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Research Impact

Article Metrics

 
The Metrics Toolkit defines article citations as follows - "The number of times that a journal article or preprint has appeared in the reference list of other articles or books.". Even though citation counts are regularly used by scholars, it is important to know how use these metrics appropriately. The Metrics Toolkit provides an excellent overview.
 
  • Citations can be used to measure of research impact.
  • Using citations to measure research impact works the best in the STEM research fields.
  • Typically, the citation rate for an article is at its highest level two to six years following publication.
  • It is not recommended to compare citation rates between research disciplines.

 

Finding Article-Level Metrics

1. Web of Science

  • Access the Web of Science database.
  • Once you have accessed the Web of Science, in the documents section add the title of the journal article you want to explore and then click on the search button.
  • If the article is indexed in the Web of Science, it will appear on the results screen.
  • The number of times the article was cited will be displayed in the record. However, there are three more options available where you can learn more specific citation information - Analyze Results, Citation Report and click on the title of the article.
  • The Web of Science has a feature called Create citation alert where the researcher can receive notification whenever the article has been cited.

2. Scopus

  • Access the Scopus database.
  • Once you have accessed Scopus, in the documents section add the title of the journal article you want to explore and click on the search button.
  • If the article is indexed in Scopus, it will appear on the results screen.
  • The number of times the article was cited will be displayed in the record. However, there are two more options to discover.
  • If you select the Citation overview link you will find more detailed information.
  • Next return to the results page and select the article title. Selected citation information will be displayed under the article author(s). To view all the article metrics select the View all metrics link or scroll down the web page. The record will include PlumX metrics and a link to the PlumX details.

3. Google Scholar

  • Access the Google Scholar database.
  • In the search box add the title of the journal article you want to explore and click on the search button.
  • If the article is retrieved by Google Scholar, the record will state the number of times the article was cited.
  • To set up an alert to be notified when the article is cited in another scholarly work click on the Cited by link.
  • One the next screen select the Create alert option.
  • Finally add the email address for the alter.

4. Altmetrics

Altmetrics are also article level metrics. View the Evaluating Research Impact Using Altmetrics guide for more information.