Frequently Asked Questions

Citation tracking is a method for determining how often and where other researchers have cited a research article (or other scholarly work). In other words, it helps you follow the “conversation” around a work and understand how important or influential it has been in its field.  Citation tracking can help you find related articles for your own research, trace the evolution of ideas or theories, and identify influential authors. 

Some databases offer citation tracking tools: 

• Web of Science and Scopus - show citation counts and allows you to sort by the number of citations. 
• PubMed and PubMed Central - shows other articles which have cited the article you are viewing on the right side menu. 
• SciFinder - "Get Citing" feature shows the number of citations of a resource. 
• SciVal - Performance data and visualization tools.
• Googe Scholar - displays the number of citations beneath the article link. 
• CrossRef - allows you to track citations using an article's DOI
• Other databases - look for tools such as "Cited by" or "Times cited" for individual articles. 

If you have any questions or need help with article metrics or citation tracking, contact Scholarly Communications LIbrarian Sonya Durney.