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How to Structure the Table of Contents for a Research Paper

4-minute read

• 16th July 2023

So you’ve made it to the important step of writing the table of contents for your paper. Congratulations on making it this far! Whether you’re writing a research paper or a dissertation , the table of contents not only provides the reader with guidance on where to find the sections of your paper, but it also signals that a quality piece of research is to follow. Here, we will provide detailed instructions on how to structure the table of contents for your research paper.

Steps to Create a Table of Contents

• Insert the table of contents after the title page.

Within the structure of your research paper , you should place the table of contents after the title page but before the introduction or the beginning of the content. If your research paper includes an abstract or an acknowledgements section , place the table of contents after it.

• List all the paper’s sections and subsections in chronological order.

Depending on the complexity of your paper, this list will include chapters (first-level headings), chapter sections (second-level headings), and perhaps subsections (third-level headings). If you have a chapter outline , it will come in handy during this step. You should include the bibliography and all appendices in your table of contents. If you have more than a few charts and figures (more often the case in a dissertation than in a research paper), you should add them to a separate list of charts and figures that immediately follows the table of contents. (Check out our FAQs below for additional guidance on items that should not be in your table of contents.)

• Paginate each section.

Label each section and subsection with the page number it begins on. Be sure to do a check after you’ve made your final edits to ensure that you don’t need to update the page numbers.

• Format your table of contents.

The way you format your table of contents will depend on the style guide you use for the rest of your paper. For example, there are table of contents formatting guidelines for Turabian/Chicago and MLA styles, and although the APA recommends checking with your instructor for formatting instructions (always a good rule of thumb), you can also create a table of contents for a research paper that follows APA style .

• Add hyperlinks if you like.

Depending on the word processing software you’re using, you may also be able to hyperlink the sections of your table of contents for easier navigation through your paper. (Instructions for this feature are available for both Microsoft Word and Google Docs .)

To summarize, the following steps will help you create a clear and concise table of contents to guide readers through your research paper:

1. Insert the table of contents after the title page.

2. List all the sections and subsections in chronological order.

3. Paginate each section.

4. Format the table of contents according to your style guide.

5. Add optional hyperlinks.

If you’d like help formatting and proofreading your research paper , check out some of our services. You can even submit a sample for free . Best of luck writing your research paper table of contents!

What is a table of contents?

A table of contents is a listing of each section of a document in chronological order, accompanied by the page number where the section begins. A table of contents gives the reader an overview of the contents of a document, as well as providing guidance on where to find each section.

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What should I include in my table of contents?

If your paper contains any of the following sections, they should be included in your table of contents:

●  Chapters, chapter sections, and subsections

●  Introduction

●  Conclusion

●  Appendices

●  Bibliography

Although recommendations may differ among institutions, you generally should not include the following in your table of contents:

●  Title page

●  Abstract

●  Acknowledgements

●  Forward or preface

If you have several charts, figures, or tables, consider creating a separate list for them that will immediately follow the table of contents. Also, you don’t need to include the table of contents itself in your table of contents.

Is there more than one way to format a table of contents?

Yes! In addition to following any recommendations from your instructor or institution, you should follow the stipulations of your style guide .

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How to Write an Index

Last Updated: January 25, 2024 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Christopher Taylor, PhD and by wikiHow staff writer, Jennifer Mueller, JD . Christopher Taylor is an Adjunct Assistant Professor of English at Austin Community College in Texas. He received his PhD in English Literature and Medieval Studies from the University of Texas at Austin in 2014. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 2,003,279 times.

An index is an alphabetical list of keywords contained in the text of a book or other lengthy writing project. It includes pointers to where those keywords or concepts are mentioned in the book—typically page numbers, but sometimes footnote numbers, chapters, or sections. The index can be found at the end of the work, and makes a longer nonfiction work more accessible for readers, since they can turn directly to the information they need. Typically you'll start indexing after you've completed the main writing and research. [1] X Research source

Preparing Your Index

• Typically, if you index from a hard copy you'll have to transfer your work to a digital file. If the work is particularly long, try to work straight from the computer so you can skip this extra step.

• If footnotes or endnotes are merely source citations, they don't need to be included in the index.
• Generally, you don't need to index glossaries, bibliographies, acknowledgements, or illustrative items such as charts and graphs.
• If you're not sure whether something should be indexed, ask yourself if it contributes something substantial to the text. If it doesn't, it typically doesn't need to be indexed.

• In most cases, if you have a "works cited" section appearing at the end of your text you won't need to index authors. You would still include their names in the general index, however, if you discussed them in the text rather than simply citing their work.

• For example, if you're writing a book on bicycle maintenance, you might have index cards for "gears," "wheels," and "chain."
• Put yourself in your reader's shoes, and ask yourself why they would pick up your book and what information they would likely be looking for. Chapter or section headings can help guide you as well.

• For example, a dessert cookbook that included several types of ice cream might have one entry for "ice cream," followed by subentries for "strawberry," "chocolate," and "vanilla."
• Treat proper nouns as a single unit. For example, "United States Senate" and "United States House of Representatives" would be separate entries, rather than subentries under the entry "United States."

• Stick to nouns and brief phrases for subentries, avoiding any unnecessary words.
• For example, suppose you are writing a book about comic books that discusses Wonder Woman's influence on the feminist movement. You might include a subentry under "Wonder Woman" that says "influence on feminism."

• For example, if you were writing a dessert cookbook, you might have entries for "ice cream" and "sorbet." Since these frozen treats are similar, they would make good cross references of each other.

Formatting Entries and Subentries

• The style guide provides specifics for you in terms of spacing, alignment, and punctuation of your entries and subentries.

• For example, an entry in the index of a political science book might read: "capitalism: 21st century, 164; American free trade, 112; backlash against, 654; expansion of, 42; Russia, 7; and television, 3; treaties, 87."
• If an entry contains no subentries, simply follow the entry with a comma and list the page numbers.

• People's names typically are listed alphabetically by their last name. Put a comma after the last name and add the person's first name.
• Noun phrases typically are inverted. For example, "adjusting-height saddle" would be listed in an index as "saddle, adjusting-height." [8] X Research source

• Avoid repeating words in the entry in the subentries. If several subentries repeat the same word, add it as a separate entry, with a cross reference back to the original entry. For example, in a dessert cookbook you might have entries for "ice cream, flavors" and "ice cream, toppings."
• Subentries typically are listed alphabetically as well. If subentry terms have symbols, hyphens, slashes, or numbers, you can usually ignore them.

• If a proper name, such as the name of a book or song, includes a word such as "a" or "the" at the beginning of the title, you can either omit it or include it after a comma ("Importance of Being Earnest, The"). Check your style guide for the proper rule that applies to your index, and be consistent.

• When listing a series of pages, if the first page number is 1-99 or a multiple of 100, you also use all of the digits. For example, "ice cream: vanilla, 100-109."
• For other numbers, you generally only have to list the digits that changed for subsequent page numbers. For example, "ice cream: vanilla, 112-18."
• Use the word passim if references are scattered over a range of pages. For example, "ice cream: vanilla, 45-68 passim . Only use this if there are a large number of references within that range of pages.

• Place a period after the last page number in the entry, then type See also in italics, with the word "see" capitalized. Then include the name of the similar entry you want to use.
• For example, an entry in an index for a dessert cookbook might contain the following entry: "ice cream: chocolate, 4, 17, 24; strawberry, 9, 37; vanilla, 18, 25, 32-35. See also sorbet."

• For example, a beginning cyclist may be looking in a manual for "tire patches," which are called "boots" in cycling terms. If you're writing a bicycle manual aimed at beginners, you might include a "see" cross reference: "tire patches, see boots."

Editing Your Index

• You'll also want to search for related terms, especially if you talk about a general concept in the text without necessarily mentioning it by name.

• If you have any entries that are too complex or that might confuse your readers, you might want to simplify them or add a cross reference.
• For example, a bicycle maintenance text might discuss "derailleurs," but a novice would more likely look for terms such as "gearshift" or "shifter" and might not recognize that term.

• For example, you might include an entry in a dessert cookbook index that read "ice cream, varieties of: chocolate, 54; strawberry, 55; vanilla, 32, 37, 56. See also sorbet."

• Generally, an entry should occur on two or three page numbers. If it's only found in one place, you may not need to include it at all. If you decide it is necessary, see if you can include it as a subentry under a different entry.
• For example, suppose you are indexing a dessert cookbook, and it has ice cream on two pages and sorbet on one page. You might consider putting these together under a larger heading, such as "frozen treats."

• You may want to run searches again to make sure the index is comprehensive and includes as many pointers as possible to help guide your readers.

• Make sure any cross references match the exact wording of the entry or entries they reference.

• Indexes are typically set in 2 columns, using a smaller font than that used in the main text. Entries begin on the first space of the line, with the subsequent lines of the same entry indented.

Expert Q&A

• If creating an index seems like too large of a task for you to complete on your own by the publisher's deadline, you may be able to hire a professional indexer to do the work for you. Look for someone who has some knowledge and understanding about the subject matter of your work. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
• Make the index as clear and simple as you can. Readers don't like looking through a messy, hard-to-read index. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

• If you're using a word processing app that has an indexing function, avoid relying on it too much. It will index all of the words in your text, which will be less than helpful to readers. [15] X Research source Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://ugapress.org/resources/for-authors/indexing-guidelines/
• ↑ https://www.hup.harvard.edu/resources/authors/pdf/hup-author-guidelines-indexing.pdf
• ↑ https://www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/CHIIndexingComplete.pdf
• ↑ https://edinburghuniversitypress.com/publish-with-us/from-manuscript-to-finished-book/preparing-your-index

About This Article

An index is an alphabetical list of keywords found in a book or other lengthy writing project. It will have the chapters or page numbers where readers can find that keyword and more information about it. Typically, you’ll write your index after you’ve completed the main writing and research. In general, you’ll want to index items that are nouns, like ideas, concepts, and things, that add to the subject of the text. For example, a dessert cookbook might have an entry for “ice cream” followed by subentries for “strawberry,” “chocolate,” and “vanilla.” To learn how to format your index entries, keep reading! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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• Dissertation Table of Contents in Word | Instructions & Examples

Dissertation Table of Contents in Word | Instructions & Examples

Published on 15 May 2022 by Tegan George .

The table of contents is where you list the chapters and major sections of your thesis, dissertation, or research paper, alongside their page numbers. A clear and well-formatted table of contents is essential, as it demonstrates to your reader that a quality paper will follow.

The table of contents (TOC) should be placed between the abstract and the introduction. The maximum length should be two pages. Depending on the nature of your thesis, dissertation, or paper, there are a few formatting options you can choose from.

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Table of contents

What to include in your table of contents, what not to include in your table of contents, creating a table of contents in microsoft word, table of contents examples, updating a table of contents in microsoft word, other lists in your thesis, dissertation, or research paper, frequently asked questions about the table of contents.

Depending on the length of your document, you can choose between a single-level, subdivided, or multi-level table of contents.

• A single-level table of contents only includes ‘level 1’ headings, or chapters. This is the simplest option, but it may be too broad for a long document like a dissertation.
• A subdivided table of contents includes chapters as well as ‘level 2’ headings, or sections. These show your reader what each chapter contains.
• A multi-level table of contents also further divides sections into ‘level 3’ headings. This option can get messy quickly, so proceed with caution. Remember your table of contents should not be longer than 2 pages. A multi-level table is often a good choice for a shorter document like a research paper.

Examples of level 1 headings are Introduction, Literature Review, Methodology, and Bibliography. Subsections of each of these would be level 2 headings, further describing the contents of each chapter or large section. Any further subsections would be level 3.

In these introductory sections, less is often more. As you decide which sections to include, narrow it down to only the most essential.

Including appendices and tables

You should include all appendices in your table of contents. Whether or not you include tables and figures depends largely on how many there are in your document.

If there are more than three figures and tables, you might consider listing them on a separate page. Otherwise, you can include each one in the table of contents.

• Theses and dissertations often have a separate list of figures and tables.
• Research papers generally don’t have a separate list of figures and tables.

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All level 1 and level 2 headings should be included in your table of contents, with level 3 headings used very sparingly.

The following things should never be included in a table of contents:

• Your acknowledgements page
• Your abstract
• The table of contents itself

The acknowledgements and abstract always precede the table of contents, so there’s no need to include them. This goes for any sections that precede the table of contents.

To automatically insert a table of contents in Microsoft Word, be sure to first apply the correct heading styles throughout the document, as shown below.

• Choose which headings are heading 1 and which are heading 2 (or 3!
• For example, if all level 1 headings should be Times New Roman, 12-point font, and bold, add this formatting to the first level 1 heading.
• Highlight the level 1 heading.
• Right-click the style that says ‘Heading 1’.
• Select ‘Update Heading 1 to Match Selection’.
• Allocate the formatting for each heading throughout your document by highlighting the heading in question and clicking the style you wish to apply.

Once that’s all set, follow these steps:

• Add a title to your table of contents. Be sure to check if your citation style or university has guidelines for this.
• Place your cursor where you would like your table of contents to go.
• In the ‘References’ section at the top, locate the Table of Contents group.
• Here, you can select which levels of headings you would like to include. You can also make manual adjustments to each level by clicking the Modify button.
• When you are ready to insert the table of contents, click ‘OK’ and it will be automatically generated, as shown below.

The key features of a table of contents are:

• Clear headings and subheadings
• Corresponding page numbers

Check with your educational institution to see if they have any specific formatting or design requirements.

Write yourself a reminder to update your table of contents as one of your final tasks before submitting your dissertation or paper. It’s normal for your text to shift a bit as you input your final edits, and it’s crucial that your page numbers correspond correctly.

It’s easy to update your page numbers automatically in Microsoft Word. Simply right-click the table of contents and select ‘Update Field’. You can choose either to update page numbers only or to update all information in your table of contents.

In addition to a table of contents, you might also want to include a list of figures and tables, a list of abbreviations and a glossary in your thesis or dissertation. You can use the following guides to do so:

• List of figures and tables
• List of abbreviations

It is less common to include these lists in a research paper.

All level 1 and 2 headings should be included in your table of contents . That means the titles of your chapters and the main sections within them.

The contents should also include all appendices and the lists of tables and figures, if applicable, as well as your reference list .

Do not include the acknowledgements or abstract   in the table of contents.

To automatically insert a table of contents in Microsoft Word, follow these steps:

• Apply heading styles throughout the document.
• In the references section in the ribbon, locate the Table of Contents group.
• Click the arrow next to the Table of Contents icon and select Custom Table of Contents.
• Select which levels of headings you would like to include in the table of contents.

Make sure to update your table of contents if you move text or change headings. To update, simply right click and select Update Field.

The table of contents in a thesis or dissertation always goes between your abstract and your introduction.

Cite this Scribbr article

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George, T. (2022, May 15). Dissertation Table of Contents in Word | Instructions & Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved 3 June 2024, from https://www.scribbr.co.uk/thesis-dissertation/contents-page/

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What Is a Journal Index, and Why is Indexation Important?

• Research Process
• Peer Review

A journal index, or a list of journals organized by discipline, subject, region and other factors, can be used by other researchers to search for studies and data on certain topics. As an author, publishing your research in an indexed journal increases the credibility and visibility of your work. Here we help you to understand journal indexing better - as well as benefit from it.

Updated on May 13, 2022

A journal index, also called a ‘bibliographic index' or ‘bibliographic database', is a list of journals organized by discipline, subject, region or other factors.

Journal indexes can be used to search for studies and data on certain topics. Both scholars and the general public can search journal indexes.

Journals in indexes have been reviewed to ensure they meet certain criteria. These criteria may include:

• Ethics and peer review policies
• Assessment criteria for submitted articles
• Editorial board transparency

What is a journal index?

Indexed journals are important, because they are often considered to be of higher scientific quality than non-indexed journals. You should aim for publication in an indexed journal for this reason. AJE's Journal Guide journal selection tool can help you find one.

Journal indexes are created by different organizations, such as:

• Public bodies- For example, PubMed is maintained by the United States National Library of Medicine. PubMed is the largest index for biomedical publications.
• Analytic companies- For example: the Web of Science Core Collection is maintained by Clarivate Analytics. The WOS Core Collection includes journals indexed in the following sub-indexes: (1) Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE); (2) Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI); (3) Arts & Humanities Citation Index (AHCI); (4) Emerging Sources Citation Index.
• Publishers- For example, Scopus is owned by Elsevier and maintained by the Scopus Content Selection and Advisory Board . Scopus includes journals in all disciplines, but the majority are science and technology journals.

Key types of journal indexes

You can choose from a range of journal indexes. Some are broad and are considered “general indexes”. Others are specific to certain fields and are considered “specialized indexes”.

For example:

• The Science Citation Index Expanded includes mostly science and technology journals
• The Arts & Humanities Citation Index includes mostly arts and humanities journals
• PubMed includes mostly biomedical journals
• The Emerging Sources Citation Index includes journals in all disciplines

Which index you choose will depend on your research subject area.

Some indexes, such as Web of Science , include journals from many countries. Others, such as the Chinese Academy of Science indexing system , are specific to certain countries or regions.

Choosing the type of index may depend on factors such as university or grant requirements.

Some indexes are open to the public, while others require a subscription. Many people searching for research papers will start with free search engines, such as Google Scholar , or free journal indexes, such as the Web of Science Master Journal List . Publishing in a journal in one or more free indexes increases the chance of your article being seen.

Journals in subscription-based indexes are generally considered high-quality journals. If the status of the journal is important, choose a journal in one or more subscription-based indexes.

Most journals belong to more than one index. To improve the visibility and impact of your article, choose a journal featured in multiple indexes.

How does journal indexing work?

All journals are checked for certain criteria before being added to an index. Each index has its own set of rules, but basic publishing standards include the following:

• An International Standard Serial Number (ISSN). ISSNs are unique to each journal and indicate that the journal publishes issues on a recurring basis.
• An established publishing schedule.
• Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs) . DOIs are unique letter/number codes assigned to digital objects. The benefit of a DOI is that it will never change, unlike a website link.
• Copyright requirements. A copyright policy helps protect your work and outlines the rules for the use or sharing of your work, whether it's copyrighted or has some form of creative commons licensing .
• Other requirements can include conflict of interest statements, ethical approval statements, an editorial board listed on the website, and published peer review policies.

To be included in an index, a journal must submit an application and undergo an audit by the indexation board. Index board members (called auditors) will confirm certain information, such as the full listing of the editorial board on the website, the inclusion of ethics statements in published articles, established appeal and retraction processes, and more.

Why is journal indexing important?

As an author, publishing your research in an indexed journal increases the credibility and visibility of your work. Indexed journals are generally considered to be of higher scientific quality than non-indexed journals.

With the growth of fully open access journals and online-only journals, recognizing “predatory” journals and their publishers has become difficult. Indexing a journal in one or more well-known databases is a good sign the journal is credible.

Moreover, more and more institutions are requiring publication in an indexed journal as a requirement for graduation, promotion, or grant funding.

As an author, it is important to ensure that your research is seen by as many eyes as possible. Index databases are often the first places scholars and the public will search for specific information. Publishing a paper in a non-indexed journal could be harmful in this context.

However, there are some exceptions, such as medical case reports.

Many journals don't accept medical case reports because they don't have high citation rates. However, several primary and secondary journals have been created specifically for case reports. Examples include the primary journal, BMC Medical Case Reports, and the secondary journal, European Heart Journal - Case Reports.

While many of these journals are indexed, they may not be indexed in the major indexes, though they are still highly acceptable journals.

Open access and indexation

With the recent increase in open access publishing, many journals have started offering an open access option. Other journals are completely open access, meaning they do not offer a traditional subscription service.

Open access journals have many benefits, such as:

• High visibility. Anyone can access and read your paper.
• Publication speed. It is generally quicker to post an article online than to publish it in a traditional journal format.

Identifying credible open access journals

Open access has made it easier for predatory journal publishers to attract unsuspecting or new authors. These predatory journal publishers often publish any article for a fee without peer review and with questionable ethical and copyright policies. Here we show you eight ways to spot predatory open access journals .

One way to identify credible open access journals is their index status. However, be aware that some predatory journals will falsely list indexes or display logos on their website. It is good practice to make sure the journal is indexed on the index's website before submitting your article to that journal.

Major journal indexing services

There are several journal indexes out there. Some of the most popular indexes are as follows:

Life Sciences and Hard Sciences

• Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE) Master Journal List
• Engineering Index
• Web of Science (now published by Clarivate Analytics, formerly by ISI and Thomson Reuters)
• Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS)

Humanities and Social Sciences

• Arts & Humanities Citation Index (AHCI) Master Journal List
• Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI) Master Journal List

Indexation and impact factors

It is easy to assume that indexed journals will have higher impact factors, but indexation and impact factor are unrelated.

Many credible journals don't have impact factors, but they are indexed in several well-known indexes. Therefore, the lack of an impact factor may not accurately represent the credibility of a journal.

Of course, impact factors may be important for other reasons, such as institutional requirements or grant funding. Read this authoritative piece on the uses, importance, and limitations of impact factors .

Final Thoughts

Selecting an indexed journal is an important part of the publication journey. Indexation can tell you a lot about a journal. Publishing in an indexed journal can increase the visibility and credibility of your research. If you're having trouble selecting a journal for publication, consider learning more about AJE's journal recommendation service .

Catherine Zettel Nalen, MS

Academic Editor, Specialist, and Journal Recommendation Team Lead

See our "Privacy Policy"

What is an index and do you need one?

Want to know former US president Bill Clinton’s thoughts on the Watergate scandal? The 1993 World Trade Center bombing? Monica Lewinsky? There’s no need to read all 957 pages of his autobiography,  My Life . Simply flick to the back of the book and check the index for the page number.

An index is a list of all the names, subjects and ideas in a piece of written work, designed to help readers quickly find where they are discussed in the text. Usually found at the end of the text, an index doesn’t just list the content (that’s what a table of contents is for), it analyses it.

Where are indexes used?

In addition to back-of-the-book indexes found in non-fiction books and technical reports, indexes are also used to make other sources of information – including journal articles, maps and atlases, art collections, online databases and websites – easier to navigate. Where books are published online, in PDF or e-book format, indexes link directly to points in the text.

Indexes are a common inclusion in many annual reports and are mandatory for annual reports produced by Australian Government departments, executive agencies and other non-corporate Commonwealth agencies.

What makes a good index?

An index provides a map to a report’s content. It does this through identifying key themes and ideas, grouping similar concepts, cross-referencing information and using clear formatting. A good index will:

• be arranged in alphabetical order
• include accurate page references that lead to useful information on a topic
• avoid listing every use of a word reor phrase
• be consistent across similar topics
• use sub-categories to break up long blocks of page numbers
• use italics for publications and Acts
• cross-reference information to point to other headings of interest or preferred terms.

For example, a back-of-the-book index might read:

sales, sales process, 147, 149, 158,  see also  strategy  (directs the reader to a related term)

scripts, 56–59  (grouping term)

podcasts, 56–57  (sub-term)

video, 58–59

search engine optimisation, 100, 156

Security Analysis  (David Dodd and Benjamin Graham), 89–90  (reference to a book)

spelling,  see  proofreading  (directs the reader to the word or phrase used in the text)

While software is available to help indexers arrange, format and edit entries, indexers will also use their judgement when deciding what to put into an index, what to leave out and how to organise it.

Don’t forget to add a table of contents

A good index may be the difference between people referring to a report regularly and it gathering dust on the bookshelf. If you don’t have an index, it’s important to at least have a good table of contents.

Located at the front of a report, a table of contents allows readers to easily see what the report is about and how sections of the text are arranged, in the order they appear.

A good table of contents will include headings, outlining the main sections or themes; sub-headings that indicate what each section of copy is about; and the page numbers they appear on. Additional content such as tables and boxes can also be added.

Want to make your report as easy to navigate as possible? Bookend it with a table of contents and an index – readers will have no excuse for not being able to find the information they’re after.

We can help create a roadmap for your reports, books and other larger documents. Learn more about  indexing  or  contact us here .

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13.1 Formatting a Research Paper

Learning objectives.

• Identify the major components of a research paper written using American Psychological Association (APA) style.
• Apply general APA style and formatting conventions in a research paper.

In this chapter, you will learn how to use APA style , the documentation and formatting style followed by the American Psychological Association, as well as MLA style , from the Modern Language Association. There are a few major formatting styles used in academic texts, including AMA, Chicago, and Turabian:

• AMA (American Medical Association) for medicine, health, and biological sciences
• APA (American Psychological Association) for education, psychology, and the social sciences
• Chicago—a common style used in everyday publications like magazines, newspapers, and books
• MLA (Modern Language Association) for English, literature, arts, and humanities
• Turabian—another common style designed for its universal application across all subjects and disciplines

While all the formatting and citation styles have their own use and applications, in this chapter we focus our attention on the two styles you are most likely to use in your academic studies: APA and MLA.

If you find that the rules of proper source documentation are difficult to keep straight, you are not alone. Writing a good research paper is, in and of itself, a major intellectual challenge. Having to follow detailed citation and formatting guidelines as well may seem like just one more task to add to an already-too-long list of requirements.

Following these guidelines, however, serves several important purposes. First, it signals to your readers that your paper should be taken seriously as a student’s contribution to a given academic or professional field; it is the literary equivalent of wearing a tailored suit to a job interview. Second, it shows that you respect other people’s work enough to give them proper credit for it. Finally, it helps your reader find additional materials if he or she wishes to learn more about your topic.

Furthermore, producing a letter-perfect APA-style paper need not be burdensome. Yes, it requires careful attention to detail. However, you can simplify the process if you keep these broad guidelines in mind:

• Work ahead whenever you can. Chapter 11 “Writing from Research: What Will I Learn?” includes tips for keeping track of your sources early in the research process, which will save time later on.
• Get it right the first time. Apply APA guidelines as you write, so you will not have much to correct during the editing stage. Again, putting in a little extra time early on can save time later.
• Use the resources available to you. In addition to the guidelines provided in this chapter, you may wish to consult the APA website at http://www.apa.org or the Purdue University Online Writing lab at http://owl.english.purdue.edu , which regularly updates its online style guidelines.

General Formatting Guidelines

This chapter provides detailed guidelines for using the citation and formatting conventions developed by the American Psychological Association, or APA. Writers in disciplines as diverse as astrophysics, biology, psychology, and education follow APA style. The major components of a paper written in APA style are listed in the following box.

These are the major components of an APA-style paper:

Body, which includes the following:

• Headings and, if necessary, subheadings to organize the content
• In-text citations of research sources
• References page

All these components must be saved in one document, not as separate documents.

The title page of your paper includes the following information:

• Title of the paper
• Author’s name
• Name of the institution with which the author is affiliated
• Header at the top of the page with the paper title (in capital letters) and the page number (If the title is lengthy, you may use a shortened form of it in the header.)

List the first three elements in the order given in the previous list, centered about one third of the way down from the top of the page. Use the headers and footers tool of your word-processing program to add the header, with the title text at the left and the page number in the upper-right corner. Your title page should look like the following example.

The next page of your paper provides an abstract , or brief summary of your findings. An abstract does not need to be provided in every paper, but an abstract should be used in papers that include a hypothesis. A good abstract is concise—about one hundred fifty to two hundred fifty words—and is written in an objective, impersonal style. Your writing voice will not be as apparent here as in the body of your paper. When writing the abstract, take a just-the-facts approach, and summarize your research question and your findings in a few sentences.

In Chapter 12 “Writing a Research Paper” , you read a paper written by a student named Jorge, who researched the effectiveness of low-carbohydrate diets. Read Jorge’s abstract. Note how it sums up the major ideas in his paper without going into excessive detail.

Write an abstract summarizing your paper. Briefly introduce the topic, state your findings, and sum up what conclusions you can draw from your research. Use the word count feature of your word-processing program to make sure your abstract does not exceed one hundred fifty words.

Depending on your field of study, you may sometimes write research papers that present extensive primary research, such as your own experiment or survey. In your abstract, summarize your research question and your findings, and briefly indicate how your study relates to prior research in the field.

Margins, Pagination, and Headings

APA style requirements also address specific formatting concerns, such as margins, pagination, and heading styles, within the body of the paper. Review the following APA guidelines.

Use these general guidelines to format the paper:

• Set the top, bottom, and side margins of your paper at 1 inch.
• Use double-spaced text throughout your paper.
• Use a standard font, such as Times New Roman or Arial, in a legible size (10- to 12-point).
• Use continuous pagination throughout the paper, including the title page and the references section. Page numbers appear flush right within your header.
• Section headings and subsection headings within the body of your paper use different types of formatting depending on the level of information you are presenting. Additional details from Jorge’s paper are provided.

Begin formatting the final draft of your paper according to APA guidelines. You may work with an existing document or set up a new document if you choose. Include the following:

• Your title page
• The abstract you created in Note 13.8 “Exercise 1”
• Correct headers and page numbers for your title page and abstract

APA style uses section headings to organize information, making it easy for the reader to follow the writer’s train of thought and to know immediately what major topics are covered. Depending on the length and complexity of the paper, its major sections may also be divided into subsections, sub-subsections, and so on. These smaller sections, in turn, use different heading styles to indicate different levels of information. In essence, you are using headings to create a hierarchy of information.

The following heading styles used in APA formatting are listed in order of greatest to least importance:

• Section headings use centered, boldface type. Headings use title case, with important words in the heading capitalized.
• Subsection headings use left-aligned, boldface type. Headings use title case.
• The third level uses left-aligned, indented, boldface type. Headings use a capital letter only for the first word, and they end in a period.
• The fourth level follows the same style used for the previous level, but the headings are boldfaced and italicized.
• The fifth level follows the same style used for the previous level, but the headings are italicized and not boldfaced.

Visually, the hierarchy of information is organized as indicated in Table 13.1 “Section Headings” .

Table 13.1 Section Headings

A college research paper may not use all the heading levels shown in Table 13.1 “Section Headings” , but you are likely to encounter them in academic journal articles that use APA style. For a brief paper, you may find that level 1 headings suffice. Longer or more complex papers may need level 2 headings or other lower-level headings to organize information clearly. Use your outline to craft your major section headings and determine whether any subtopics are substantial enough to require additional levels of headings.

Working with the document you developed in Note 13.11 “Exercise 2” , begin setting up the heading structure of the final draft of your research paper according to APA guidelines. Include your title and at least two to three major section headings, and follow the formatting guidelines provided above. If your major sections should be broken into subsections, add those headings as well. Use your outline to help you.

Because Jorge used only level 1 headings, his Exercise 3 would look like the following:

Citation Guidelines

In-text citations.

Throughout the body of your paper, include a citation whenever you quote or paraphrase material from your research sources. As you learned in Chapter 11 “Writing from Research: What Will I Learn?” , the purpose of citations is twofold: to give credit to others for their ideas and to allow your reader to follow up and learn more about the topic if desired. Your in-text citations provide basic information about your source; each source you cite will have a longer entry in the references section that provides more detailed information.

In-text citations must provide the name of the author or authors and the year the source was published. (When a given source does not list an individual author, you may provide the source title or the name of the organization that published the material instead.) When directly quoting a source, it is also required that you include the page number where the quote appears in your citation.

This information may be included within the sentence or in a parenthetical reference at the end of the sentence, as in these examples.

Epstein (2010) points out that “junk food cannot be considered addictive in the same way that we think of psychoactive drugs as addictive” (p. 137).

Here, the writer names the source author when introducing the quote and provides the publication date in parentheses after the author’s name. The page number appears in parentheses after the closing quotation marks and before the period that ends the sentence.

Addiction researchers caution that “junk food cannot be considered addictive in the same way that we think of psychoactive drugs as addictive” (Epstein, 2010, p. 137).

Here, the writer provides a parenthetical citation at the end of the sentence that includes the author’s name, the year of publication, and the page number separated by commas. Again, the parenthetical citation is placed after the closing quotation marks and before the period at the end of the sentence.

As noted in the book Junk Food, Junk Science (Epstein, 2010, p. 137), “junk food cannot be considered addictive in the same way that we think of psychoactive drugs as addictive.”

Here, the writer chose to mention the source title in the sentence (an optional piece of information to include) and followed the title with a parenthetical citation. Note that the parenthetical citation is placed before the comma that signals the end of the introductory phrase.

David Epstein’s book Junk Food, Junk Science (2010) pointed out that “junk food cannot be considered addictive in the same way that we think of psychoactive drugs as addictive” (p. 137).

Another variation is to introduce the author and the source title in your sentence and include the publication date and page number in parentheses within the sentence or at the end of the sentence. As long as you have included the essential information, you can choose the option that works best for that particular sentence and source.

Citing a book with a single author is usually a straightforward task. Of course, your research may require that you cite many other types of sources, such as books or articles with more than one author or sources with no individual author listed. You may also need to cite sources available in both print and online and nonprint sources, such as websites and personal interviews. Chapter 13 “APA and MLA Documentation and Formatting” , Section 13.2 “Citing and Referencing Techniques” and Section 13.3 “Creating a References Section” provide extensive guidelines for citing a variety of source types.

Writing at Work

APA is just one of several different styles with its own guidelines for documentation, formatting, and language usage. Depending on your field of interest, you may be exposed to additional styles, such as the following:

• MLA style. Determined by the Modern Languages Association and used for papers in literature, languages, and other disciplines in the humanities.
• Chicago style. Outlined in the Chicago Manual of Style and sometimes used for papers in the humanities and the sciences; many professional organizations use this style for publications as well.
• Associated Press (AP) style. Used by professional journalists.

References List

The brief citations included in the body of your paper correspond to the more detailed citations provided at the end of the paper in the references section. In-text citations provide basic information—the author’s name, the publication date, and the page number if necessary—while the references section provides more extensive bibliographical information. Again, this information allows your reader to follow up on the sources you cited and do additional reading about the topic if desired.

The specific format of entries in the list of references varies slightly for different source types, but the entries generally include the following information:

• The name(s) of the author(s) or institution that wrote the source
• The year of publication and, where applicable, the exact date of publication
• The full title of the source
• For books, the city of publication
• For articles or essays, the name of the periodical or book in which the article or essay appears
• For magazine and journal articles, the volume number, issue number, and pages where the article appears
• For sources on the web, the URL where the source is located

The references page is double spaced and lists entries in alphabetical order by the author’s last name. If an entry continues for more than one line, the second line and each subsequent line are indented five spaces. Review the following example. ( Chapter 13 “APA and MLA Documentation and Formatting” , Section 13.3 “Creating a References Section” provides extensive guidelines for formatting reference entries for different types of sources.)

In APA style, book and article titles are formatted in sentence case, not title case. Sentence case means that only the first word is capitalized, along with any proper nouns.

Key Takeaways

• Following proper citation and formatting guidelines helps writers ensure that their work will be taken seriously, give proper credit to other authors for their work, and provide valuable information to readers.
• Working ahead and taking care to cite sources correctly the first time are ways writers can save time during the editing stage of writing a research paper.
• APA papers usually include an abstract that concisely summarizes the paper.
• APA papers use a specific headings structure to provide a clear hierarchy of information.
• In APA papers, in-text citations usually include the name(s) of the author(s) and the year of publication.
• In-text citations correspond to entries in the references section, which provide detailed bibliographical information about a source.

Writing for Success Copyright © 2015 by University of Minnesota is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Writing a Research Paper

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The Research Paper

There will come a time in most students' careers when they are assigned a research paper. Such an assignment often creates a great deal of unneeded anxiety in the student, which may result in procrastination and a feeling of confusion and inadequacy. This anxiety frequently stems from the fact that many students are unfamiliar and inexperienced with this genre of writing. Never fear—inexperience and unfamiliarity are situations you can change through practice! Writing a research paper is an essential aspect of academics and should not be avoided on account of one's anxiety. In fact, the process of writing a research paper can be one of the more rewarding experiences one may encounter in academics. What is more, many students will continue to do research throughout their careers, which is one of the reasons this topic is so important.

Becoming an experienced researcher and writer in any field or discipline takes a great deal of practice. There are few individuals for whom this process comes naturally. Remember, even the most seasoned academic veterans have had to learn how to write a research paper at some point in their career. Therefore, with diligence, organization, practice, a willingness to learn (and to make mistakes!), and, perhaps most important of all, patience, students will find that they can achieve great things through their research and writing.

The pages in this section cover the following topic areas related to the process of writing a research paper:

• Genre - This section will provide an overview for understanding the difference between an analytical and argumentative research paper.
• Choosing a Topic - This section will guide the student through the process of choosing topics, whether the topic be one that is assigned or one that the student chooses themselves.
• Identifying an Audience - This section will help the student understand the often times confusing topic of audience by offering some basic guidelines for the process.
• Where Do I Begin - This section concludes the handout by offering several links to resources at Purdue, and also provides an overview of the final stages of writing a research paper.

How to make an index for your book or dissertation

Dear Readers. Shaun Lehmann, Katherine Firth (of the Research Voodoo blog ) and I are currently in the process of writing a new book for Open University Press called ‘Writing Trouble’. ‘Writing Trouble’ will help you diagnose and treat your thesis writing problems.

The proposed book evolved out of our work on the Thesis Bootcamp program , a writing intervention originally designed by Peta Freestone and Liam Connell . Over the years all of us have been running our own bootcamps we have met hundreds of students struggling to put their final thesis draft together. These students have supervisors who are clearly great researchers, but cannot give good feedback on writing. The book works backwards from the confusing feedback students have showed us.

Part of our process with this new book is to test out some of our text on our audience – you. Here is part of another chapter from our section “Where’s your discussion section?” where we deal with the purpose of the conventional ‘bits’ of a thesis and how to treat them. This piece of writing on indexing relates to a previous piece I wrote on the Whisperer about how to do a glossary . It’s the first draft, so your feedback is appreciated!

If you’d like to know more about the book before it’s published, you can sign up for our writing trouble mailing list .

The index is the elder sibling of the glossary , who has grown up, moved to the big city and started doing drugs. Anyone who has been asked to write one will tremble a little in their boots, at least the first time. Basically, an index is a quick look up list of terms that appear in your dissertation or book. In a similar way to the glossary, an index serves a rhetorical as well as a communicative role by throwing a spotlight on the parts of your book that will be most interesting and useful to the reader.

Indexing is an even more labourious process than making a glossary, but the return on investment is definitely worth it. Beyond the academic examination context, a good index is a vital tool in convincing a reader whether or not to read (or buy) your book. How often have you flipped to the index of the book to see if there’s enough on the topic you are interested in to warrant the effort? That’s right – almost every time.

Until this book, only Inger had experience of writing an index and she did a pretty horrible job of it. Here is what she learned.

Step one: Develop some useful themes

To begin, you need to think about why a reader might want to buy or read your book in the first place. You are not writing a novel, so being practical is not a bad place to start. As a thought exercise, try to think about the kind of problems that your readers are looking to solve. Think of words or phrases to represent these problems and you have a rough list of themes.

Inger’s previous book “How to be an academic” was a practical guide to surviving in academia, especially if you are a precariously employed academic. She started by generating a list of things like “making money”, “dealing with assholes”, “writing quickly” and so on. She then tried to think about the themes she thought were important, to give the index reader a sense of the broad range of topics in the book. This generated terms like “networking”. These themes guided the next step: identifying the areas of text where these themes were discussed.

Step Two: find the chunks of text that relate to the themes

The next step is the absolute worst part of the whole process, so prepare yourself. To get to a list-y looking thing, one must read a text that one is incredibly sick of reading by now with a forensic eye. The purpose of this step is to take note of the various manifestations of your themes in the book and make a note of their location. DO NOT DO THIS STEP UNTIL YOU HAVE PRINTER READY TEXT OR YOUR PAGE NUMBERS WILL BE WRONG.

Each time you find that theme in chunk of text, think about a short word or phrase that might relate to that theme and note the page number. Inger’s first pass looked something like this:

Acronyms, value of                                         124 – 125

Arrogance                                                       50 – 55

‘Backstage work’                                            226, 236

Bookshelves                                                    306

Cleverness                                                       46, 49, 250 – 251, 255 – 257

Cultural Capital                                               46 – 47, 89 – 90, 245

Dinner Parties                                                 56, 60, 64

Competition                                                    260

Fashion                                                            85 – 90, 306

Gift economies                                                253 – 254

Hiring practices                                               62, 229 – 236

Love of the work                                             18, 76, 264, 288 – 291

Migrants                                                         56 – 60

Salaries                                                           31, 222

‘service’                                                           101

The new normal                                              39, 229, 231

Academia as a Bad Boyfriend                                           16 – 19, 32 – 33, 36, 231

Academic journals, questionable practices of                  156 – 162

Academic hunger games                                                   13, 229

ADHD                                                                                67

Amabile, Tessa                                                                  46

Aaron, Rachael                                                                  198

Architecture as a profession                                             28, 218

Baby Boomers                                                                   283

Becker, Howard                                                                125, 153 – 154, 193, 195 – 196

Bullying                                                                             52, 54 – 55

Blogging and social media

The purpose of the Thesis Whisperer blog     9

Time implications of blogging                         12, 177

Starting blogging                                            22

Mark’s simple rules of blogging                     38

Safe Spaces?                                                   48, 267

Writing posts                                                  82, 263 – 264

Value of sharing for your career                    112, 220, 303 – 304

As open access publishing                               154, 159, 220 – 222

Enjoyment                                                       256, 263

Mainstream media shit storms                      268 – 269

Social media shit storm                                  284 – 285

At a certain point in making this list, Inger gave up trying to keep it tidy and started using Nvivo, a text analysis software. This worked well, but she doesn’t recommend using this software unless you have the skills; there’s a big learning curve and you have a book to deliver.

Step Three: throw out the themes

When Inger’s publisher got this index, carefully compiled over a couple of weekends, she smiled kindly, thanked Inger for the effort and gave it straight to a professional. When it came back, it looked completely different. In Inger’s version, dinner parties appeared under the theme of ‘academic’: a vague sort of category, in the final version it appeared under D, you know – for dinner party.

The lesson? When you are generating an alphabetical list, it’s best to bear in mind the alphabet. Inger was close, she just needed to throw away the themes and arrange the list of key words in alphabetical order. The final touch would be to try to think of words that are related to each other and put “see also” under them.

Job done, no drugs necessary. Except, maybe – coffee.

This is how I did an index, but I’m sure there are more elegant and sophisticated techniques. Have you ever done one? Do you have tricks to share? Love to hear about them in the comments!

Related posts

Sign up for the ‘writing trouble’ book news mailing list.

Buy “How to be an academic”

Enter the Glossators

Other ‘first draft’ posts from the Writing Trouble Series

The vagueness problem in academic writing

Academia is a passive agressive, middle class dinner party

Your thesis is the map, not the journey

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The Thesis Whisperer is written by Professor Inger Mewburn, director of researcher development at The Australian National University . New posts on the first Wednesday of the month. Subscribe by email below. Visit the About page to find out more about me, my podcasts and books. I'm on most social media platforms as @thesiswhisperer. The best places to talk to me are LinkedIn , Mastodon and Threads.

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What is indexing

Ish kumar dhammi.

Department of Orthopaedics, UCMS and Guru Teg Bahadur, Hospital, New Delhi, India

Rehan Ul Haq

The prestige of any journal is considered by how many abstracting and indexing services cover that journal. It has been observed in last few years that authors have started searching for indexed journals to publish their articles. Probably this is happening because it has become a mandatory requirement for further promotions of teaching faculty in medical colleges and institutions. However, the big question is after all what is an “Index Journal”? Is a journal considered indexed if it is documented in a local database, regional database, or in any continental database? Based on available literature, we would like to clear in few forthcoming paragraphs what is the history of indexing, what is actual indexing, and what is nonindexing?

Citation index (indexing) is an ordered list of cited articles, each accompanied by a list of citing articles. 1 The citing article is identified as source and the cited article as reference. An abstracting and indexing service is a product, a publisher sells, or makes available. The journal contents are searchable using subject headings (keywords, author's names, title, abstract, etc.,) in available database. 2 Being represented in the relevant online abstracting and indexing services is an essential factor for the success of a journal. Today search is done online, so it is imperative that a journal is represented in the relevant online search system. A citation index is a kind of bibliographic database, an index of citation between publications, allowing the user to easily establish which later documents, cite which earlier documents. 3

A form of citation index was first found in the 12 th century in Hebrew religious literature. Legal citation indexes were found in the 18 th century and were made popular by citators such as Shepard's citations (1873). 3 In 1960, the Eugene Garfields Institute for Scientific Information (ISI) introduced the first citation index for papers published in academic journals, first the science citation index (SCI) and later social science's citation index and the arts and humanities citation index. The first automated citation indexing was done by “CiteSeer” in 1997. Other sources for such data include Google Scholar and Elsevier's Scopus. 3

Currently major citation indexing services are:

• SCI and SCI-expanded: Published by ISI a part of Thomson Reuters. As mentioned, SCI was originally produced by ISI and created by Eugene Garfield (1964). 4 , 5 The SCI's database has two aims – first, to identify what each scientist has published and second, where and how often the papers by that scientist are cited. The SCI's electronic version is called “Web of Science.” 4 SCI-expanded indexes 8073 journals with citation references across 174 scientific disciplines in science edition 6
• Scopus: Scopus (Elsevier) is a bibliographic database containing abstracts and citations for academic journal articles. It covers 21,000 titles from over 5000 publishers. 7 It is available online only.
• Indian citation index (ICI): An online citation data ICI 8 is a new web platform for measuring performance of Indian research periodically. This online bibliographic database was launched in 2009. ICI covers 800 plus journals which are published from India on science, technical, medical, and social sciences. 8

In addition, “CiteSeer” and Google Scholar’ are freely available online.

I NDEX M EDICAUS /M EDLARS /M EDLINE /E NTREZ AND P UBMED

John Show Billings, Head of the Library of the Surgeon General's Office, United States Army, which later evolved as the United States National Library of Medicine (NLM), started index medicus (IM). IM was a comprehensive bibliographic index of scientific journal articles related to medical science, in print form, published between 1879 and 2004. NLM began computerizing indexing work in 1960 and called it MEDLARS, a bibliographic database, which later became MEDLINE. Thus, IM became the print presentation of MEDLINE databases content. Both print presentation (IM) and online database (MEDLINE) continued until 2004. In December 2004, the last issue of IM was published (volume 45). The stated reason for discontinuing printed publication was obvious because online resources supplanted it. The electronic presentations of MEDLINE’S contents also evolved, first with proprietary online services (accessed mostly at libraries) and later with CD-ROMS, then with Entrez and PubMed. PubMed is thus a free search engine which accesses the Medline data base. PubMed greatly accelerated the shift of online access to MEDLINE from something one did at the library to something one did anywhere. 9 An abridged version was published from 1970 to 1997 as the Abridged IM. The abridged edition lives on as a subset of the journals covered by PubMed (core clinical journals).

E MBASE /E XPERTA M EDICA

Embase is database of Experta Medica (a print version), and it is a biomedical pharmacological database formed of published literature. Embase is produced by Elsevier and contains over 28 million records of over 8400 files up to date, information about drugs, published in literature. Embase enables tracking and retrieval of drug information. 10

Index Copernicus

Index Copernicus (IC) 11 is an online database of user-contributed information, including scientist profiles as well as of scientific institutions, publications, and projects established in 1999 in Poland. The database is named after Nicolaus Copernicus and operated by IC International. However, ICS evaluation methodology is criticized. 12

PubMed Central

PubMed Central is a free digital repository that archives publically accessible full-text articles. About 1600 journals automatically deposit their articles in PubMed Central.

As per Editor insight series of Wolters Kluwer, there are four major online bibliographic sites – MEDLINE, PubMed Central, ISI, and Scopus. 7 Inclusion in MEDLINE confers a mark of quality upon a publication. PubMed Central gives greater access to open access contents and ISI provides an official impact factor. Inclusion in Scopus gives a clear view of journal metrics and provides H-Index and citation impact. 7

There are certain nonabstracting and indexing services that many publishers claim to be indexed in Scribd Cabelles Directories, slide share Google Docs, open J-Gate, and New journal.

Medical Council of India considers following as indexing agencies: Scopus, PubMed, MEDLINE, Embase/Excerpta Medica, Index Medicaus, and IC. 12

To conclude, citation indexing services include SCI and SCI expanded. Rest are search engines or bibliographic online data base. Major such bibliographic sites are MEDLINE (most prestigious and its data are searchable by PubMed), ISI, Scopus and Indian citation index (emerging).

R EFERENCES

Tag: index terms

From the deck of… ala midwinter 2018.

Welcome to “From the Deck of . . .” an irregular series in which we highlight search demos and other information from the slide decks we create for our live training sessions. You can view and download these materials from the PsycINFO SlideShare account .

At the recent American Library Association Midwinter conference, APA hosted a Lunch & Learn training session, which covered searchable vocabularies in PsycINFO®.

• Keywords are searched using natural language, and are good for current research and new concepts.
• Index Terms (also called Subject Headings) are found in the thesaurus tool, and help the focused researcher quickly find all records about a concept.
• PsycINFO Classification Codes ® describe broad areas of psychology, and are good to pair with a keyword or an index term search.
• MeSH, or Medical Subject Headings, are assigned by National Library of Medicine, and are good for searching neuroscience and health topics, especially for researchers familiar with PubMed.

In Case You Missed It – Searching By Keyword, Index Term, and More

In January of 2017, we posted about searching APA PsycInfo® by different vocabularies – keywords, index terms, classification codes, and MeSH.

In case you missed it, start the new semester off with a better understanding of which vocabulary will suit your needs.

Keywords (also called Key Concepts or Identifiers) – individual words, key concepts, or brief phrases that describe the document’s content; usually provided by the author or publisher.

Good for researchers who are new to a topic.

Index Terms (also called Subjects or Subject Headings) – are chosen by APA staff from Thesaurus of Psychological Index Terms ® .

Good for the focused researcher. 

Classification Codes (also called APA PsycInfo Classifications) – a descriptive term plus a corresponding numerical code; like the index terms, there is a pre-existing list, or controlled vocabulary.

Good to pair with keywords or index terms.

MeSH – Medical Subject Headings are a controlled vocabulary maintained by the National Library of Medicine for their PubMed database.

Good for medical or neuroscience topics.

To learn more about any of these search vocabularies, review our post on them from January 2017 .

Related Resources:

APA PsycInfo Expert Tip – Searching by Keywords Across Platforms

APA PsycInfo Expert Tip – Classification Codes

Tutorial – Using APA PsycInfo Classification Codes on EBSCOhost

APA PsycInfo Expert Tip: Searching by Keyword, Index Term and More

Have you ever wondered what the difference is between a keyword and an index term, and how they can aid your search? What are classification codes, and how does this all relate to MeSH terms? This post will demystify the four types of vocabulary you see in APA PsycInfo®.

Keywords (also called Key Concepts or Identifiers) – Individual words, key concepts, or brief phrases that describe the document’s content. The list of keywords for an article is often provided by the author or publisher, though sometimes it is created by APA staff. There is no pre-existing list of keywords that authors, publishers, or APA staff choose from.

Keyword searching is a good fit for researchers who are new to a topic, and want to get the full scope of what is available. Keyword searching is most similar to the searching you may do on the internet, because keywords are often in natural language or layman’s terms. In addition, you do not need to select or know terms from a pre-existing list, as you do for the following three types of vocabulary.

Index Terms (also called Subjects or Subject Headings) – Index terms are also single words or brief phrases that describe the document’s content, but they are chosen from a pre-existing list (also called a controlled vocabulary). For the APA databases, that list is the Thesaurus of Psychological Index Terms ®, which includes more than 8,400 terms. APA staff typically choose about six index terms for each document. You can use the thesaurus tool, linked from the APA PsycInfo search page, to search or browse index terms alphabetically or by topic.

Index term searching is a good fit for the focused researcher, who has identified their best term(s) and now wants to quickly find all of the items about a particular concept. With the wide variety of concepts and vocabulary used in the psychological literature, searching for and retrieving records about specific concepts is virtually impossible without the controlled vocabulary of a thesaurus. It provides a way of structuring the subject matter in a way that is consistent among users (e.g., searching for Dysphoria, Melancholia, and Depression can all be achieved by searching the term “Major Depression”).

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Keywords vs Indexed

Searching solutions: keywords vs indexed.

• Boolean Searching
• Additional Search Options
• Non-Indexed Examples
• Indexed Examples
• Using a Thesaurus
• Subject Searching
• The Search Log
• Author selected
• Word in title or abstract (or other text field in a database)
• For full-text databases: any word anywhere in an article (often including footnotes and references)

When selecting keywords, consider all the different options an author might use for that concept, then link them together using the Boolean OR term. AND together different concepts.

The USC Libraries'  Developing Keywords  tutorial can help you practice identifying potential keywords to search a database.

Always use keywords to search Non-Indexed databases.

Keywords to Subject Term

Different databases use different subject terms for author keywords. When searching for terms related to heart attacks in PsycINFO, use the terms Heart Disorders.

In developing searching strategies, keywords are the terms that are used in an article or abstract. Many times, keywords will be all you need. However, if you don't guess the term the author used for your topic, you will not find that article.

In indexed databases, no matter what term(s) an author uses (or neglects to use), there will be one subject heading applied for that topic. In the following example, you would have to search with every keyword term in order to find all the articles on cat scans. However, in PubMed, you only need to use one subject term to collect all indexed articles on cat scans.

• Keywords: cat scan / ct scan / x-ray scan / tomography / tomodensitometry / ct x ray / cine ct
• PubMed MeSH (thesaurus/subject) Term : Tomography, X-Ray Computed

Indexed / Thesaurus / Controlled vocabulary

• Word(s) and/or phrase(s) used to describe a specific concept or idea
• Individual citations are reviewed, usually by a subject specialist, and the appropriate term is applied (even if the author does not use that exact term)
• In some databases, the subjects (or disciplines) may (or may also) be applied to the journal from which the citation came (e.g., Scopus)
• PubMed : Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
• PsycINFO : Thesaurus of Psychological Index Terms
• Academic OneFile (Gale) : Subject Guide Search

When searching with the controlled vocabulary, choose the broadest term (higher on the hierarchy) that applies to your topic. You may also want to OR a related keyword. AND together different subjects for your search.

For more details, visit: Indexed Databases .

Example: (Climate processes [mesh] OR "climate change") AND california

Tips to Remember

• Each database may have its own indexing terms
• Not all databases use indexing (e.g. Google Scholar and Web of Science)
• You can use the Advanced search to discover available terms and search options
• Databases or search engines that pull from multiple sources (e.g. USC Libraries and ProQuest) may also pull the indexing terms from the underlying databases (e.g. PyscINFO and MEDLINE)
• Indexing terms are not always how people talk (Latino vs. Hispanic) and may be unique to that database
• It takes time to add indexing terms to citations; searching only for indexed terms will not retrieve the newest citations
• Your final search will generally combine both indexed terms (e.g. MeSH, Subject Terms) and other (key) words
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• Next: Boolean Searching >>
• Last Updated: Apr 12, 2024 2:21 PM
• URL: https://libguides.usc.edu/searching

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The most frustrating error many authors make these days is to write their project and then publish it without writing an important section: table of contents . A simple note is that this is an important section of a modern written project, so you must do the best that you possibly can to make sure that your writings have the right table of contents. If you do not have the time to create an index format content page, you can use the following word templates. You can incorporate these samples to prepare a practical yet creative index page for your plan of essay, sample proposals , or assignment, just to name a few.

Table Of Contents Blank

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> Why is a Table of Contents in Word Necessary?

Document indexing template.

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Index Of Docx

> Who should use the Table of Contents?

• If you are a student working on a final year thesis at the university, you should use the table of contents . The reason for this is you want to try the best you can to make your project easy to review.
• If you are an eBook writer, make sure your work has a sample outline . This will help your reader to understand what each chapter of your book addresses.
• If you are a teacher, make sure you provide your students with a table of contents for the lesson printable outline.
• There are many uses of the table of contents templates . So, these are just examples.

Index For Project Sample

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Table Of Contents For Project

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Project Report Index Format (Updated 2023)

This is a Sample Index Format for Project Report useful for students of MBA, MMS, PGDM, BBA, MMM, B. Com, BCA, Engineering (BE) and other courses. This will also help researchers and professionals of management as well as technical departments. You can use this format for the Summer Internship Project (SIP), Summer or winter training report, General Project report, and other research reports. You can modify this Index format as per your need.

Sample Project Report Index Format

This sample project report index includes three important columns – chapter number, Topics or Particulars i.e. Name of the Chapter and Page No.

Table of Contents

TABLE OF CONTENTS (FORMAT 1)

TABLE OF CONTENTS (FORMAT 2)

Project Report Index – Chapters in Detail

Given below are chapter-wise details of this Sample Project Report Index format.

Executive Summary

Executive summary generally summarises key points of your project or study. You can add following keypoints to your project’s executive summary.

• Introductory First paragraph: start your executive summary with this paragraph without giving any title to this paragraph. Write about your project title, company name and project duration etc. This should be in paragraph format and precise.
• Background of the Study (Or Problem Statement Or Purpose of the study)
• Key Objectives: Write about key objectives & scope of the study in this paragraph.
• Methods Used : Write about various research methods used to process the data anf interpret it.
• Findings : Write key findings and conclusion related statement here.
• Few more details about your topic
• Suggestions (or Recommendations) : Add key points about suggestions and learnings

Chapter 1: Introduction (1 to 2 pages)

Write introductory information about your research or project work.

• Title of the project
• Background or need of the project
• Key objectives & scope of the project
• Research tool to be used
• Information about topic i.e. theoretical part in short

Chapter 2: Objectives of the Study (1 Page)

• Write 3 to 5 objectives of the study.
• Start objectives with word “To”. For example, To understand the process of buying.
• Be clear and specific while writing objectives.
• Objectives are nothing but detailed version or explanation of your project title.

Chapter 3: Organization Profile or Company Profile (3 to 5 pages)

• Company Name, Logo, Address & Location Of Company
• Organization Chart
• Company’s Vision & Mission
• Company’s History
• Product Profile (or Service Profile)
• Awards (or Achievements)

Chapter 4: Theoretical  Background (5 to 10 pages)

This chapter consists of theoretical and conceptual part of the study.

• Review Of Literature
• Fundamental Concepts

Chapter 5. Research Methodology (3 to 5 Pages)

• Research Conceptual Clarification : Write about Definition & concept of research methodology in short, Also add steps involved in research methology etc.
• Research Design (Research Type): For example – Descriptive research, Exploratory research etc.
• Statement of Problem (If any)
• Research Hypothesis (If Any)
• Sources of Data Collection: For example – Primary Data, Secondary Data
• Data Collection Instruments: For example – Questionnaire
• Sample Description: Sampling Design, Sample Size, Sampling Method, Sampling Unit etc.
• Outline of analysis : a brief outline of tools and techniques to be used for analysis, statistical tools and tests to be used

Chapter 6. Data Analysis & Interpretation (10 to 20 page or more depends)

This chapter includes tabular representation of data Charts, Statistical tests, Analysis and Interpretation.

For each objective there has to be a supportive data collected, from either primary or secondary or in some cases from both the sources.

Analyse responses of primary data and/or secondary data with the help of charts and tables. You can use various tools like SPSS, MS Excel, Google Sheets or any other tool to process and analyse data. Create suitable pie charts, bar charts to represent the data.

Each page will consist following sequence-

• Question (Title/Heading)
• Interpretation

Chapter 7. Findings (1 to 2 Pages)

Write key finding of your project. Use interpretations from data analysis chapter to identify or calculate key findings.

• Must include data with percentage (%)
• Your findings must be aligned with your objectives
• Stick to precise and necessary findings only

Chapter 8. Suggestions or Recommendations (1 to 2 pages)

This chapter is all about your suggestions or recommendations to the company based on your findings.

• Ensure that you are not suggesting anything which is not studied in the course of project.
• Ensure all the suggestions are (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time bound).

Chapter 9. Contribution of Research Project to the Organization (Optional) (1 Page)

Researcher can write about overall Contribution of Research Project to the company or Organization .

Chapter 10. Learning of the student through the project (Optional) (1 Page)

Researcher can write about overall learnings from the project work. For example, the researcher learned various techniques like SPSS to analyze the data thoroughly. The researcher comes to know the real problems and solutions in the practical world of business.

Chapter 11. Conclusion (1 to 2 Pages)

Conclude your project in a few paragraphs. Write about your overall experience, key learning, and impact of this work on organization and society.

Conclude the project in simple words and talk of the study in short.

Bibliography (1 to 2 Pages)

Provide list of books or websites referred for your project. Use Harvard style or APA or MLA style of referencing list.

Also known as Appendix.

This includes supportive documents like:

• Questionnaire
• Data Sheets
• Glossary of terms if any
• Any other document

Note:  Students are free to re-frame the index and align with guidelines provided by respective university or institution. It’s recommended to pre-consent your project guide before finalising the index.

Outline of the problem or task undertaken

This will help readers to understand the problem or reason behind starting the project or research work.

This mainly focus on the statement of the problem.

Contribution to the host organization

The researcher can write about his or her contribution to the company. For example, the researcher improved the process of increasing leads for XYZ products by suggesting the ABC tool.

We hope this Sample format of the Project Report Index will help you in your SIP (Summer Internship Project) work.

You’ll also like to read:

• MBA Project Report Format & guidelines
• MBA Project Viva Questions And Answers

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Home / Guides / Citation Guides / How to Cite Sources

How to Cite Sources

Here is a complete list for how to cite sources. Most of these guides present citation guidance and examples in MLA, APA, and Chicago.

If you’re looking for general information on MLA or APA citations , the EasyBib Writing Center was designed for you! It has articles on what’s needed in an MLA in-text citation , how to format an APA paper, what an MLA annotated bibliography is, making an MLA works cited page, and much more!

MLA Format Citation Examples

The Modern Language Association created the MLA Style, currently in its 9th edition, to provide researchers with guidelines for writing and documenting scholarly borrowings.  Most often used in the humanities, MLA style (or MLA format ) has been adopted and used by numerous other disciplines, in multiple parts of the world.

MLA provides standard rules to follow so that most research papers are formatted in a similar manner. This makes it easier for readers to comprehend the information. The MLA in-text citation guidelines, MLA works cited standards, and MLA annotated bibliography instructions provide scholars with the information they need to properly cite sources in their research papers, articles, and assignments.

• Book Chapter
• Conference Paper
• Documentary
• Encyclopedia
• Google Images
• Kindle Book
• Memorial Inscription
• Museum Exhibit
• Painting or Artwork
• PowerPoint Presentation
• Sheet Music
• Thesis or Dissertation
• YouTube Video

APA Format Citation Examples

The American Psychological Association created the APA citation style in 1929 as a way to help psychologists, anthropologists, and even business managers establish one common way to cite sources and present content.

APA is used when citing sources for academic articles such as journals, and is intended to help readers better comprehend content, and to avoid language bias wherever possible. The APA style (or APA format ) is now in its 7th edition, and provides citation style guides for virtually any type of resource.

Chicago Style Citation Examples

The Chicago/Turabian style of citing sources is generally used when citing sources for humanities papers, and is best known for its requirement that writers place bibliographic citations at the bottom of a page (in Chicago-format footnotes ) or at the end of a paper (endnotes).

The Turabian and Chicago citation styles are almost identical, but the Turabian style is geared towards student published papers such as theses and dissertations, while the Chicago style provides guidelines for all types of publications. This is why you’ll commonly see Chicago style and Turabian style presented together. The Chicago Manual of Style is currently in its 17th edition, and Turabian’s A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations is in its 8th edition.

Citing Specific Sources or Events

• Declaration of Independence
• Gettysburg Address
• Martin Luther King Jr. Speech
• President Obama’s Farewell Address
• President Trump’s Inauguration Speech
• White House Press Briefing

Additional FAQs

• Citing Archived Contributors
• Citing a Blog
• Citing a Book Chapter
• Citing a Source in a Foreign Language
• Citing an Image
• Citing a Song
• Citing Special Contributors
• Citing a Translated Article
• Citing a Tweet

6 Interesting Citation Facts

The world of citations may seem cut and dry, but there’s more to them than just specific capitalization rules, MLA in-text citations , and other formatting specifications. Citations have been helping researches document their sources for hundreds of years, and are a great way to learn more about a particular subject area.

Ever wonder what sets all the different styles apart, or how they came to be in the first place? Read on for some interesting facts about citations!

1. There are Over 7,000 Different Citation Styles

You may be familiar with MLA and APA citation styles, but there are actually thousands of citation styles used for all different academic disciplines all across the world. Deciding which one to use can be difficult, so be sure to ask you instructor which one you should be using for your next paper.

2. Some Citation Styles are Named After People

While a majority of citation styles are named for the specific organizations that publish them (i.e. APA is published by the American Psychological Association, and MLA format is named for the Modern Language Association), some are actually named after individuals. The most well-known example of this is perhaps Turabian style, named for Kate L. Turabian, an American educator and writer. She developed this style as a condensed version of the Chicago Manual of Style in order to present a more concise set of rules to students.

3. There are Some Really Specific and Uniquely Named Citation Styles

How specific can citation styles get? The answer is very. For example, the “Flavour and Fragrance Journal” style is based on a bimonthly, peer-reviewed scientific journal published since 1985 by John Wiley & Sons. It publishes original research articles, reviews and special reports on all aspects of flavor and fragrance. Another example is “Nordic Pulp and Paper Research,” a style used by an international scientific magazine covering science and technology for the areas of wood or bio-mass constituents.

4. More citations were created on  EasyBib.com  in the first quarter of 2018 than there are people in California.

The US Census Bureau estimates that approximately 39.5 million people live in the state of California. Meanwhile, about 43 million citations were made on EasyBib from January to March of 2018. That’s a lot of citations.

5. “Citations” is a Word With a Long History

The word “citations” can be traced back literally thousands of years to the Latin word “citare” meaning “to summon, urge, call; put in sudden motion, call forward; rouse, excite.” The word then took on its more modern meaning and relevance to writing papers in the 1600s, where it became known as the “act of citing or quoting a passage from a book, etc.”

6. Citation Styles are Always Changing

The concept of citations always stays the same. It is a means of preventing plagiarism and demonstrating where you relied on outside sources. The specific style rules, however, can and do change regularly. For example, in 2018 alone, 46 new citation styles were introduced , and 106 updates were made to exiting styles. At EasyBib, we are always on the lookout for ways to improve our styles and opportunities to add new ones to our list.

Why Citations Matter

Here are the ways accurate citations can help your students achieve academic success, and how you can answer the dreaded question, “why should I cite my sources?”

They Give Credit to the Right People

Citing their sources makes sure that the reader can differentiate the student’s original thoughts from those of other researchers. Not only does this make sure that the sources they use receive proper credit for their work, it ensures that the student receives deserved recognition for their unique contributions to the topic. Whether the student is citing in MLA format , APA format , or any other style, citations serve as a natural way to place a student’s work in the broader context of the subject area, and serve as an easy way to gauge their commitment to the project.

They Provide Hard Evidence of Ideas

Having many citations from a wide variety of sources related to their idea means that the student is working on a well-researched and respected subject. Citing sources that back up their claim creates room for fact-checking and further research . And, if they can cite a few sources that have the converse opinion or idea, and then demonstrate to the reader why they believe that that viewpoint is wrong by again citing credible sources, the student is well on their way to winning over the reader and cementing their point of view.

They Promote Originality and Prevent Plagiarism

The point of research projects is not to regurgitate information that can already be found elsewhere. We have Google for that! What the student’s project should aim to do is promote an original idea or a spin on an existing idea, and use reliable sources to promote that idea. Copying or directly referencing a source without proper citation can lead to not only a poor grade, but accusations of academic dishonesty. By citing their sources regularly and accurately, students can easily avoid the trap of plagiarism , and promote further research on their topic.

They Create Better Researchers

By researching sources to back up and promote their ideas, students are becoming better researchers without even knowing it! Each time a new source is read or researched, the student is becoming more engaged with the project and is developing a deeper understanding of the subject area. Proper citations demonstrate a breadth of the student’s reading and dedication to the project itself. By creating citations, students are compelled to make connections between their sources and discern research patterns. Each time they complete this process, they are helping themselves become better researchers and writers overall.

When is the Right Time to Start Making Citations?

Make in-text/parenthetical citations as you need them.

As you are writing your paper, be sure to include references within the text that correspond with references in a works cited or bibliography. These are usually called in-text citations or parenthetical citations in MLA and APA formats. The most effective time to complete these is directly after you have made your reference to another source. For instance, after writing the line from Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities : “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…,” you would include a citation like this (depending on your chosen citation style):

(Dickens 11).

This signals to the reader that you have referenced an outside source. What’s great about this system is that the in-text citations serve as a natural list for all of the citations you have made in your paper, which will make completing the works cited page a whole lot easier. After you are done writing, all that will be left for you to do is scan your paper for these references, and then build a works cited page that includes a citation for each one.

Need help creating an MLA works cited page ? Try the MLA format generator on EasyBib.com! We also have a guide on how to format an APA reference page .

2. Understand the General Formatting Rules of Your Citation Style Before You Start Writing

While reading up on paper formatting may not sound exciting, being aware of how your paper should look early on in the paper writing process is super important. Citation styles can dictate more than just the appearance of the citations themselves, but rather can impact the layout of your paper as a whole, with specific guidelines concerning margin width, title treatment, and even font size and spacing. Knowing how to organize your paper before you start writing will ensure that you do not receive a low grade for something as trivial as forgetting a hanging indent.

Don’t know where to start? Here’s a formatting guide on APA format .

3. Double-check All of Your Outside Sources for Relevance and Trustworthiness First

Collecting outside sources that support your research and specific topic is a critical step in writing an effective paper. But before you run to the library and grab the first 20 books you can lay your hands on, keep in mind that selecting a source to include in your paper should not be taken lightly. Before you proceed with using it to backup your ideas, run a quick Internet search for it and see if other scholars in your field have written about it as well. Check to see if there are book reviews about it or peer accolades. If you spot something that seems off to you, you may want to consider leaving it out of your work. Doing this before your start making citations can save you a ton of time in the long run.

Finished with your paper? It may be time to run it through a grammar and plagiarism checker , like the one offered by EasyBib Plus. If you’re just looking to brush up on the basics, our grammar guides  are ready anytime you are.

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We understand that when it comes to sustainable investing one size does not fit all. Our experience with sustainability data, climate data and frameworks as well as our role developing solutions for many of the world’s investors, has helped us identify common use cases by investor type.

Contact us to learn more about how we can help you integrate sustainability and climate insights.

Our products

We aim to be your one-stop-shop for sustainability and climate solutions. Our award-winning, 5 gold-standard 6 ESG ratings and climate data and research are developed in-house and are integrated across our index, analytics and real asset solutions.

ESG Investing - Our Products

Esg ratings.

MSCI ESG Ratings aim to measure a company’s management of financially relevant ESG risks and opportunities.

Sustainability and Climate Data and Solutions

Our team of experts is focused on in-depth research, ratings and analysis of the environmental, social and governance-related business practices of thousands of global companies.

ESG Indexes

MSCI ESG Indexes are designed to represent the performance of the most common ESG investment approaches by including, re-weighting or excluding companies by leveraging ESG criteria.

Climate Indexes

MSCI offers climate indexes for both Equity & Fixed Income that aim to meet the variety of needs of institutional investors who wish to address climate change.

Our Sustainability and Climate reports are designed to manage evolving regulatory requirements and address your growing reporting needs through a scalable reporting framework, giving you a clear vision of the risks and opportunities ahead.

Real Estate Climate Value-at-Risk (Climate VaR), a forward-looking and return-based valuation assessment for individual assets and portfolios.

ESG Transparency Tools

Transparency tools, esg transparency tools content part 1.

Explore the Implied Temperature Rise, Decarbonization Targets, MSCI ESG Rating and Key ESG Issues of over 2,900 companies.

Explore E, S & G Key Issues by GICS® sub-industry or sector and their contribution to companies' ESG Ratings.

ESG Fund Ratings aim to measure the resilience of mutual funds and ETFs to long term risks and opportunities.

Explore ESG and climate metrics for all MSCI equity, fixed income and blended indexes regulated by the EU.

ESG Investing Related Cards

Related content.

Connect with ESG client service.

Climate Lab Enterprise provides the tools and data needed to align portfolios with climate targets for a net-zero future.

Climate and Net-Zero Solutions

MSCI offers a suite of tools to help institutional investors benchmark, measure and manage portfolio exposure to climate risk, identify low carbon investment opportunities, and support investors seeking to set a net-zero target.

Sustainable Finance

ESG and climate regulation and disclosure resource center for institutional investors, managers and advisors.

ESG Funds in Focus

We bring focus to more than 52,000 funds through ratings, research and insights into the latest ESG trends driving risk and opportunities.

ESG and Climate Guide for Advisers

Advisers with the knowledge and tools to understand the nuances of ESG and Climate investing and position client portfolios accordingly can deliver additional value to clients and strengthen relationships.

ESG Investing footnotes

MSCI ESG Research LLC. is a Registered Investment Adviser under the Investment Adviser Act of 1940. The most recent SEC Form ADV filing, including Form ADV Part 2A, is available on the U.S. SEC’s website at www.adviserinfo.sec.gov  (opens in a new tab) .

MIFID2/MIFIR notice: MSCI ESG Research LLC does not distribute or act as an intermediary for financial instruments or structured deposits, nor does it deal on its own account, provide execution services for others or manage client accounts. No MSCI ESG Research product or service supports, promotes or is intended to support or promote any such activity. MSCI ESG Research is an independent provider of ESG data, reports and ratings based on published methodologies and available to clients on a subscription basis. 

ESG ADV 2A (PDF, 355 KB)  (opens in a new tab) ESG ADV 2B (brochure supplement) (PDF, 232 KB)  (opens in a new tab)

1 Through our legacy companies KLD, Innovest, IRRC, and GMI Ratings. ESG and climate data, research and ratings are produced by MSCI ESG Research LLC and are used as an input to the MSCI ESG indexes, calculated by MSCI, Inc.

2 MSCI KLD 400 Index https://www.msci.com/msci-kld-400-social-index

3 Origins of MSCI ESG Ratings established in 1999. Produced time series data since 2007.

4 MSCI ESG Research LLC clients

5 The Extel & SRI Connect Independent Research in Responsible Investment (IRRI) Survey – 2015, 2016, 2017 & 2018/19

6 Deep Data Delivery Standard http://www.deepdata.ai/

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