Some "Abstract" Thinking: New Study Shows that Abstracts and Tables of Contents Increase Citations

Should Your Law Review Article Have an Abstract and Table of Contents?
by Lee Petherbridge & Christopher A. Cotropia

The empirical study by Petherbridge and Cotropia found that law review articles that include "just an abstract are cited on average roughly 50% more, and articles that include just a table of contents roughly 30% more.  Including both document elements corresponds to the largest increase in citation, over 70%."

Hat tip to the WisBlawg of the University of Wisconsin Law Library for their recent post, linking to the article on SSRN.