Predatory Journals

What are predatory journals?

The term "predatory publishing" or "predatory journals" refers to various practices and formats of dubious or fraudulent publishing. As a rule, fees are charged that are not matched by adequate compensation, such as peer review or editorial services that meet academic standards. The journals concerned are often, but not exclusively, open access formats, as new publication organs are emerging in many disciplines or have only emerged in recent years and are still little known, and higher publication costs are also quite common.

The main victims are the researchers themselves, who may suffer both financial and reputational damage. Against this background, the respective publication media should be selected with care and caution.

What to watch out for and what can I do?

Classifying journals or publishers as "predatory" is notoriously difficult, as there are already various gray areas in the definition. It is also not a marginal phenomenon; even large and established publishers are repeatedly criticized for using dubious practices or (at least partially) neglecting careful editorial practice in favor of higher profits - in this context, MDPI, for example, is repeatedly criticized as a major representative.

Whether a publisher is suitable can ultimately only be decided on a case-by-case basis. The following tips can help you to avoid being taken in by a fraudulent publication medium:

- The Think-Check-Submit checklist can provide assistance in selecting a suitable publication venue: https://thinkchecksubmit.org (An analogous checklist also exists for so-called Predatory Conferences: https://thinkcheckattend.org/). Further information on journals can also be found in the Directory of Open Access Journals.

- Journals in the same discipline often have very similar names. In the case of some fraudulent journals, the similarity of the name to established journals in the respective discipline can be observed as a deliberate attempt to mislead (mimicry). Pseudo-metrics based on the Journal Impact Factor (JIF) are also sometimes used. When choosing a journal, check carefully and, if possible, do not use simple internet searches (such as "[journal name] impact factor"), but use identifiers such as the ISSN/eISSN to clearly identify journals and - if relevant - check the journal's impact factor directly in the Web of Science / Journal Citation Report. If the spelling of a journal or metric name seems unusual to you, this may be a warning sign.

- Look out for warning signs such as a lack of transparency regarding costs or the peer review process, questionable metrics, missing or dubious contact addresses, spelling mistakes on websites or in e-mail correspondence, intensive or dubious advertising and publication guarantees, atypically short periods from submission to publication or extremely high numbers of articles or special issues.

- Talk to other researchers in your field about reputable and dubious publication media.

"Blacklists" and publications in dubious journals

Although there are also various platforms that maintain "blacklists" for journals, the topicality, transparency, evidence-based nature, impartiality, etc. of these are not always unproblematic. This is also due to the fact that actors in this field often remain anonymous in order to protect their own interests and careers.

Finally, it should also be borne in mind that the fact that a publication is published in a journal that is considered "predatory" does not necessarily allow a conclusion to be drawn about its quality or possible misconduct on the part of the authors, but merely indicates that no peer review process may have taken place.