Why is the Researcher feature in Word useful for creating research papers?

One of Word 2016's latest features, Researcher allows you to find information for a term paper, dissertation or other project without leaving your word processor. Students can easily browse web-based articles in a small pane that sits to the right of their documents, highlight text they wish to include in their projects, and insert it along with the appropriate citation style (MLA, APA, etc). 

Available to Office Insiders right now and all Office 365 users in the near future, Researcher can be useful, but it has a couple of caveats. First, when you use the "cite" function to insert a direct quote from a source, the tool doesn't put quotation marks around the text, which is absolutely necessary to avoid plagiarism. So be sure to add those manually. Second, the tool gives high priority to results from Wikipedia, which many teachers don't consider a valid source for serious research.

Here's how to use Word 2016 Researcher:

1. Click the References tab in Word.

2. Select a citation style from the style menu. Depending on what school or organization you work for, you might need to select MLA, APA, Chicago Style or another type on the list.

3. Click Bibliography and select one of the choices (Bibliography, References or Works Cited).

A header will appear in your document.

4. Click the Researcher button.

A new window pane opens.

5. Enter a query in the search box (ex: revolutionary war).

You'll get a list of sub topics you can either enter as subheads in your document (for later research) or open up to view individual articles.

6. Click the plus sign next to topics to create them as subheads. 

You can further research these subtopics later if you wish.

7. Double click on a subtopic to learn more.

You'll likely see an overview of the subtopic and you can click on the "Research" tab to view more articles.

7. Open an article to read it.

8. Highlight text you wish to insert in your article, right click and select "Add and Cite."

The quote appears in your body copy and as a citation in your bibliography.

9. Add quotation marks and an attribution to any text you've inserted word-for-word. If you include a direct quote in your paper without putting quotation marks around it and crediting the author, that's plagiarism.

Microsoft wants to make your research easier. With the Word Researcher tool, you can close your web browser and get sources for school essays, research papers, and similar documents in a few clicks.

What Can You Do With Researcher?

The Researcher feature, powered by Bing, gives you a handy search box to find people, events, places, and concepts. The results of your search provide you with relevant topics and top sources including books, journals, websites, and images.

When you select the source you want, you can see an overview, history, location, images, and other important details. And the best part is, you never leave your Microsoft Word document.

In addition to viewing the details for your topic, you can start an outline for your paper as well as adding and citing text. Click the main subject or one of the information sections and add it directly to your document.

Here, we’ll show you how to reduce the time you spend researching and speed up the creation of your paper with the Researcher tool in Microsoft Word.

Note: At the time of writing, Researcher is available with Word for Microsoft 365, Word for Microsoft 365 for Mac, and Word 2016. It is available to Microsoft 365 subscribers for Windows desktop clients.

Open Researcher in Microsoft Word

To use the Researcher tool, open the “References” tab of your Word document. Click “Researcher” from the “Research” section of the ribbon.

When the pane opens on the right, type a term into the Search box and you’re on your way!

Review Relevant Topics and Top Sources

You’ll receive results for your search with Relevant Topics at the top and Top Sources beneath.

Relevant Topics

Some topics may only give you a couple of Relevant Topics. Click “More Topics” below that section to see additional sources.

If you click one of the Relevant Topics, you’ll see a nice overview of the subject. At the end of the “Overview” section, click “Read More” for full details.

Depending on your topic, you’ll then see several block sections packed with details. This structure comes in handy for starting your outline with them, which we’ll describe below.

If the subject and Relevant Topic have images, you can click “See All Images” for a neat grid of photos and illustrations. Click one to open your browser and view the image online. Plus, you can add these to your document, which we’ll also show you below.

Top Sources

For even more options, the “Top Sources” area offers books, journals, and websites. Select any one of those for its details.

If you choose a Relevant Topic at the top first, you can then filter your Top Sources by subtopic. Click the drop-down box for “All Topics” and pick one.

While most of the material is contained within Word, you may come across a source here and there that you must open in your browser. Click the link to open the source site in your default web browser.

Add Topic Items to Your Document

Along with viewing information on your topic, you can add headings, text, and images directly to your document using Researcher.

Add Headings

On the top right of each source’s section, you’ll see a plus sign. Click the “+” icon to add that section as a collapsible heading for your document outline. Remember, this only adds the heading, not the text, within the section.

Add Text

If you want to add a snippet of text to your document, you can do this as well. Select the text from the source by dragging your cursor through it. When you release, you’ll see a small box appear with options for “Add and Cite” and “Add.”

When you choose “Add and Cite,” the text will pop into your document with the source cited at the end of the snippet. The citation is formatted automatically, so you can add it to a bibliography easily.

When you choose “Add,” the text will still appear in your document, but without the citation.

Add Images

If your topic offers images, and you click “See All Images,” you have the option to add one or more of those, too. This is super convenient because you don’t have to hunt them down yourself.

Click the “+” icon in the corner of the image to add it to your paper.

It will appear in your document with the source cited beneath it.

Note: Be sure to respect copyrights when using the available images for your purpose. If you’re unsure whether you can use an image, click “Learn More” above the image grid. This takes you to the Microsoft legal webpage explaining copyright and offering FAQs. You can also check our article on images with a Creative Commons License for those sources from Creative Commons.

College essays and research papers are enough work in themselves. By using Researcher in Microsoft Word, you can ease the burden of the research for your document and get a jumpstart on its contents.

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