China has recently updated its list of questionable journals.
China has recently updated its Early Warning Journal List, which includes journals considered untrustworthy, predatory, or not beneficial to the Chinese research community. The latest edition of the list, published last month, contains 24 journals from various publishers. This year, the list includes journals exhibiting citation manipulation, a form of misconduct where authors try to inflate their citation counts.
The list is compiled annually by Yang Liying and her team of researchers at the National Science Library, Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing. They gather feedback from Chinese researchers and administrators, analyze bibliometric data from sources like Web of Science, and collaborate with publishers to identify problematic journals. The list has gained significant influence and is referenced in official communications from Chinese ministries to address academic misconduct.
In a recent interview, Yang Liying shared insights into the process of creating the list. This year, they made several changes, such as removing the risk categorization of journals and focusing more on explaining why a journal is included. They also introduced the identification of abnormal citation patterns in journals and emphasized the impact of journals with a high proportion of papers from Chinese researchers.
The team at the National Science Library also tracks paper-mill problems in journals by monitoring social media platforms and websites like PubPeer and For Better Science. They have created a database called Amend, which compiles information on questionable articles, retractions, and research integrity issues. The list has had a significant impact on the Chinese research community, leading to retractions from Chinese authors and a decrease in submissions to flagged journals.
Moreover, the list has prompted some publishers to investigate issues in their journals. For instance, an open-access publisher, MDPI, initiated an investigation into potential reviewer misconduct after being informed that some of its journals would be included on the list due to citation manipulation concerns. The efforts of the Early Warning Journal List aim to improve the quality of research publications and discourage unethical practices in academic publishing.
Overall, the interview sheds light on the evolving strategies used by the Chinese research community to tackle academic misconduct and ensure the integrity of scholarly literature. By actively monitoring and addressing issues in academic publishing, China seeks to uphold research standards and promote legitimate scientific contributions on a global scale.
Source: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-00629-0
The list is compiled annually by Yang Liying and her team of researchers at the National Science Library, Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing. They gather feedback from Chinese researchers and administrators, analyze bibliometric data from sources like Web of Science, and collaborate with publishers to identify problematic journals. The list has gained significant influence and is referenced in official communications from Chinese ministries to address academic misconduct.
In a recent interview, Yang Liying shared insights into the process of creating the list. This year, they made several changes, such as removing the risk categorization of journals and focusing more on explaining why a journal is included. They also introduced the identification of abnormal citation patterns in journals and emphasized the impact of journals with a high proportion of papers from Chinese researchers.
The team at the National Science Library also tracks paper-mill problems in journals by monitoring social media platforms and websites like PubPeer and For Better Science. They have created a database called Amend, which compiles information on questionable articles, retractions, and research integrity issues. The list has had a significant impact on the Chinese research community, leading to retractions from Chinese authors and a decrease in submissions to flagged journals.
Moreover, the list has prompted some publishers to investigate issues in their journals. For instance, an open-access publisher, MDPI, initiated an investigation into potential reviewer misconduct after being informed that some of its journals would be included on the list due to citation manipulation concerns. The efforts of the Early Warning Journal List aim to improve the quality of research publications and discourage unethical practices in academic publishing.
Overall, the interview sheds light on the evolving strategies used by the Chinese research community to tackle academic misconduct and ensure the integrity of scholarly literature. By actively monitoring and addressing issues in academic publishing, China seeks to uphold research standards and promote legitimate scientific contributions on a global scale.
Source: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-00629-0
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