UNIVERSITY WORLD. The number of articles in ‘predatory’ magazines has increased almost eight-fold over the past four years. This according to a study from the Swedish School of Economics in Helsinki (Hanken). The study also shows that the majority of academics publishing in journals with lax peer review are from Asia.
The predatory journals may lack or have poor quality control and often have fictitious names of researcher in their editorial boards. The most common subject is in technology followed by biomedicine.
The University Library in Gothenburg has not noticed any increase in the inquiries from scientists about the rogue journals. The Library has gathered some good advice for researchers that are contacted by unknown open access journals. Researchers who receive offers from an unknown publisher should be looking at the journal’s website for clear information about ownership, nationality, the Peer Review process, the editorial committee, and Licence to Publish. The website should also contain full contact details.
Read more about the study in Times Higher Education: https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/study-finds-eightfold-rise-predatory-journal-papers
