scholarly journals How is open access publishing going down with early career researchers? An international, multi-disciplinary study

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Nicholas ◽  
Hamid R. Jamali ◽  
Eti Herman ◽  
Jie Xu ◽  
Chérifa Boukacem-Zeghmouri ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Open Access ◽  
Career Progression ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Open Access Publishing ◽  
Openness To Change ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Early Career Researchers ◽  
Scholarly Communications ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Many

This study explores early career researchers’ (ECRs) appreciation and utilisation of open access (OA) publishing. The evidence reported here results from a questionnaire-based international survey with 1600 participants, which forms the second leg and final year of a four year long, mixed methods, longitudinal study that sought to discover whether ECRs will be the harbingers of change when it comes to scholarly communications. Proceeding from the notion that today’s neophyte researchers, believed to hold millennial values of openness to change, transparency and sharing, may be best placed to power the take-up of OA publishing, the study sought to discover: the extent to which ECRs publish OA papers; the main reasons for their doing or not doing so; and what were thought to be the broader advantages and disadvantages of OA publishing. The survey data is presented against a backdrop of the literature-based evidence on the subject, with the interview stage data providing contextualisation and qualitative depth. The findings show that the majority of ECRs published in OA journals and this varied by discipline and country. Most importantly, there were more advantages and fewer disadvantages to OA publishing, which may be indicative of problems to do with cost and availability, rather than reputational factors. Among the many reasons cited for publishing OA the most important one is societal, although OA is seen as especially benefiting ECRs in career progression. Cost is plainly considered the main downside.

scholarly journals Early Career Researchers between Predatory Publishing and Academic Excellence: The Views and Behaviours of the Millennials

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 56-65
Author(s):  
David Nicholas ◽  
◽  
Eti Herman ◽  
Anthony Watkinson ◽  
Jie Xu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Open Access ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Open Access Publishing ◽  
Academic Excellence ◽  
Predatory Journals ◽  
Early Career Researchers ◽  
Arts And Humanities ◽  
Scholarly Communications ◽  
Predatory Publishing

The paper draws on evidence of predatory publishing obtained from the 4 year-long Harbingers research study of the changing scholarly communication attitudes and behaviour of early career researchers (ECRs). The project featured longitudinal interviews for its first 3 years with 116 ECRs researching science and social sciences who came from China, France, Malaysia, Poland, Spain, UK and USA. The interview data provided the building blocks for a questionnaire survey in the 4th year, which obtained 1600 responses from a global audience, which included arts and humanities ECRs and those from Russia. These studies investigated predatory publishing as part of general questioning about scholarly communications, in other words, in context. The main finding from the interview study were: 1) ECRs generally do not publish in predatory journals; 2) they only allude to them lightly and mainly in the context of open access publishing; 3) they no longer acquaint all open access publishing with predatory journals. The questionnaire found that, as in the case of the interviews, complaints that open access is low quality publishing are diminishing, however, this positivity has been partly offset by increased concerns about the dangers of predatory journals.

scholarly journals Almost Halfway There: An Analysis of the Open Access Behaviors of Academic Librarians

2011 ◽  
Vol 72 (5) ◽  
pp. 443-453 ◽  
Author(s):  
Holly Mercer
Keyword(s):  
Open Access ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Open Access Publishing ◽  
Academic Librarians ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Science Literature ◽  
Scholarly Publications ◽  
Scholarly Communications

Academic librarians are increasingly expected to advocate for scholarly communications reforms such as open access to scholarly publications, yet librarians do not always practice what they preach. Previous research examined librarian attitudes toward open access, whereas this article presents results of a study of open access publishing and self-archiving behaviors of academic librarians. Following an analysis of open access to library and information science literature in 2008, several strategies to encourage academic librarians to continue to embrace open access behaviors are discussed.

Millennial researchers in a metric-driven scholarly world: An international study

2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 263-274 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Nicholas ◽  
Eti Herman ◽  
Hamid R Jamali ◽  
Abdullah Abrizah ◽  
Cherifa Boukacem-Zeghmouri ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Millennial Generation ◽  
International Study ◽  
Research Impact ◽  
Early Career ◽  
International Survey ◽  
Attitudes And Practices ◽  
Early Career Researchers ◽  
Scholarly Communications ◽  
Waking Up

Abstract The study Investigates the attitudes and practices of early career researchers (ECRs) in regard to citation-based metrics and altmetrics, providing the findings in the light of what might be expected of the millennial generation and in the context of what we already know about researchers in today’s ‘culture of counting’ governed scholarly world. The data were gathered by means of an international survey, informed by a preceding, 3-year qualitative study of 120 ECRs from 7 countries, which obtained 1,600 responses. The main conclusions are: 1, citation indicators play a central and multi-purpose role in scholarly communications; 2, altmetrics are not so popular or widely used, but ECRs are waking up to some of their merits, most notably, discovering the extent to which their papers obtain traction and monitoring impact; 3, there is a strong likelihood that ECRs are going to have to grapple with both citation-based metrics and altmetrics, mainly in order to demonstrate research impact; 4, the Chinese are the most metric using nation, largely because of governmental regulations.

OpenCon2014 in Washington DC, November 2014. Early Career Researchers and Open Access Advocacy

2015 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 14-16
Author(s):  
Matt Gallagher
Keyword(s):  
Open Access ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Narrative Approach ◽  
Washington Dc ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Early Career Researchers ◽  
Experience Levels ◽  
The Right ◽  
Academic Resources

Purpose – This paper aims to give an overview of OpenCon 2014, organized by the Right to Research Coalition, SPARC (The Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition) and an organizing committee of students and early career researchers from around the world that took place between the 14th and 17th of November 2014 in Washington DC. Design/methodology/approach – A narrative approach was used to describe events. Findings – OpenCon 2014 is an exciting new conference that targets early career librarians and researchers who are involved with and/or interested in aspects of the open-access movement. It is attempting to galvanize the upcoming generation of scholars to demand more of traditional publishing models by bringing together a selective group that spans diverse interests and experience levels. Originality/value – This report outlines the author's takeaways and opinions concerning the events of the conference, as well as identifies some of the themes and issues that were relevant to librarians in research institutions.

scholarly journals Numbers that tell a story: Measuring the impact of open access books

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christina Emery ◽  
Mithu Lucraft ◽  
Agata Morka ◽  
Matteo Prandi ◽  
Ros Pyne
Keyword(s):  
Open Access ◽  
Book Publishing ◽  
Research Impact ◽  
White Paper ◽  
Career Progression ◽  
Book Publisher ◽  
Central Theme ◽  
Lack Of Information ◽  
Scholarly Communications ◽  
The Impact

Open access book publishing is gaining momentum, with more than 10,000 titles published worldwide. But compared to the overall number of academic books that are produced, this is still a small percentage. With much research on the benefits to society from open access publication, what can we do to encourage more book authors to choose open access?Springer Nature is a leading academic book publisher – to date, we have published more than 550 open access books since launching OA book options in 2012. Feedback from our OA book authors has shown that metrics are important to them, as the data helps demonstrate the impact of their research to funders, and also supports conversations with their institutions for career progression. However, as highlighted in our white paper ‘The OA effect: How does open access affect the usage of scholarly books?’, some authors feel that there is a lack of information around metrics and book performance. This information may be critically important in helping authors consider the benefits of choosing to publish their book open access.Authors also state that one of the main obstacles to publishing more OA books through the gold route is funding; access to which varies globally and by discipline – a central theme that emerged at our researcher event during Academic Book Week 2018.Meanwhile, funders interviewed for ‘The OA Effect’ told us that they were keen to understand the impact of the OA books they had supported, but few had actually done so; many commented on the difficulties of measuring the impact of research.  In light of these findings, in 2018 we piloted a new “impact report”, based on metrics for an individual funder of OA books. The outcomes of this pilot impact report project will help the scholarly communications community to better understand how publishers can inform funders, authors and their institutions about the impact of their research, and on a wider scale. What are the challenges of sharing the benefits of OA book publishing with researchers across different disciplines, and how can we overcome these challenges?Our poster shows excerpts from the pilot impact report, quotes from authors and funders about research impact, and considers next steps.

scholarly journals The Scholarly Communications Needs of Faculty: An Evidence-Based Foundation for the Development of Library Services

2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 4 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diane Dawson
Keyword(s):  
Open Access ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Open Access Publishing ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
University Library ◽  
Open Access Journals ◽  
Scholarly Communications ◽  
Communications Services ◽  
Article Processing Charges ◽  
The University

Abstract Objectives – This exploratory research seeks to broadly understand the publishing behaviours and attitudes of faculty, across all disciplines, at the University of Saskatchewan in response to the growing significance of open access publishing and archiving. The objective for seeking this understanding is to discover the current and emerging needs of researchers in order to determine if scholarly communications services are in demand here and, if so, to provide an evidence-based foundation for the potential future development of such a program of services at the University Library, University of Saskatchewan. Methods – All faculty members at the University of Saskatchewan were sent personalized email invitations to participate in a short online survey during the month of November 2012. The survey was composed of four parts: Current Research and Publishing Activities/Behaviours; Open Access Behaviours, Awareness, and Attitudes; Needs Assessment; and Demographics. Descriptive and inferential statistics were calculated. Results – The survey elicited 291 complete responses – a 21.9% response rate. Results suggest that faculty already have a high level of support for the open access movement, and considerable awareness of it. However, there remains a lack of knowledge regarding their rights as authors, a low familiarity with tools available to support them in their scholarly communications activities, and substantial resistance to paying the article processing charges of some open access journals. Survey respondents also provided a considerable number of comments – perhaps an indication of their engagement with these issues and desire for a forum in which to discuss them. It is reasonable to speculate that those who chose not to respond to this survey likely have less interest in, and support of, open access. Hence, the scholarly communications needs of this larger group of non-respondents are conceivably even greater. Conclusion – Faculty at the University of Saskatchewan are in considerable need of scholarly communications services. Areas of most need include: advice and guidance on authors’ rights issues such as retention of copyright; more education and support with resources such as subject repositories; and additional assistance with article processing charges. The University Library could play a valuable role in increasing the research productivity and impact of faculty by aiding them in these areas.

scholarly journals Designing and Conducting Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice Surveys in Psychiatry: Practical Guidance

2020 ◽  
Vol 42 (5) ◽  
pp. 478-481
Author(s):  
Chittaranjan Andrade ◽  
Vikas Menon ◽  
Shahul Ameen ◽  
Samir Kumar Praharaj
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Target Population ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Detailed Review ◽  
Early Career Researchers ◽  
Attitude And Practice ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Practical Guidance ◽  
Knowledge Attitude And Practice

Knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) surveys are popular in health care because they provide useful information and appear easy to design and execute. There are subtleties, however, in such surveys that early career researchers need to be aware of. This article does not provide a detailed review of the subject, nor does it address theory; rather, it provides practical guidance on matters such as identifying the need for the survey; defining the target population; preparing the questions that address knowledge, attitudes, and practice; preparing options for the answers to the items in the questionnaire; deciding how to score the instrument and analyze the results; and validating the instrument. Specific examples are presented to help readers understand and apply the guidance in various contexts.

Academic opinions of Wikipedia and Open Access publishing

2014 ◽  
Vol 38 (3) ◽  
pp. 332-347 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lu Xiao ◽  
Nicole Askin
Keyword(s):  
Open Access ◽  
Statistical Power ◽  
Academic Community ◽  
Open Access Publishing ◽  
Academic Publishing ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Academic Knowledge ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Open Access Journals ◽  
Academic Researchers

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine academics’ awareness of and attitudes towards Wikipedia and Open Access journals for academic publishing to better understand the perceived benefits and challenges of these models. Design/methodology/approach – Bases for analysis include comparison of the models, enumeration of their advantages and disadvantages, and investigation of Wikipedia's web structure in terms of potential for academic publishing. A web survey was administered via department-based invitations and listservs. Findings – The survey results show that: Wikipedia has perceived advantages and challenges in comparison to the Open Access model; the academic researchers’ increased familiarity is associated with increased comfort with these models; and the academic researchers’ attitudes towards these models are associated with their familiarity, academic environment, and professional status. Research limitations/implications – The major limitation of the study is sample size. The result of a power analysis with GPower shows that authors could only detect big effects in this study at statistical power 0.95. The authors call for larger sample studies that look further into this topic. Originality/value – This study contributes to the increasing interest in adjusting methods of creating and disseminating academic knowledge by providing empirical evidence of the academics’ experiences and attitudes towards the Open Access and Wikipedia publishing models. This paper provides a resource for researchers interested in scholarly communication and academic publishing, for research librarians, and for the academic community in general.

scholarly journals Medical and health sciences academics’ behaviours and attitudes towards open access publishing in scholarly journals: a perspective from South Korea

2017 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 191-202 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyoung Hee Joung ◽  
Jennifer Rowley ◽  
Laura Sbaffi
Keyword(s):  
Open Access ◽  
South Korea ◽  
Journal Article ◽  
Significant Proportion ◽  
Health Sciences ◽  
Open Access Publishing ◽  
Scholarly Journals ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Academic Researchers ◽  
Gold Open Access

This article seeks to extend the knowledge of the behaviour and attitudes towards open access publishing through a survey that focusses on the attitudes and behaviours of academic researchers in Korea working in medicine and healthcare. Issues covered include: use of and intentions regarding OAP, and perceptions regarding advantages and disadvantages of OAP, journal article publication services, peer review, and re-use. A significant proportion of the articles (mean 58%) published by this group are published gold open access, consistent with the push in Korea towards international impact for their research. Researchers were more positive about the benefits of OAP than they were negative about its disadvantages. Analysis of responses on the basis of gender, and experience in publishing, showed some significant differences in attitudes to some statements.

scholarly journals Are funder Open Access platforms a good idea?

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tony Ross-Hellauer ◽  
Birgit Schmidt ◽  
Bianca Kramer
Keyword(s):  
Open Access ◽  
Conflicts Of Interest ◽  
Unintended Consequences ◽  
Open Access Publishing ◽  
Emergent Phenomenon ◽  
Scholarly Communications ◽  
Areas Of Concern ◽  
Gates Foundation ◽  
The Right ◽  
Lock In

As open access to publications continues to gather momentum we should continuously question whether it is moving in the right direction. A novel intervention in this space is the creation of open access publishing platforms commissioned by funding organisations. Examples include those of the Wellcome Trust and the Gates Foundation, as well as recently announced initiatives from public funders like the European Commission and the Irish Health Research Board. As the number of such platforms increases, it becomes urgently necessary to assess in which ways, for better or worse, this emergent phenomenon complements or disrupts the scholarly communications landscape. This article examines ethical, organisational and economic strengths and weaknesses of such platforms, as well as usage and uptake to date, to scope the opportunities and threats presented by funder open access platforms in the ongoing transition to open access. The article is broadly supportive of the aims and current implementations of such platforms, finding them a novel intervention which stand to help increase OA uptake, control costs of OA, lower administrative burden on researchers, and demonstrate funders’ commitment to fostering open practices. However, the article identifies key areas of concern about the potential for unintended consequences, including the appearance of conflicts of interest, difficulties of scale, potential lock-in and issues of the branding of research. The article ends with key recommendations for future consideration which include a focus on open scholarly infrastructure.

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