11  Application of ICT in Research

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) supports every step of the research process. The candidate is expected to recognise the major categories of ICT use, the Government of India platforms for research, and the common software tools.

TipICT Across the Research Process
Step ICT support
Identify problem Search engines, databases, citation alerts
Review literature Online databases, reference managers
Sampling Online sample-frame databases; randomisers
Tools Online survey platforms; instrument repositories
Data collection E-survey, mobile data collection, sensors
Analysis SPSS, R, Stata, NVivo, Atlas.ti, Python
Reporting Word processors, LaTeX, reference managers, plagiarism checkers
Dissemination Open-access repositories, journal submission portals, ORCID

11.1 Online Databases and Search

TipMajor Research Databases
Database Coverage
Google Scholar Multidisciplinary; broadest coverage
Web of Science Curated multidisciplinary; SCI / SSCI / AHCI
Scopus Curated multidisciplinary, larger than Web of Science
PubMed / MEDLINE Biomedicine, life sciences
ERIC Education research
JSTOR Humanities and social sciences archive
ScienceDirect Elsevier journals
SpringerLink Springer journals and books
IEEE Xplore Engineering and computer science
DOAJ Open-access journals

11.2 Government of India Platforms for Research

TipINFLIBNET-Run National Platforms
Platform Full form / nature What it offers
INFLIBNET Information and Library Network Centre Autonomous Inter-University Centre of UGC; runs the platforms below
Shodhganga Sanskrit Shodh (research) + Ganga Repository of Indian PhD theses (open access)
Shodhgangotri Gangotri = source of Ganga Repository of synopses and research proposals; later mapped to full thesis in Shodhganga
e-ShodhSindhu Consortium for higher-education e-resources Access to thousands of full-text journals, e-books, and databases
N-LIST National Library and Information Services E-resources for college users
e-PG Pathshala UGC PG e-content Subject-wise e-modules for postgraduate students
NDLI National Digital Library of India National-level e-content repository
Vidwan Indian researchers’ database Profiles, expertise, ORCID-style discovery
CSIR-NISCAIR National Institute of Science Communication NISCAIR / NIScPR journals 

flowchart TB
  U[UGC] --> I[INFLIBNET<br/>Centre]
  I --> SG[Shodhganga<br/>Theses repository]
  I --> SGT[Shodhgangotri<br/>Synopsis repository]
  I --> ESS[e-ShodhSindhu<br/>Journals & e-books]
  I --> NL[N-LIST<br/>For colleges]
  U --> EP[e-PG Pathshala<br/>PG e-content]
  GOI[Ministry of Education] --> NDLI[NDLI<br/>National Digital Library]
  GOI --> SW[SWAYAM]
    classDef default fill:#003366,color:#ffffff,stroke:#ffcc00,stroke-width:3px,rx:10px,ry:10px;

11.3 Reference Management Software

A reference manager imports citations, organises them, formats in-text citations and bibliographies, and integrates with word processors.

TipCommon Reference Managers
Tool Licence Typical user
Zotero Free, open source Most users; strong browser integration
Mendeley Freemium (Elsevier) Common in sciences
EndNote Commercial (Clarivate) Institutional, sciences
JabRef Free, open source LaTeX/BibTeX users
RefWorks Subscription Institutional users
Citavi Commercial Common in German-speaking academia

11.4 Statistical and Analytical Software

TipCommon Statistical and Analytical Software
Tool Strength Typical use
SPSS GUI, click-and-do Social-science quantitative analysis
R Free, programmable, vast packages Statistics and data science
Stata Commercial, strong econometrics Economics, public health
SAS Commercial, enterprise Pharma, finance, large data
Python Programmable, machine learning Data science, NLP
Excel Ubiquitous, basic stats Quick exploration, descriptive stats
JASP / Jamovi Free, open source, GUI Teaching and quick analysis
NVivo Qualitative coding Interview transcripts, themes
Atlas.ti Qualitative coding Mixed methods, multimedia
MAXQDA Qualitative coding Mixed methods

11.5 Plagiarism-Detection Software

TipPlagiarism Detection
Tool Notes
Turnitin Industry standard in higher education
Urkund / Ouriginal Used by some Indian universities; integrates with LMS
iThenticate Used by journals for manuscript screening
Plagscan, Quetext Alternative tools
Grammarly Premium Includes plagiarism detection

The University Grants Commission has rolled out a national-level Plagiarism Detection Service via INFLIBNET for Indian higher education institutions.

11.6 Word Processing and Typesetting

TipDocument Preparation Tools
Tool Typical use
Microsoft Word Most theses and articles
Google Docs Cloud-based collaborative writing
LibreOffice / OpenOffice Free alternative to Word
LaTeX (TeXLive, MiKTeX, Overleaf) Mathematics, physics, computer science; precise typesetting
Markdown / Quarto / R Markdown Reproducible reporting; integrates code, output and prose

11.7 Online Survey Tools

TipOnline Survey Platforms
Tool Notes
Google Forms Free, easy, integrates with Sheets
Microsoft Forms Free, integrates with Microsoft 365
SurveyMonkey Freemium, classic survey platform
Qualtrics Premium, advanced features
LimeSurvey Open-source self-hosted
KoBoToolbox Open-source; designed for field-research and humanitarian use

11.8 Open Access and Open Science

TipOpen Access — Working Vocabulary
Term Meaning
Open access (OA) Free, online, immediate access to research articles
Gold OA Article freely available on the publisher’s site (often paid via APC — Article Processing Charge)
Green OA Author deposits the manuscript in a repository; access is free
Diamond / Platinum OA Open access with no charge to author or reader
Preprint Paper made public before peer review (arXiv, bioRxiv, SSRN)
DOAJ Directory of Open Access Journals — curated list
Creative Commons licences (CC-BY, CC-BY-SA, etc.) Standardised reuse permissions

11.9 Cloud, Collaboration and Version Control

TipCollaboration Tools
Tool Use
Google Drive / Microsoft OneDrive / Dropbox File storage and sharing
Google Docs / Microsoft 365 Real-time co-authoring
Overleaf Real-time LaTeX collaboration
GitHub / GitLab Code, data and document version control
Open Science Framework (OSF) Pre-registration, collaboration, project hosting
Slack / MS Teams / Discord Project communication
Zoom / Google Meet / WebEx Online meetings, interviews

11.10 Artificial Intelligence in Research

The candidate should recognise that AI tools — large language models, machine-learning libraries, and AI-based literature search engines — are increasingly used in research. AI-generated content must be disclosed under emerging journal and institutional policies. The use of AI does not absolve the researcher of responsibility for accuracy, originality and ethical conduct.

TipAI in Research — Working Examples
Tool / Type Use case
Large language models (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini) Brainstorming, summarising, drafting (with verification)
AI-based search (Elicit, Consensus, Semantic Scholar) Literature search and synthesis
scikit-learn, TensorFlow, PyTorch Machine learning for prediction, classification
NVivo / Atlas.ti AI-assisted coding Theme suggestion in qualitative data
AI plagiarism / AI-content detectors Detection of AI-generated text

11.11 Practice Questions

Q 01 Shodhganga Easy

Shodhganga is best described as:

  • AA repository of Indian PhD theses
  • BA platform for school e-content
  • CA digital library of newspaper archives
  • DA coding repository for software
View solution
Correct Option: A
Shodhganga (Sanskrit: Shodh = research, Ganga = river) is the open-access repository of Indian PhD theses, run by INFLIBNET.
Q 02 Platform Mapping Medium

Match the platform with what it primarily offers:

(i) Shodhganga (a) Synopses and research proposals
(ii) Shodhgangotri (b) E-journals and e-books consortium
(iii) e-ShodhSindhu (c) PhD theses repository
(iv) e-PG Pathshala (d) Postgraduate e-content modules
  • A(i)-(c), (ii)-(a), (iii)-(b), (iv)-(d)
  • B(i)-(a), (ii)-(c), (iii)-(d), (iv)-(b)
  • C(i)-(b), (ii)-(d), (iii)-(a), (iv)-(c)
  • D(i)-(d), (ii)-(b), (iii)-(c), (iv)-(a)
View solution
Correct Option: A
Shodhganga → theses; Shodhgangotri → synopses; e-ShodhSindhu → e-journals consortium; e-PG Pathshala → PG e-content.
Q 03 Reference Manager Easy

Which of the following is not a reference-management software?

  • AZotero
  • BMendeley
  • CEndNote
  • DNVivo
View solution
Correct Option: D
NVivo is qualitative-data-analysis software, not a reference manager.
Q 04 INFLIBNET Easy

The full form of INFLIBNET is:

  • AInternational Library Network
  • BInformation and Library Network
  • CIndian National Library Network
  • DInter-Faculty Library Network
View solution
Correct Option: B
INFLIBNET = Information and Library Network — an autonomous Inter-University Centre of UGC.
Q 05 Preprint Easy

A preprint is:

  • AA peer-reviewed article published in advance
  • BA paper made public before peer review
  • CThe proof copy of an accepted article
  • DThe conference version of a journal paper
View solution
Correct Option: B
A preprint is made public before peer review (e.g., on arXiv, bioRxiv, SSRN).
Q 06 Open Source Easy

Which of the following statistical software is open source and free to use?

  • ASPSS
  • BSAS
  • CR
  • DStata
View solution
Correct Option: C
R is free and open source; SPSS, SAS and Stata are commercial.
Q 07 Open Access Medium

Gold Open Access typically means:

  • AThe article is freely available on the publisher's website (often via an Article Processing Charge)
  • BThe author self-archives the manuscript in a repository
  • CThe article is paywalled but discoverable
  • DThe article is published after embargo
View solution
Correct Option: A
Gold OA = freely available on publisher's site (often via an APC). Green OA = author self-archives in a repository.
Q 08 Qualitative Software Easy

Which of the following is most suitable for qualitative data analysis?

  • ASPSS
  • BNVivo
  • CSAS
  • DEViews
View solution
Correct Option: B
NVivo is qualitative-coding software (alongside Atlas.ti and MAXQDA).
ImportantQuick recall
  • INFLIBNET = Information and Library Network; UGC autonomous centre.
  • Shodhganga = theses repository; Shodhgangotri = synopsis repository; e-ShodhSindhu = journals/e-books consortium.
  • Reference managers: Zotero, Mendeley, EndNote, JabRef, RefWorks.
  • Quantitative software: SPSS, R, Stata, SAS, Python, Excel, JASP.
  • Qualitative software: NVivo, Atlas.ti, MAXQDA.
  • Plagiarism: Turnitin, Urkund/Ouriginal, iThenticate.
  • Open access: Gold (publisher-side, often APC), Green (author self-archive), Diamond (no charge either side).
  • Identifiers and metrics: DOI, ISBN, ISSN, ORCID; JIF, CiteScore, h-index.