Map Backward Citation Searches to Their Source Articles

Preserve the referring article and reference label

For each seed article selected for backward citation searching, identify the reference list and save each entry with the seed identifier and local reference label. An XML document can contain more than one reference list, including lists associated with parts of an article. Record which sections the review searched and how supplementary references were handled.

Preserve the raw citation and resolve its target separately. Some entries refer to software, books, datasets, or reports. Apply the review's eligibility rules at screening after creating a retrievable candidate. Retain references that lack a DOI, since restricting extraction to DOI-bearing entries can systematically miss older or nonjournal material.

Reconcile two hypothetical seed papers

Seed A supplies 30 distinct candidate works and seed B supplies 25. Eight appear in both lists. The search yields 55 seed-to-work links and 47 distinct candidate works. If 12 of the 47 were already screened from the database search, 35 remain new for screening. Those 12 should retain their backward-citation provenance even though their existing screening decisions can be reused when appropriate.

Keep the search date, seed selection rule, resolution decisions, and seed-to-work mapping in the archive. A reviewer can then reproduce why a paper entered the review and identify all dependent candidates if a seed article is later corrected or excluded.

JATS bibliographic reference list documentation

Related worksheet: Search-alert reconciliation worksheet.

Source checked on 5 November 2026.