Predatory publishing

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Predatory publishing is an exploitative academic publishing business model that involves charging publication fees to authors without providing the editorial and publishing services associated with legitimate journals. The term was coined by Jeffrey Beall, a librarian at the University of Colorado, who created a list of potential, possible, or probable predatory scholarly open-access publishers.

Characteristics

Predatory publishers typically exhibit several common characteristics:

• Lack of peer review or inadequate peer review processes.
• Aggressive solicitation of manuscripts from researchers.
• Misleading information about the journal's impact factor and indexing.
• False claims about the editorial board members.
• High publication fees that are often not disclosed until after the paper is accepted.

Impact on Academia

Predatory publishing undermines the integrity of academic research by allowing substandard or fraudulent research to be published. This can lead to the dissemination of incorrect or misleading information, which can have serious consequences, especially in fields like medicine and public health.

Identifying Predatory Journals

Researchers can identify predatory journals by:

• Checking if the journal is listed in reputable databases like PubMed or Web of Science.
• Reviewing the journal's editorial board and verifying the credentials of its members.
• Looking for transparency in the journal's peer review process and publication fees.

Controversies

The concept of predatory publishing has been controversial. Some argue that the term is too broadly applied and that it unfairly targets new or less established journals. Others believe that the focus should be on improving the quality and transparency of all academic publishing.

See Also

• Open access
• Peer review
• Impact factor
• Scientific misconduct
• Academic publishing