How to Use Scite

Getting started with Scite

In this guide, you'll learn how to use Scite to analyse citations in scientific papers. By the end, you'll be able to quickly determine how studies relate to each other, whether they support, contradict, or merely mention findings.

Step 1: Sign up and set up

1. Go to scite.ai.
2. Click on the "Sign Up" button in the top right corner.
3. Fill in your information and choose the free tier to start. You can also sign up using Google or ORCID.
4. Confirm your email address by clicking the link in the confirmation email.

Step 2: Your first citation analysis

1. Once logged in, enter a paper's title, DOI, or author in the search bar at the top of the page.
2. Select the paper from the search results.
3. On the paper's page, you'll see a summary of citations. Look for the "Citations" section where you'll find the breakdown of supporting, contrasting, and mentioning citations.
4. Click on each category to view the specific studies that fall under each type. This will give you insights into how the paper is perceived in the academic community.

Step 3: Get better results

1. Use the filters on the left sidebar to narrow down your search by type of citation, publication year, or specific journals.
2. Explore the "Related Papers" section to discover other relevant studies that cite the paper you are analysing.
3. Save papers to your library by clicking the "Save" button for easy access later.

Pro tip

Use the browser extension for Scite. It allows you to see citation information directly while browsing papers on platforms like PubMed or Google Scholar, saving you time.

Common mistake to avoid

A common mistake is overlooking the citation categories. Make sure to check all three types of citations (supporting, contrasting, mentioning) to get a comprehensive understanding of how the paper is cited.