THE NEED FOR A THEORY OF CITING

Metaphorically speaking, citations are frozen footprints in the landscape of scholarly achievement; footprints which bear witness to the passage of ideas. From footprints it is possible to deduce direction; from the configuration and depth of the imprint it should be possible to construct a picture of those who have passed by, whilst the distribution and variety furnish clues as to whether the advance was orderly and purposive. So it is with citations in respect of the growth of human knowledge; they give substantive expression to the process of innovation, and, if properly marshalled, can provide the researcher with a forensic tool of seductive power and versatility.