The strain on scientific publishing.
Name
qss_a_00327.pdf
Description
visibility:open
Size
2.43 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
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Resource type
Journal article
Date published
September 3, 2024
Abstract
Scientists are increasingly overwhelmed by the volume of articles being published. Total articles indexed in Scopus and Web of Science have grown exponentially in recent years; in 2022 the article total was ∼47% higher than in 2016, which has outpaced the limited growth – if any – in the number of practising scientists. Thus, publication workload per scientist has increased dramatically. We define this problem as “the strain on scientific publishing.” To analyse this strain, we present five data-driven metrics showing publisher growth, processing times, and citation behaviours. We draw these data from web scrapes, and from publishers through their websites or upon request. Specific groups have disproportionately grown in their articles published per year, contributing to this strain. Some publishers enabled this growth by hosting “special issues” with reduced turnaround times. Given pressures on researchers to “publish or perish” to compete for funding, this strain was likely amplified by these offers to publish more articles. We also observed widespread year-over-year inflation of journal impact factors coinciding with this strain, which risks confusing quality signals. Such exponential growth cannot be sustained. The metrics we define here should enable this evolving 32 conversation to reach actionable solutions to address the strain on scientific publishing.
Project(s)
Priority 0: Science Services and Laboratories
Journal title
Quantitative Science Studies
Publisher
MIT Press
Place of publication
Cambridge, Mass. US
eISSN
2641-3337
Date accepted
July 28, 2024
Official URL
Rights statement
In Copyright
Additional information
IF = 4.1 (2023)