Zotero: Citing References

Citing references in Zotero:

Once you have added all of your references to Zotero, you can then cite them in your document.

As Zotero is installed on your PC, you will see an extra tab on your ribbon in Microsoft Word. When you click on it, you will see the options to add in references:

So now we can add in references. Let’s say you wanted to say something like the following:

According to a recent study, social determinants of health are important to be aware of for nursing staff.

We would need to cite the study where we have read this. To do this, first, click the Zotero tab, then click Add/Edit Citation:

It will then ask you what style you want (it will just prompt you for this for the 1st reference you are adding). Choose a style and click on “Ok”.

Pick one (we can add more if there is a very specific style you need by clicking on the “Manage Styles” link as seen in the above screenshot). There are over 9,000 styles to choose from. Please see Appendix 1: Adding a specific reference style at the end of this document for step-by-step instructions.

Once you have stated which style you want, you will then see the following screen:

Type in the name of the author you wish to cite. You should see it pop up like in the screenshot below.

Double click on it and it should appear:

Then hit enter and it is now cited:

If you prefer, now that the reference is in, you could rearrange the sentence to look like this:

You might see the following warning box when you go to save your work or hit the update button (just say yes):

Sync your references:

Go to Edit-Preferences and click on the ‘Sync’ tab. Make sure that “sync automatically” is ticked (this should be done by default). By default, Zotero will sync your data with the server whenever changes are made. It is still a good idea to hit the sync button which is on the top right hand side of the Zotero interface in order to save your references when closing Zotero, especially if you are working between different computers.