ABSTRACT
In academic circles, there can be much pressure to publish, and some researchers may feel that they must publish their results as soon as possible. As a result, they can become victims of an unscrupulous publisher. Many researchers, particularly those just starting their careers, might not be familiar with predatory publishing or the concept of predatory publications. As a result, they could send their work to these unscrupulous publishers without being aware that the journal is fake. Therefore, researchers need to be vigilant and carefully evaluate the legitimacy of a journal before submitting their work. In this chapter, we will learn:
Conventional publishing and open-access publishing
Different types of open-access publishing
The concept of predatory publishing
Some essential principles, concepts, and technicalities in open-access publishing
The process of identifying predatory publishers and choosing suitable journals for publication
A famous dictum in academic circles is “‘publish or perish’.” It has become all the more critical in recent years with quantitative performance indicators requirements, like API in Indian universities, for the faculty’s career progression and even for the ranking of the institutions at the national and international levels. While teachers, scholars, and scientists were always required to publish their research work, the mandatory requirement has given it a push – sometimes undesirable. To meet the requirements and earn elementary scores, academics may be forced into publishing. Easy publishing is, therefore, often sought. Suppliers of easy publishing have cropped up due to this demand. Unfortunately, this publishing is often below par and sometimes even unethical. It is referred to as predatory publishing. American librarian and library scientist Jeffrey Beall coined the concept of predatory publication less than one decade ago. According to him, many publication houses are involved in malpractice. Threats from predatory journals and publishers affect the entire world. “Predatory publications” and “publishing houses” are not universally understood. These journals publish by collecting subscription fees from the writers while failing to maintain sufficient quality. They create a trap for the new researchers and drag them into it easily. Predatory publishing companies disservice authors by claiming they are full-service publishers. Predatory publishers use a different publishing paradigm by pretending to be a genuine open-access enterprise.