Publications

22 pages, 1303 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Open Access Perceptions, Strategies, and Digital Literacies: A Case Study of a Scholarly-Led Journal

by Noella Edelmann and Judith Schoßböck

Publications 2020, 8(3), 44; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications8030044 - 15 Sep 2020

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 5561

Open access (OA) publications play an important role for academia, policy-makers, and practitioners. Universities and research institutions set up OA policies and provide authors different types of support for engaging in OA activities. This paper presents a case study on OA publishing in [...] Read more.

Open access (OA) publications play an important role for academia, policy-makers, and practitioners. Universities and research institutions set up OA policies and provide authors different types of support for engaging in OA activities. This paper presents a case study on OA publishing in a scholarly community, drawing on qualitative and quantitative data gained from workshops and a survey. As the authors are the managing editors of the OA eJournal for eDemocracy and Open Government (JeDEM), the aim was to collect data and insights on the publication choices of authors interested in OA publishing and other crucial factors such as personal attitudes to publishing, institutional context, and digital literacy in order to improve the journal. In the first phase, two workshops with different stakeholders were held at the Conference for e-Democracy and Open Government (CeDEM) held in Austria and in South Korea in 2016. In the second phase, an online survey was sent to all the users of the e-journal JeDEM in October 2019. From the workshops, key differences regarding OA perception and strategies between the stakeholder groups were derived. Participants strongly perceived OA publishing as a highly individualist matter embedded within a publishing culture emphasizing reputation and rankings. The survey results, however, showed that institutional support differs considerably for authors. Factors such as visibility, reputation, and impact play the biggest role for the motivation to publish OA. The results from both inquiries provide a better understanding of OA publishing attitudes and the relevant digital literacies but also suggest the need to investigate further the enablers or difficulties of scholarship, particularly in a digital context. They clearly point to the potential of regularly addressing the users of the journal as well as communicating with them the more nuanced aspects of OA publishing, non-traditional metrics, or respective digital literacies, in order to reduce misconceptions about OA and to support critical stances. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Publication Ethics and Research Integrity)

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15 pages, 11037 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Research Contribution of the Oldest Seat of Higher Learning in Pakistan: A Bibliometric Analysis of University of the Punjab

by Shakil Ahmad, Yasir Javed, Shabir Hussain Khahro and Arslan Shahid

Publications 2020, 8(3), 43; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications8030043 - 8 Sep 2020

Cited by 20 | Viewed by 4691

Abstract

Bibliometric methods are used to access various elements in any data set. Similarly, this study uses a bibliometric method to evaluate the research performance of the University of the Punjab (PU), the oldest university of Pakistan. A peer university from a neighboring country, [...] Read more.

Bibliometric methods are used to access various elements in any data set. Similarly, this study uses a bibliometric method to evaluate the research performance of the University of the Punjab (PU), the oldest university of Pakistan. A peer university from a neighboring country, India, has been selected in this study along with three state-owned universities of Pakistan. The research yield of selected universities was analyzed since their establishment until 2019. The data were retrieved from the Scopus database in February 2020. The guidelines of the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education were used to select the peer universities. It has been analyzed that steady progress in research productivity was observed during the 20th century and in the last few years of the 19th century. A focus shift was observed with the onset of the 21st century and a rapid increase in research publications was observed in Pakistani universities. Around 92% of research studies of the University of the Punjab were carried out during the first 20 years of the 21st century and it leads the compared peer universities in terms of the number of research publications and the citations. It is also analyzed that there is a tendency among the authors of studied universities to publish their research articles in subscription-based journals. The authors affiliated with the University of the Punjab are more inclined to publish their research in open access journals as compared to the researchers of other studied universities. It is also observed that publications with single authors received a low average of citations per document while the publications with six or more authors had the highest average citations. The study recommends collaborative efforts for carrying out research and publication in open access journals is encouraged because of greater visibility, access, and impact. Full article

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12 pages, 272 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Theoretical Aspects of Scholarly Publishing about the Internet in Spanish Communication Journals

by Rainer Rubira-García, Silvia Margarita Baldiris-Navarro, Jacqueline Venet-Gutiérrez and Silvia Magro-Vela

Publications 2020, 8(3), 42; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications8030042 - 24 Aug 2020

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3014

Abstract

Theoretical aspects of scholarly publishing about the Internet in communication sciences in Spain have received little attention. The present text analyses scientific framework, categories, concepts and keywords used in research, collected from the most relevant specialized Spanish journals in the field, as well [...] Read more.

Theoretical aspects of scholarly publishing about the Internet in communication sciences in Spain have received little attention. The present text analyses scientific framework, categories, concepts and keywords used in research, collected from the most relevant specialized Spanish journals in the field, as well as research objectives that are pursued in connection to communication levels of study and types of data. A content analysis of a representative sample of 227 scientific articles was done in the five leading Spanish journals in communication in the period 1995–2015, in which the academic interesting on Internet as an object of study was consolidated. The results show a predominance of descriptive theoretical frameworks and a hegemony of journalism as an academic reference. Nevertheless, there is an increase complexity out of the mass media field. The research on the Internet in the communication field is presented as a reflexive opportunity to understand interdisciplinarity and the way this acquires epistemological consistence in the scientific discourse. Full article

25 pages, 4275 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Decision Algorithm for the Automatic Determination of the Use of Non-Inclusive Terms in Academic Texts

by Pedro Orgeira-Crespo, Carla Míguez-Álvarez, Miguel Cuevas-Alonso and María Isabel Doval-Ruiz

Publications 2020, 8(3), 41; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications8030041 - 6 Aug 2020

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 5612

Abstract

The use of inclusive language, among many other gender equality initiatives in society, has garnered great attention in recent years. Gender equality offices in universities and public administration cannot cope with the task of manually checking the use of non-inclusive language in the [...] Read more.

The use of inclusive language, among many other gender equality initiatives in society, has garnered great attention in recent years. Gender equality offices in universities and public administration cannot cope with the task of manually checking the use of non-inclusive language in the documentation that those institutions generate. In this research, an automated solution for the detection of non-inclusive uses of the Spanish language in doctoral theses generated in Spanish universities is introduced using machine learning techniques. A large dataset has been used to train, validate, and analyze the use of inclusive language; the result is an algorithm that detects, within any Spanish text document, non-inclusive uses of the language with error, false positive, and false negative ratios slightly over 10%, and precision, recall, and F-measure percentages over 86%. Results also show the evolution with time of the ratio of non-inclusive usages per document, having a pronounced reduction in the last years under study. Full article

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3 pages, 158 KiB

Open AccessCommunication

A Call for a More Efficient Submission Process

by Hans Oh

Publications 2020, 8(3), 40; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications8030040 - 30 Jul 2020

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3303

Abstract

This commentary argues that the manuscript submission process is needlessly complicated and bothersome and would benefit from user experience research to simplify the author guidelines and to add design features that minimize mistakes. Full article

25 pages, 338 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Provisional System to Evaluate Journal Publishers Based on Partnership Practices and Values Shared with Academic Institutions and Libraries

by Rachel Caldwell

Publications 2020, 8(3), 39; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications8030039 - 23 Jul 2020

Viewed by 7284

Abstract

Background: Journals with high impact factors (IFs) are the “coin of the realm” in many review, tenure, and promotion decisions, ipso facto, IFs influence academic authors’ views of journals and publishers. However, IFs do not evaluate how publishers interact with libraries or academic [...] Read more.

Background: Journals with high impact factors (IFs) are the “coin of the realm” in many review, tenure, and promotion decisions, ipso facto, IFs influence academic authors’ views of journals and publishers. However, IFs do not evaluate how publishers interact with libraries or academic institutions. Goal: This provisional system introduces an evaluation of publishers exclusive of IF, measuring how well a publisher’s practices align with the values of libraries and public institutions of higher education (HE). Identifying publishers with similar values may help libraries and institutions make strategic decisions about resource allocation. Methods: Democratization of knowledge, information exchange, and the sustainability of scholarship were values identified to define partnership practices and develop a scoring system evaluating publishers. Then, four publishers were evaluated. A high score indicates alignment with the values of libraries and academic institutions and a strong partnership with HE. Results: Highest scores were earned by a learned society publishing two journals and a library publisher supporting over 80 open-access journals. Conclusions: Publishers, especially nonprofit publishers, could use the criteria to guide practices that align with mission-driven institutions. Institutions and libraries could use the system to identify publishers acting in good faith towards public institutions of HE. Full article

14 pages, 1702 KiB

Open AccessCommentary

Striving for Modernity: Layout and Abstracts in the Biomedical Literature

by Carlo Galli, Maria Teresa Colangelo and Stefano Guizzardi

Publications 2020, 8(3), 38; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications8030038 - 11 Jul 2020

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 8208

Abstract

Most academic journals have a fairly consistent look: they are structured similarly, their text is divided into similar sections; for example, they have an abstract at the beginning of the manuscript, and their text is usually organized in two columns. There may be [...] Read more.

Most academic journals have a fairly consistent look: they are structured similarly, their text is divided into similar sections; for example, they have an abstract at the beginning of the manuscript, and their text is usually organized in two columns. There may be different reasons for this similarity, ranging from the need to contain publication costs by using less page space to conforming to an internationally well-accepted format that may be perceived as the hallmark of academic articles. We surveyed 35 medical journals founded before 1960 and looked for their change in format over time and how this was experienced by and explained to readers. We then discussed what recent research has shown about the effects of layout on reading, looking for further explanations as to why this format was so successful. Full article

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2 pages, 160 KiB

Open AccessCorrection

Correction: Ho, MT., et al. The Internal Capability of Vietnam Social Sciences and Humanities: A Perspective from the 2008–2019. Publications 2020, 8(2), 32

by Manh-Toan Ho, Thu-Trang Vuong, Thanh-Hang Pham, Anh-Phuong Luong, Thanh-Nhan Nguyen and Quan-Hoang Vuong

Publications 2020, 8(3), 37; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications8030037 - 9 Jul 2020

Viewed by 2467

Abstract

The authors’ wish to change the affiliations on Page 1 of their paper [...] Full article

25 pages, 2336 KiB

Open AccessArticle

An Overview of the Dynamics of Relative Research Performance in Central-Eastern Europe Using a Ranking-Based Analysis Derived from SCImago Data

by Ioan Ianoş and Alexandru-Ionuţ Petrişor

Publications 2020, 8(3), 36; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications8030036 - 8 Jul 2020

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 4426

Abstract

In recent times, rankings seem to play an increasingly important role, influencing the lives of individual researchers or academics and their institutions. Individual and institutional rankings used for promotion and research or academic funding seem to illustrate more and more the “publish or [...] Read more.

In recent times, rankings seem to play an increasingly important role, influencing the lives of individual researchers or academics and their institutions. Individual and institutional rankings used for promotion and research or academic funding seem to illustrate more and more the “publish or perish” mantra, relying sometimes almost exclusively on publications and their citations. Eastern Europe found itself part of this new world after a period of isolation, uneven for the countries within the area. The present study uses SCImago data to perform a regional analysis of individual and aggregated domains, for individual countries and the entire region, based on a novel “adjusted citation index”, in order to measure the performance and identify, using correlations with additional data and information, the mechanisms that can increase the research performance of a country. In a nutshell, the results indicate that the national research policies are responsible for performance. Adaptive research policies simulate a real performance, in comparison with more restrictive ones, which are more likely to stimulate unethical behaviors such as self-citations or citation stacking, especially when used for the assessment of researchers. The importance of the findings lies in the possibility of replicating the methodology, adapting it to different spatial scales. Full article

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