David Avelar-Rodriguez1
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.5195/ijms.2019.449
Volume 7, Number 3: 92-94
Received 10 12 2019: Rev-recd 10 12 2019: Rev-recd 13 12 2019: Accepted 15 12 2019
Recently, I have noticed that the number of emails I receive from possible predatory journals has increased dramatically, either in the form of junk (most of them) or regular email. I receive them every day, including weekends and holidays, and often awake to an email full of invitations to contribute to these “scientific” journals. Although most researchers are already aware of this scam, it is never too late to warn others, especially early career researchers. In addition, the number of predatory journals appears to be growing;1 thus, it is important that we know who they are and what their intentions are.
Defining a predatory journal is difficult. Predatory journals do not follow international publishing standards2 and their main motive is financial gain.3 One of the main reasons why it is so difficult to reach consensus on its definition is, in part, because certain open access journals that seem to fit the definition are simply lacking editorial quality, but are not predatory per se; that is, they are legitimate journals with poor publishing standards.4 In a recent paper by the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME),2 the authors provide a succinct synthesis about predatory journals and thoroughly review different approaches to identify a possible predatory journal. In particular, they provide their own table of “warning signs” to watch for (Table 1) and a very useful algorithm, which I believe should be used when dealing with a possible predatory journal. It is important to note, however, that all the available criteria are arbitrary and have not been validated, and thus they should be used carefully. In summary, predatory journals are illegitimate open access publishers whose only mission is financial gain at the expense of publishing all types of literature (including poor, but possibly also good quality), as long as authors pay for the publication fees.
Table 1“Warning Sign” features that should increase suspicion that a journal is predatory
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Predatory journals operate by mass-emailing researchers in hopes of getting researchers to publish with them2–4; they acquire your email address from your already published work. In my experience, email invitations from predatory journals are generally low quality, contain poor English usage, and use persuasive language as well as exaggerated adjectives to refer to you and your work. This is confirmed when I compare my own experiences to the criteria listed by the WAME in Table 1. Lately, I have also noticed that they are using the “Request a Read Receipt” tool, so that they know whether you opened their email or not. Moreover, it is not uncommon to receive invitations from journals in which you lack expertise; for example, I am interested in general pediatrics, gastroenterology and global health, and my research has been focused on these disciplines accordingly. Why would an Ob & Gyn journal, or even a psychiatry journal, want me to publish my work with them? So also consider this aspect when you receive these emails.
Here are some common examples of email invitations from possible predatory journals:
“Dear Prof. (even though you are not a professor)/Dr. [your name],
We are in shortfall of one article for successful release of volume # …. / We humbly request you to submit any of your articles including commentaries, opinions …. / I am delighted to inform you that [journal's name] is planning to release volume # Issue # and we need two articles to accomplish this issue…. / We are pleased to inform you that the journal is under process of accepting the articles from the experts like you / Based on your eminence and contribution towards the scientific community we request you to publish your work in [journal's name]
Your article with the title [title of your manuscript] has left a deep impression on us / has impressed us deeply / has attracted widespread attention”
Not only are predatory journals scamming researchers and making profit in a fraudulent manner, but are also jeopardizing the credibility of science itself, with the latter being the most critical and scary consequence in my opinion. Indeed, recent research demonstrated that a relatively large number of possible predatory journals in the fields of neurosciences5 and rehabilitation6 is indexed in PubMed – PubMed is amongst the most important databases we rely upon to conduct our research! (For review see 7,8) Unquestionably, the predatory publishing issue is a global concern that needs to be addressed immediately.
In conclusion, it is paramount that we as researchers spread the word and are aware of the predatory publishing model. As you continue to publish more and more, and considering the rise in the number of predatory journals in recent years, you should expect to receive their invitation emails eventually, if not already received. It is important to keep in mind what their emails look like, and if you end up curiously surfing their website (which some of them look legitimate), be sure to apply the criteria and algorithm published by the WAME2 and use your own –or your more experienced colleague's–judgment.
I would like to thank Shelby Avelar for proofreading and editing the manuscript.
The Authors have no funding, financial relationships or conflicts of interest to disclose.
DAR wrote the manuscript.
1.Shen C, Björk BC. “Predatory” open access: A longitudinal study of article volumes and market characteristics. BMC Med. 2015Oct1;13:230.
2.Laine C, Winker MA. Identifying predatory or pseudo-journals. Biochem Med (Zagreb). 2017Jun15;27 (2):285–291.
3.Clark J, Smith R. Firm action needed on predatory journals. BMJ. 2015, 350(January):1–2.
4.Cobey KD, Lalu MM, Skidmore B, Ahmadzai N, Grudniewicz A, Moher D. What is a predatory journal? A scoping review. Version 2. F1000Res. 2018Jul4 [revised 2018 Aug 23];7:1001.
5.Manca A, Martinez G, Cugusi L, Dragone D, Dvir Z, Deriu F. The surge of predatory open-access in neurosciences and neurology. Neuroscience. 2017Jun14;353:166–173.
6.Manca A, Martinez G, Cugusi L, Dragone D, Mercuro G, Deriu F. Predatory Open Access in Rehabilitation. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 2017 May;98 (5):1051–1056.
7.Manca A, Cugusi L, Dvir Z, Deriu F. PubMed should raise the bar for journal inclusion. Lancet. 2017Aug19;390 (10096):734–735.
8.Manca A, Moher D, Cugusi L, Dvir Z, Deriu F. How predatory journals leak into PubMed. CMAJ. 2018Sep4;190 (35):E1042–E1045.
David Avelar-Rodriguez, 1 National Institute of Pediatrics, Mexico City, Mexico
Francisco J. Bonilla-Escobar, Editor
Madeleine Jemima Cox, Student Editor
About the Author: David Avelar Rodriguez is student editor of the IJMS and graduated from Universidad Autónoma de Guadalajara, School of Medicine. He is currently a clinical researcher at the National Institute of Pediatrics and is applying for medical residency in Canada this year.
Correspondence: David Avelar-Rodriguez, Address: Insurgentes Sur 3700 Letra C, Insurgentes Cuicuilco, 04530 Mexico City, CDMX, Mexico. Email: davidavelar1@outlook.com
Cite as: Avelar-Rodriguez D. Predatory Journals: What You Need to Know About Them? Int J Med Students. 2019 Sep-Dec;7(3):92-4.
Copyright © 2019 David Avelar-Rodriguez
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
International Journal of Medical Students, VOLUME 7, NUMBER 3, December 2019