Evaluating search results is a key step in ensuring that the information collected is relevant and appropriate to the study's objectives. In large and complex databases, such as Web of Science, you can use filters that contribute to better search accuracy and efficiency.
Example: If you are searching for ‘Economic Growth’ and you search results in many papers, then you can refine your search using the following filters
Filter by time period: to focus on recent trends, restrict the search to papers from just the last 10 years.
Filter by region or country: to study specific regions, such as Europe, use filters to limit the results to those locations.
Filter by document type: if you need literature reviews or empirical studies, select only these types of documents.
These sorting options enable you to adjust the presentation of the results to what you consider to be the most relevant or useful ones for carrying out your research.
On Web of Science, search results appear sorted by relevance, ensuring that the publications most pertinent to your research topic appear at the top of the list. However, you can reorder the results in various ways to better suit your specific needs. For example, you can choose to sort the results by:
Publication date: to see the most recent publications first.
Number of citations: to identify the most cited publications which may have a significant impact on your area of study.
Author or title: to organise the results according to your specific interests by authors, or by topics.
These sorting options enable you to adjust the presentation of the results to what you consider to be the most relevant or useful ones for carrying out your research.
To access the full text of WoS publications, whether open access or not, follow these steps:
1st - Carry out the search: use the filters and keywords to find the publications that you want.
2nd - Use open access filters in WoS: after carrying out the search, use the filters in the sidebar to select only ‘Open Access’ or only ‘Open Access’ publications. This will help you find full texts available without restrictions.
3rd - Check direct links in WoS: click on the title of the publication you want to access. If the paper is open access, then there will usually be a direct link to the PDF or the full text on the journal's website, which thus makes it easier to access the full information.
4th - Enter the publication record: click on the title of the publication of interest to open the detailed record, where you will find an overview of the publication. If the full text is not available directly on Web of Science, then the platform can direct you to the publisher's website, where you can request or purchase the paper in question. In some cases, if the paper is available in open access, you will be able to find a direct link to the full text.
If you can't access the publication directly, consider using other tools, such as Google Scholar, to locate alternative versions of the paper or contacting the author to obtain a copy of the document.
Exporting results in Web of Science is a useful feature for saving, sharing, and analysing the references found during your research. The platform offers various export options for different formats and purposes. Here are the steps for exporting results on Web of Science:
1st - Carry out the search: start by carrying out your search on Web of Science, using keywords, authors, titles, or other relevant criteria. Once you have obtained the results, you can then filter or sort them as necessary, ensuring that only the most relevant are exported.
2nd - Select the results: you can select individual results by ticking the boxes next to each paper, or select all the results from a specific page. If you want to export all the search results, you can choose to select all the items using the ‘Select Page’ or ‘Select All Records’ option.
3rd - Choose the export option: having selected the results you want, next click on the ‘Export’ option that appears at the top or bottom of the results list. A pop-up window will appear with various export options, enabling you to choose the appropriate format and destination for your data.
4th - Select the export format
Web of Science offers various export format options, depending on the purpose:
EndNote Desktop: to export the results to the EndNote software which is used to manage bibliographical references.
EndNote Online: to export to the online version of EndNote.
Plain Text File: ideal for saving references in a plain text format.
Excel File: Exports the results to an Excel spreadsheet, which is useful for analysing data.
BibTeX: the format used for integration with LaTeX, common in areas, such as mathematics, physics and computer science.
RefWorks: exports references to the RefWorks software.
Other File Formats: includes additional formats that are compatible with other reference management systems.
5th - Customise the export: before exporting, you can customise what you want to include in the exported file. You can choose to include the full details of the record, such as title, authors, abstracts, etc., or just basic information, such as the title and authors. If you're exporting to Excel or a plain text file, you can also choose the specific columns to include, ensuring that only the relevant information is exported, according to your needs.
6th - Finalise the export: after choosing the format and customising the options, click on ‘Export’ to start the process. The file will then be downloaded to your computer or exported directly to your chosen software.
7th - Reviewing the Exported File: after completing the export, open the file to check that the results have been exported correctly. Depending on the format, you may need to format the file or import the data into the reference management software you use. Make sure that all the necessary information is present and that the format compliant with your specific needs.
