# Research Rabbit Setup Guide

URL: https://research-memex.org/docs/implementation/foundational-setup/research-rabbit-setup-guide
Description: Citation-network discovery works best when Zotero remains the durable library of record.



<GuideMeta>
  Beginner · 45–60 min · Zotero account with 3–5 seed papers, web sync enabled
</GuideMeta>

*The most important papers are found by following citations, not by keyword luck.*

## Overview [#overview]

Research Rabbit is a citation network discovery tool for the literature review process. This guide covers setup, Zotero integration, and practices for expanding your literature collection through paper recommendations. Research Rabbit offers a free tier sufficient for most individual systematic reviews and an RR+ tier for larger reviews. Because seat limits and tier caps change, check [Research Rabbit's pricing page](https://www.researchrabbit.ai/pricing) for current terms.

Benefits:

* Visual citation network mapping
* AI-assisted paper recommendations
* Seamless Zotero integration
* Forward/backward citation discovery
* Collection sharing and collaboration

## Step 1: account creation [#step-1-account-creation]

### 1.1 sign up for Research Rabbit [#11-sign-up-for-research-rabbit]

1. Visit [researchrabbit.ai](https://researchrabbit.ai)
2. Click &#x2A;*"Sign Up"**
3. Connect with your Zotero account

## Step 2: understanding Research Rabbit interface [#step-2-understanding-research-rabbit-interface]

### 2.1 main dashboard [#21-main-dashboard]

Collections Panel (Left):

* Your collections of papers
* Shared collections from collaborators
* Recently viewed collections

Network Visualization (Center):

* Citation network graph
* Papers as nodes, citations as connections
* Color coding by publication year or other metrics

Paper Details Panel (Right):

* Selected paper metadata
* Abstract and publication details
* Related papers suggestions

### 2.2 features overview [#22-features-overview]

Citation Maps:

* Visual representation of how papers cite each other
* Identify influential papers (central nodes)
* Discover research clusters and themes

Similar Papers:

* AI recommendations based on content similarity
* "More like this" functionality
* Semantic search capabilities

Discovery Feed:

* Personalized paper recommendations
* Based on your collections and interests
* Weekly digest of new relevant papers

## Step 3: Zotero integration [#step-3-zotero-integration]

### 3.1 prerequisites [#31-prerequisites]

Before connecting, ensure:

* Zotero desktop app is installed and running
* Zotero web sync is enabled and working
* You have at least 3-5 seed papers in a Zotero collection
* Your Zotero account is active and synced

### 3.2 connect Research Rabbit to Zotero [#32-connect-research-rabbit-to-zotero]

Step 1: Initial connection

1. In Research Rabbit, click the &#x2A;*"+"** button to create a new collection
2. Select &#x2A;*"Import from Zotero"**
3. Sign in with your Zotero credentials when prompted
4. Authorize Research Rabbit to access your Zotero library

Step 2: Import your first collection

1. Choose a Zotero collection to import (start with seed papers)
2. Give your Research Rabbit collection a descriptive name
   * Example: "SR2025\_AI\_Education\_Seeds"
3. Click &#x2A;*"Import"** and wait for processing
4. Verify all papers imported correctly

### 3.3 bi-directional sync setup [#33-bi-directional-sync-setup]

Import Settings:

* Choose "Sync with Zotero" for bi-directional updates
* Set sync frequency (recommended: manual for better control)
* Select metadata fields to sync (title, authors, abstract, DOI)

Sync Verification:

1. Add a paper to your Zotero collection
2. In Research Rabbit, click &#x2A;*"Re-sync with Zotero"**
3. Verify the new paper appears
4. Test reverse sync by adding a discovery in Research Rabbit
5. Click &#x2A;*"Sync to Zotero"** to push changes back

## Step 4: literature discovery strategies [#step-4-literature-discovery-strategies]

### 4.1 starting with seed papers [#41-starting-with-seed-papers]

Suggested workflow:

1. Import seed collection: Start with 3-7 high-quality papers
2. Explore citation network: Click on papers to see their connections
3. Identify clusters: Look for dense citation groups
4. Find review papers: Central nodes are often influential reviews
5. Discover recent work: Papers citing your seeds

### 4.2 citation network analysis [#42-citation-network-analysis]

Reading the Network:

* Central nodes: Highly influential papers
* Bridge papers: Connect different research streams
* Isolated clusters: Potentially different approaches
* Color coding: Usually represents publication year

Navigation Tips:

* Double-click papers to center the view
* Use zoom controls for different network perspectives
* Filter by publication year to see evolution
* Hover for quick paper details

### 4.3 AI-assisted recommendations [#43-ai-assisted-recommendations]

"Similar Papers" Feature:

1. Select any paper in your collection
2. Click &#x2A;*"Find similar papers"** in the right panel
3. Review AI suggestions based on:
   * Content similarity (abstracts, keywords)
   * Citation patterns
   * Author overlap
   * Journal similarity

Discovery Feed:

* Check your personalized feed weekly
* Review papers recommended based on your collections
* Add interesting papers with one click
* Flag papers for later review

## Step 5: collection management [#step-5-collection-management]

### 5.1 organizing your research [#51-organizing-your-research]

Recommended Collection Structure:

```
Research Collections:
├── SR2025_Seeds_Original          # Initial seed papers
├── SR2025_Citations_Forward       # Papers citing your seeds
├── SR2025_Citations_Backward      # Papers cited by your seeds
├── SR2025_Similar_AI              # AI recommendations
├── SR2025_Reviews_Found           # Review papers discovered
└── SR2025_Final_Curated          # Papers passing initial screening
```

Collection Naming Best Practices:

* Use project prefix (SR2025\_)
* Include discovery method
* Keep names under 30 characters
* Use consistent abbreviations

### 5.2 paper management [#52-paper-management]

Adding Papers:

* Click &#x2A;*"+"** in any collection
* Search by DOI, title, or authors
* Import from BibTeX/RIS files
* Bulk import from databases

Paper Status Tracking:

* Use color coding for review status
* Add personal notes and ratings
* Tag papers by themes or methodology
* Mark papers for team review

## Step 6: advanced discovery techniques [#step-6-advanced-discovery-techniques]

### 6.1 author following [#61-author-following]

1. Click on author names in papers
2. View their publication history
3. Click &#x2A;*"Follow Author"** for notifications
4. Get alerts when they publish new work

### 6.2 journal monitoring [#62-journal-monitoring]

1. Identify the main journals from your collection
2. Set up journal alerts
3. Get notifications for new issues
4. Track special issues and calls for papers

### 6.3 keyword-based discovery [#63-keyword-based-discovery]

1. Use the search function with key terms
2. Combine multiple search terms
3. Use boolean operators (AND, OR, NOT)
4. Save searches for regular updates

## Step 7: collaboration features [#step-7-collaboration-features]

### 7.1 sharing collections [#71-sharing-collections]

1. Select collection to share
2. Click &#x2A;*"Share"** button
3. Set permissions:
   * View only
   * Comment and suggest
   * Full edit access
4. Share via email or direct link

### 7.2 team workflows [#72-team-workflows]

For Systematic Review Teams:

* Supervisor creates master collection
* Team members have "suggest" access
* Teams hold weekly review meetings to evaluate suggestions
* Final curation remains with lead reviewer

## Step 8: export and backup [#step-8-export-and-backup]

### 8.1 export options [#81-export-options]

To Zotero (Primary Method):

1. Click &#x2A;*"Sync to Zotero"** in collection view
2. Choose target Zotero collection
3. Select papers to sync (or sync all)
4. Verify sync completed in Zotero

Alternative Export Formats:

1. Select papers to export
2. Click &#x2A;*"Export"** button
3. Choose format:
   * BibTeX (.bib) - for LaTeX users
   * RIS (.ris) - for EndNote, Mendeley
   * CSV - for spreadsheet analysis
   * JSON - for custom processing

### 8.2 backup strategy [#82-backup-strategy]

Weekly Backup Routine:

1. Export collections to BibTeX
2. Save search history
3. Document discovery strategies used
4. Note any technical issues or limitations

## Step 9: research workflow integration [#step-9-research-workflow-integration]

### Daily discovery routine [#daily-discovery-routine]

Build a sustainable literature monitoring workflow:

Recommended Weekly Pattern:

1. Monday: Check discovery feed for new papers
2. Wednesday: Explore citations of newly added papers
3. Friday: Sync all discoveries to Zotero
4. Weekend: Curate and screen new additions

### Pre-research checklist [#pre-research-checklist]

Before starting your systematic review:

* [ ] Create Research Rabbit account
* [ ] Connect to Zotero successfully
* [ ] Import seed papers collection
* [ ] Explore citation network for 30+ minutes
* [ ] Find 5-10 related papers as initial corpus
* [ ] Sync discoveries back to Zotero
* [ ] Verify bidirectional sync is working

Course participants can see these discovery strategies demonstrated in [Session 2](/docs/case-studies/systematic-reviews/session-2-ai-powered-practice), including the Research Rabbit integration and Q\&A.

## Troubleshooting [#troubleshooting]

### Common issues [#common-issues]

#### Zotero sync not working [#zotero-sync-not-working]

Symptoms: Papers don't appear in Zotero after sync

Solutions:

* Verify Zotero web sync is active
* Check internet connection
* Try logging out/in of both platforms
* Use BibTeX export as a fallback

#### Partial import issues [#partial-import-issues]

Symptoms: Only some papers import from Zotero

Solutions:

* Check for duplicate DOIs
* Verify all papers have complete metadata
* Import smaller collections (\<50 papers)
* Import missing papers individually

#### Citation network not loading [#citation-network-not-loading]

Symptoms: Network visualization fails to display

Solutions:

* Refresh the page
* Check browser compatibility (Chrome recommended)
* Clear browser cache and cookies
* Try with fewer papers in collection

#### Poor paper recommendations [#poor-paper-recommendations]

Symptoms: AI suggestions are not relevant

Solutions:

* Ensure seed papers are high-quality and on-topic
* Add more diverse seed papers
* Use more specific search terms

## Best practices for systematic reviews [#best-practices-for-systematic-reviews]

### 1. Start small, expand systematically [#1-start-small-expand-systematically]

* Begin with 3-5 high-quality seed papers
* Expand in focused waves rather than bulk discovery
* Maintain quality over quantity

### 2. Use multiple discovery methods [#2-use-multiple-discovery-methods]

* Forward citations (who cites your seeds)
* Backward citations (who your seeds cite)
* AI similarity recommendations
* Author following for prolific researchers

### 3. Document your discovery process [#3-document-your-discovery-process]

* Keep notes on search strategies
* Record date ranges explored
* Note which methods yielded best results
* Track sources of papers you found

### 4. Maintain quality control [#4-maintain-quality-control]

* Not all recommendations will be relevant
* Apply inclusion criteria consistently
* Use Zotero for final curation decisions
* Research Rabbit is for discovery, not final selection

### 5. Regular maintenance [#5-regular-maintenance]

* Clean out irrelevant papers from collections
* Review and refine your discovery strategies
* Sync with Zotero regularly to avoid conflicts

## Quick reference [#quick-reference]

### Essential keyboard shortcuts [#essential-keyboard-shortcuts]

* `Space`: Pan the network view
* `+/-`: Zoom in/out
* `Ctrl+A`: Select all papers
* `Ctrl+Z`: Undo last action
* `F`: Fit network to screen

### Useful URLs [#useful-urls]

* Main platform: [researchrabbit.ai](https://researchrabbit.ai)
* Feature requests: Research Rabbit Discord community
* Academic tutorials: YouTube Research Rabbit channel

## Integration with Zotero [#integration-with-zotero]

* Primary integration for bibliography management
* Bi-directional sync capabilities
* Use Zotero for final paper curation