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The Predatory Journal Problem

Writer's picture: Leanna Coy, FNP-CLeanna Coy, FNP-C

Updated: Oct 5, 2024

One woman sharing information from a magazine to another woman sitting at a desk

Defending your publication against poor or inaccurate information

The inception of Open Access journals has led to a booming predatory journal industry. The unfortunate aspect of this industry is the plethora of poor quality health information and health content. The lack of quality research contributes to growing misinformation, which chips away at the trust the average consumer has in the health industry.


Understanding predatory journals

The idea behind Open Access was to allow the free flow of ideas by sharing research, data, and academic publications without cost to the reader on an international level. As with many things, the altruistic beginnings of this idea became a target for those wanting to abuse the concept. With Open Access, the biggest abuser is predatory journals. The goal of these journals is not to share research but, instead, to make a profit.


The term 'predatory journal' is credited to Jeffrey Beall, a librarian at the University of Colorado. Predatory journals are science journals that publish papers authored by researchers that do not receive adequate peer review and edits, or the journal may require payment from the researcher in order to publish the research. They prioritize self-interest over knowledge. Frequently, this leads to research that may be inaccurate, misleading, or poorly conveyed.  


Is this really a problem?

The public is increasingly skeptical about health information. This skepticism became glaringly apparent during the COVID pandemic. Editors and marketing managers using health information to draw clicks to their pages must stay mindful of this to provide the most accurate information available and not rehash misinformation.


One also needs to consider the ethics of a health or wellness site publishing content that potentially misinforms its readers. A site without reputable information will get a reputation as such. You want your site to be a source people trust to keep going to for their health information and not one they avoid.


Role of marketing managers and editors

Organizations need to establish a standard of quality control for what they are publishing. Having dedicated editors who know how to do this is the first step. In smaller organizations, this may fall on the marketing team, which won't necessarily understand the complicated research that their writers are referencing. So, what can editors and marketing managers do to ensure their writers turn in properly vetted content?

 

  • First, familiarize yourself with some of the common predatory journals. Some use names that are the same or similar to legitimate journals.

  • Next, use fact-checkers. These are your best defense against publishing questionable information as fact on your site. Fact-checkers can push back on the writers to provide reliable sources as references for the material.

  • Lastly, know what to look for in weeding out the journals.


Protecting against predatory journals, what to look for:

There is no one thing that makes a journal predatory. Beall developed a list of features to help identify predatory journals. Others have tweaked the list over the years. Here are some tools you can use to identify potential predatory journals.


Fees: Some legitimate journals will charge a fee. A predatory one does not clearly state if there are fees. Alternatively, the amount an author pays to have an article published is very low.

Copyright: No copyright information is published on the journal's website. The journal may retain the copyright of the published research by requiring the authors to sign away their right to submit their research anywhere else.

Peer review: The journal does not give information on a formal peer review process or even indicate whether or not articles go through peer review or editing.

Timeline: Rapid or unrealistic timeline for publication of articles.

Clarity: Spelling and grammatical errors on the journal website.

Association membership: Open Access journals should belong to either the Open Access Scholarly Publishers' Association (OASPA) or the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ).

Quality of previous publications: Articles published on topics that don't relate to the type of journal publishing them should flag you. As should language in articles that are obviously AI generated, such as the "certainly, here is a possible introduction for your topic" line seen in one journal publication.

Editorial board: All journals should list the information on their editorial board. This includes the name of their Editor in Chief. Frequently the journals lack academic information or expertise about the editors.


As an editor or marketing manager, you are the last defense against publishing misinformation or poor data on your site. Keep the integrity of your organization intact by taking steps to ensure your writers are avoiding predatory journals.

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