Will linking to my citation sources help google recognize them / credit my places account?

[adriandg]

Or does google treat this behavior the same way as a reciprocal link and discount any credibility of the citation?

[DanDeceuster]

I believe what you are asking is if it is ok to link to those who are linking to you to help increase the authority of that page, which in turn can help increase your own authority.

Keep in mind Google does not discount reciprocal links. Google warns against excessive reciprocal links. They cannot stop reciprocal linking from happening as that's the nature of the web. Two sites will undoubtedly link to each other at some point without setting up some kind of scheme.

I wouldn't make a habit of linking out to everyone who links to you though. If you examine your backlinks and find some new site you like, then sure, link to it, but don't just link to everyone who links to you.

[adriandg]

Nope, not what i was asking. i was asking about citations, about google local. the sites i am linking out to don't necessarily link back to me, often they just have a business citation about my page.

[DanDeceuster]

Oh I see. Well I wouldn't worry about it. Google rarely treats reciprocal links badly, so I highly doubt they would hurt you for linking to a page that only mentions you without a link.