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Generative AI Features in Major Databases & Platforms

Learn about Generative AI-powered features currently available to the Rutgers University Libraries community in major e-resources databases and platforms.

JSTOR Beta Research Tool

JSTOR has introduced a Beta Research Tool on its platform with two different aspects: 1) Searching for content and 2) Evaluating and exploring content. As of May 2025, the tool works with journal articles, book chapters, and research reports found on JSTOR. It does not interact with images, audio, video, or text-based primary sources.

To access the Research Tool, access JSTOR through Rutgers University Libraries (you can use our JSTOR database page link to make sure you are authenticated as a Rutgers user) and then create (or log into) a free JSTOR personal account.

Searching for Content

After you sign into your personal account, when you run a JSTOR search, you will see a toggle at the top of your results that will allow you to switch from "Keyword results" to "Experimental BETA":

JSTOR search results with the Experimental BETA option selected

The Experimental BETA search is designed to give better replies to natural language queries than the traditional keyword search does. It returns the top 25 journal articles, book chapters, and/or research reports that Rutgers can access that match your search query. If the toggle gets "stuck" and won't let you switch from one to the other, we recommend refreshing the page.

Evaluating and Exploring Content

When you access a journal article, book chapter, or research report on JSTOR, you will see an option in the upper right corner to toggle the Research Tool "On" or "Off." When the Research Tool is "On," you will see the Research Tool as a sidebar. You can select from predetermined prompts (What is this about?, Show related content, or Recommended topics) or enter a free-text question. Answers are drawn from the full text of the document being viewed:
A JSTOR article with the research tool displayed in the side panel. The user has selected the prompt "What is this about?" and the tool has provided an answer.
If you select "Show Related Content," JSTOR will display links to other documents in JSTOR that it calculates are related to the current document.
 
Interactions with the tool are not used to train LLMs. JSTOR advises users not to enter personal information into the tool, as JSTOR will be reviewing de-identified conversation histories in order to improve the tool. Please see JSTOR's documentation for more information about the Beta Research Tool.