What can you use it for?

Altmetric Explorer is a powerful tool for making the societal impact of research visible. You can use it to add context to narrative CVs, grant applications, and outreach reports, showing how your work is gaining traction beyond academia. You can analyse public discussions on specific scientific topics and see how research is referenced in news and social media. It is also a useful tool to track policy impact, identifying which policy documents or government reports cite your research.

How does it work?

1. Accessing Altmetric Explorer:

Log in with your UvA-ID or AUAS-ID via Altmetric Explorer.

2. Running your first search:

By default, the entire database is displayed. Use the search menu (Quick or Advanced Search) to refine your query by institution, author, or specific works, such as using Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs) for your publications.      

3. Navigating the interface:

The landing page contains several tabs:

• Overview tab: Key metrics for the query, including scores and mentions across source
• Mentions tab: A list of all places where the research output has been mentioned
• Sources tab: A breakdown of the types of sources discussing the research
• Dates tab: A timeline of mentions
• Details tab: Specific details for each mention, including the source, date, and type
• Demographics tab: Geographic and institutional breakdown of users engaging with the research, when available

A few things to keep in mind

Metrics are not normalized by field or year. Public attention varies widely by topic and over time, so these scores should not be used to directly compare research outputs or researchers. Also, coverage is broad but not complete. Some key sources may not be indexed, and publications without a DOI may not be tracked as effectively, leading to incomplete data. Moreover, research can have societal impact in ways that are simply harder to measure. If your research doesn’t appear in Altmetric Explorer, it doesn’t necessarily mean it hasn’t made an impact.

Altmetric Explorer can offer a valuable perspective on how research and society interact. Want to know how your work resonates beyond academia? Dive into the data and explore for yourself!

Welcome to the ‘Library Research Hack,’ the Library’s feature designed to take your research to the next level. Whether you’re a student or a researcher, each month you’ll discover a new tool or application that enhances your research efficiency, effectiveness, and fun. From databases that expand your horizons to essential research identifiers and powerful software for data visualization, we explain why these resources are indispensable and guide you on how to get started.

Stay tuned – we'll be back in February with a new hack on F-UJI!