the actual parenthetical citations. Since I already organize my notes by their source in my outline, it’s easier for me to insert placeholder text in parenthesis and focus on writing content instead of citations repeatedly. Once I’m ready to replace the text, I can do the following:
- Open the replace tool in Microsoft Word or Google Docs, which can be opened with the Ctrl-H keyboard shortcut for Windows or ChromeOS, or Command-Shift-H for MacOS
- Copy the placeholder text under “find what”, with the option to select “find whole words only” in Microsoft Word
- Add the actual parenthetical citation under “replace with”
- Identify where the placeholder text was inserted and make any additional changes if needed
For best results, follow these tips for creating placeholder citations:
- Alphabetize the placeholder texts based on the order in which they will appear in a bibliography/reference/works cited page, which will help with citing multiple works.
- Use a unique word, phrase, or number combination for each source, but avoid using words that will actually show up in the paper or that can easily be mistyped, as the find/replace tool may not work later on if there are any errors.
Placeholder text can be as simple as writing 1reference, 2reference, 3reference, or the writer can choose something like a paper title typed as one word, song lyrics, animals, or keyword combinations. The important thing is that these placeholder texts show up nowhere else in the paper, and the author remembers to use find and replace to remove them before submitting!
Related links
Copying citations from other sources
Looking for ways to create citations for individual sources? Here are a few different tools I have used for quickly locating citations.
Library catalog listing
When viewing an article or other content on my college library’s website, there is an option to select Citation from the “Send To” menu, which will display a formatted citation in the style of the user’s choice. While users will still need to adjust the formatting for a hanging indent or correct text if needed, this is a quick way to get citations from a library database.
Alternatively, users can export the citations for use with BibTeX, EasyBib, RefWorks, EndNote, or RIS/Zotero.
Creating citation from DOI
A digital object identifier (DOI) is a unique alphanumeric string that is used to identify journal articles, books, and other types of documents, which are automatically assigned by the publisher. If a user has the DOI for a research article or other source, they can copy and paste the DOI into a tool like the free DOI to APA converter offered by Paperpile. Users can paste multiple DOI values separated by commas to generate a bibliography for a project that can then be copy/pasted or exported into another application.
In addition to the DOI converter, Paperpile also offers a free ISBN to APA converter on their website as well.
Copying from Google Scholar
Another option for copying and pasting existing citations is to use the Cite button for articles in Google Scholar, which can be copied into another application or exported for use with BibTeX, EndNote, RefMan, or RefWorks.
Related links
- Online DOI to APA converter – Free – No Login – Paperpile – Paperpile
- Online ISBN to APA converter – Free – No Login – Paperpile – Paperpile
Accessible reference managers for low vision
I have tried a few different reference managers for organizing citations, and haven’t developed a strong preference for using one or another. Here are a few options that I used successfully with low vision, offering options for magnification, keyboard shortcuts, and importing BibTeX or other file formats.
Mendeley (web browser)
Mendeley is free through my university, and I can search for articles to add to my library for exporting to Word or another program. There are several keyboard shortcuts for the web browser application, and I can also use browser zoom or screen magnification to enlarge text if needed.
Zotero
Zotero is another reference manager tool that offers larger font sizes and colored icons that can serve as visual landmarks for navigation. I also like the browser connector/extension feature for saving content directly from my web browser, but I don’t use the PDF reader option very often because I find PDFs difficult to read visually.
JabRef
JabRef is a free and open source desktop application for organizing references that offers support for custom keyboard shortcuts and font sizes. I primarily use it with screen magnification, as when I first adjusted the font sizes it crashed the application- the font sizes were the larger font size when I restarted, but I found that I preferred the smaller font size and using docked view for screen magnification.
EasyBib
EasyBib is a subscription application ($10/month) that can also be used for organizing citations. Paths to Literacy has a post on using EasyBib with JAWS screen reader and keyboard shortcuts, but I have not personally used EasyBib.
Related links
- Search | Mendeley
- Zotero | Your personal research assistant
- JabRef – Free Reference Manager – Stay on top of your Literature
- Accessing EasyBib.com Using JAWS – Paths to Literacy
Create a hanging indent and double spacing
While I like using the format painter tool in Microsoft Word to apply consistent text formatting to selected parts of a document, this doesn’t work well for citations because it often removes italics formatting. Instead, I use keyboard shortcuts to create a hanging indent and apply double spacing for APA citations using the following tools:
- Create a hanging indent: Ctrl-T
- Remove a hanging indent: Ctrl-Shift-T
- Apply double spacing to selected paragraph: Ctrl-2
- Apply italics to selected text: Ctrl-I
- Insert hyperlink: Ctrl-K
Sort citations alphabetically at the end
For authors who don’t use a references manager or other citation tool, they may copy or paste citations out of order. To quickly sort citations alphabetically, use the Sort tool with Microsoft Word or install the sorted paragraphs add-on extension in Google Docs. To alphabetize sources, select all of the citations and then select “sort in ascending order.”
To open the Sort tool in Microsoft Word, use the keyboard shortcut Alt-H, S, O (use the shortcut Alt-H, then type the letter S followed by an O).
Related links
More tips for creating citations for research papers
- Looking for papers in an accessible format? Check out How I Read Research Sources With Assistive Technology
- Need help finding sources in accessible formats? Read How I Find Research Sources In Accessible Formats
- Want to read more posts in the Writing Success series? Visit Writing Success Archives | Veronica With Four Eyes or view the Reading/Writing category at Reading And Writing Archives | Veronica With Four Eyes
Published April 2, 2020. Updated August 2024