%0 Journal Article
%@ 1438-8871
%I JMIR Publications
%V 23
%N 12
%P e34051
%T Citation Advantage of Promoted Articles in a Cross-Publisher Distribution Platform: 36-Month Follow-up to a Randomized Controlled Trial
%A Kudlow,Paul
%A Brown,Tashauna
%A Eysenbach,Gunther
%+ Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, 250 College Street, Toronto, ON, M5T 1R8, Canada, 1 416 480 6100, paul.kudlow@gmail.com
%K knowledge translation
%K knowledge
%K dissemination
%K digital knowledge translation
%K digital publishing
%K e-publishing
%K open access
%K scientometrics
%K infometrics
%D 2021
%7 10.12.2021
%9 Original Paper
%J J Med Internet Res
%G English
%X Background: There are limited evidence-based strategies that have been shown to increase the rate at which peer-reviewed articles are cited. In a previously reported randomized controlled trial, we demonstrated that promotion of article links in an online cross-publisher distribution platform (TrendMD) persistently augments citation rates after 12 months, leading to a statistically significant 50% increase in citations relative to the control. Objective: This study aims to investigate if the citation advantage of promoted articles upholds after 36 months. Methods: A total of 3200 published articles in 64 peer-reviewed journals across 8 subject areas were block randomized at the subject level to either the TrendMD group (n=1600) or the control group (n=1600) of the study. Articles were promoted in the TrendMD Network for 6 months. We compared the citation rates in both groups after 36 months. Results: At 36 months, we found the citation advantage endured; articles randomized to TrendMD showed a 28% increase in mean citations relative to the control. The difference in mean citations at 36 months for articles randomized to TrendMD versus the control was 10.52 (95% CI 3.79-17.25) and was statistically significant (P=.001). Conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first randomized controlled trial to demonstrate how a postpublication article promotion intervention can be used to persistently augment citations of peer-reviewed articles. TrendMD is an efficient digital tool for knowledge translation and dissemination to targeted audiences to facilitate the uptake of research. 
%M 34890350
%R 10.2196/34051
%U https://www.jmir.org/2021/12/e34051
%U https://doi.org/10.2196/34051
%U http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/34890350