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Research Impact & Scholarly Credentials

Information, tools, and suggestions for documenting the significance of scholarly credentials and accomplishments.

What is Book Impact and How Can I Determine It?

scholarly building atop publicationBook impact can include reviews of a book, both scholarly and popular, publisher influence, sales figures (when available), and numbers of libraries that provide access to the title (in print and/or electronic format). In some cases, the number of libraries providing access is not enough evaluative information but, instead, which specific libraries provide access to the title as well.

Tools for Determining Book Impact - Which Libraries Own My Book

To search WorldCAT:

  • In the "Advanced Search" tab, search by title or ISSN, and limit to "Books."
  • Identify the correct work from the search result.
  • Note the number associted with the "Libraried Worldwide" link. Select "Libraries Worldwide" link, followed by "Display All Libraries" to receive complete library holdings.  The "Libraries Worldwide" link only displays local libraries.
  • Email, print, or export results.
  • Note: Keep in mind you may see multiple record listings of the same book in the search result. This may be due to format differences (e.g. print, ebook) and/or differences in cataloging practices. Be sure to recognize and count those when necessary.

Example of identifying the number of libraries worldwide that own title.

Tools for Determining Book Impact - Where My Book Has Been Reviewed

The following may be useful if your work caught the attention of other, related disciplines: