Comparación entre GOOGLE ACADÉMICO y SCOPUS - Aprender a investigar

Summary

In this video, Juan Diego compares two major academic databases: Google Scholar and Scopus. He demonstrates their strengths and weaknesses, highlighting the difference in the quantity and quality of research articles they provide. While Google Scholar offers a broader range of results, Scopus focuses on higher-quality, peer-reviewed papers. He also addresses challenges like language barriers and regional topics, emphasizing the importance of choosing the right database for specific research needs. Ultimately, he encourages viewers to use both tools, depending on their research objectives, and to explore additional databases for comprehensive results.

Takeaways

• 😀 Google Scholar and Scopus are both essential research tools, but each has its unique strengths and weaknesses.
• 😀 Scopus is a renowned, high-quality database, known for its peer-reviewed, reliable content, but it may provide fewer search results than Google Scholar.
• 😀 Google Scholar offers a broader search and is more accessible, but it can result in a larger quantity of less reliable content.
• 😀 The goal is not to find an overwhelming number of articles but to ensure the quality of the articles selected for research.
• 😀 Searching in English rather than Spanish significantly increases the number of available articles in both databases.
• 😀 Searching by title can significantly improve the quality of results, as titles directly reflect the document's main purpose.
• 😀 Scopus focuses on the title, abstract, and keywords, providing a more curated list of relevant articles compared to Google Scholar, which searches the entire document.
• 😀 While Google Scholar offers a larger quantity of results, Scopus tends to provide more focused, high-quality content, especially in technical fields.
• 😀 Google Scholar can be a useful tool for niche topics or specific regions, such as Latin American terms, that may not be well-represented in Scopus.
• 😀 There is no universal 'best' database—researchers should experiment with both Google Scholar and Scopus to find the best match for their research needs.
• 😀 Intermediate databases like Scopus can provide a balance between quantity and quality, while platforms like Ex Cojo can offer more region-specific insights for certain topics.

Q & A

What is the main objective of comparing Google Scholar and Scopus in the video?

The main objective is to compare these two large databases to understand how they perform when searching for scientific articles, focusing on the quantity and quality of articles that can be found, and how these tools contribute to research.

How does Google Scholar differ from Scopus in terms of search results?

Google Scholar provides a larger number of results as it searches through the entire document, whereas Scopus limits its search to the title, abstract, and keywords. This makes Scopus results more refined but fewer in number.

What is the significance of searching within the title of the document?

Searching within the title of the document is important because the title often reflects the main objective of the research, providing more relevant and specific results.

What happens when the search is expanded to English articles?

When searching in English, the number of results increases dramatically, particularly in both Google Scholar and Scopus. However, the search results in Scopus remain more refined, and the quality is typically higher.

Why is there a notable difference in the number of results when searching in English vs Spanish?

There is a significant difference because much of the scientific literature is published in English, and many research articles written in Spanish are not indexed by major databases like Scopus, leading to fewer results in Spanish.

How does the quality of articles in Scopus compare to those in Google Scholar?

Scopus generally offers higher quality results because it indexes well-reviewed, peer-reviewed articles. Google Scholar, while more accessible, often provides articles of varying quality, including theses or non-peer-reviewed content.

What happens when searching for highly specific topics like 'social appropriation of knowledge'?

Highly specific or regionally focused topics like 'social appropriation of knowledge' may yield fewer results in Scopus. In these cases, Google Scholar can provide a broader range of articles, but they may not always meet the same quality standards.

Can Scopus and Google Scholar be used together for a more comprehensive search?

Yes, combining the use of Scopus and Google Scholar can be beneficial. Scopus provides high-quality, peer-reviewed articles, while Google Scholar can help identify more diverse sources, making both databases complementary in research.

What is the role of databases like Excojo in research?

Databases like Excojo serve as a middle ground between Scopus and Google Scholar, providing a more curated selection of documents that offer useful results, particularly for specific regional topics or less universally covered fields.

What is the takeaway for researchers when choosing between Google Scholar and Scopus?

The choice between Google Scholar and Scopus depends on the researcher's needs. Scopus is ideal for high-quality, peer-reviewed research, while Google Scholar is better for accessing a larger variety of sources. Researchers should use both databases according to their specific research requirements.