Resolve Internal Cross-References in an Article

Follow the target identifier

Find the sentence containing the figure, table, or note callout. In JATS, an xref can point to an identified element within the document. Preserve the displayed label, reference type, and target identifier. Resolve within the same article, because labels such as T1 or F2 often recur in other papers.

Compare the target element with the displayed callout. A reference to a figure can lead to a multi-panel figure, and one callout can refer to multiple objects. Record the panel, caption, or footnote needed for the specific claim. When the target is absent, consult the rendered article and identify the mismatch explicitly rather than silently picking a similarly numbered object.

Reconcile a hypothetical link audit

A paper contains 24 callouts. Twenty link to single targets, three link to two targets each, and one has a broken target. The audit therefore sees 26 resolved target links across 23 resolved callouts. Reporting 26/24 as a success fraction would mix links and callouts. At the callout level, 23/24 resolve, approximately 95.8%.

Store each resolved edge in a separate row with source sentence, callout identifier, target identifier, and article key. This lets another analyst trace a claim back to precisely the panel or table supporting it, even when several sentences reuse the same figure.

JATS cross-reference element reference

Related worksheet: Derived figure provenance worksheet.

Source checked on 5 November 2026.