Predatory Journal and Publishing Definitions

Scholarly publishing has changed exponentially in the last decade. From open access and preprint servers to the “COVID effect” and the climate crisis, the way academic journals work and the landscape in which they operate are in what seems like constant flux. Complicating matters, that landscape is getting increasingly crowded as hundreds of new journals launch every year. Among those hundreds of legitimate journals lurk some with nefarious intentions. Predatory (aka fraudulent, deceptive, or pseudo-journals) journals are “publications that claim to be legitimate scholarly journals, but misrepresent their publishing practices,” and they are the products of predatory publishers.^1,2 (To avoid confusion, the term "predatory publisher" will be used throughout for both publishers and journals.) According to the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), “predatory publishing generally refers to the systematic for-profit publication of purportedly scholarly content…in a deceptive or fraudulent way and without any regard for quality assurance.”³

What Does it Actually Mean?

Predatory publishers exploit authors by requiring what are sometimes exorbitant fees for the publication of their paper without the services a legitimate journal offers such as peer review, editing, and other support. These predatory publishers and publications are only interested in profit. They will promise anything to get authors to pay them. Predatory publishers have unethical publishing practices including but not limited to a lack of peer review and citation methods, no data checking or proofing, and outright lying about indexing and open access status. In addition, these publishers could abruptly disappear (usually because of lawsuits against them) and all articles they have published will vanish along with them.²

Cost to the Author

Besides losing the fees that predatory publishers charge, there are other costs authors pay for publishing in these types of journals.

• Because true peer review isn't provided, flawed research, incorrect information or data, and communication issues allow for the dissemination of misinformation throughout the scientific community.¹
• Because of the instability of these publishers, an author’s work can either be held hostage or disappear altogether.
• Having an article published in a journal that is uncovered to be predatory can damage the credibility of an author’s research as well as their reputation.

How to Spot a Predatory Publisher

There are several warning signs that authors can use to protect themselves and their articles from predatory publishers. Keep an eye out for these common indicators:

• The journal website contains misleading or false information.
• Guarantee of acceptance and/or very rapid publication (usually within one week).
• The journal name is similar to or easily confused with that of another.
• The peer review process is not mentioned.
• Information about journal ownership is missing.
• Policies and notices of copyright are missing or unclear.
• The lack of policies and guidelines on ethics, particularly relating to human and animal studies.
• Author fees are not stated or not explained clearly on the journal website.
• There is poor use of language, both on the website and in some of the published articles.
• There is no record of corrections, errata, or retractions.
• Articles being listed on the website that are inaccessible.
• No verifiable contact information for the Editorial Office is provided.
• Despite displaying an Impact Factor, the journal is not listed in Clarivate’s Journal Citation Report.
• There is a lack of an association membership. Most legitimate journals are members of COPE, which maintains a code of conduct for publishers.
• If a journal claims to be Open Access, all copyrights should be described clearly on the website. You can check whether a Creative Commons or another type of license is being applied.

In addition to the above list, here are some details that make legitimate journals stand out from those predatory in nature.

Editorial leadership

The crucial role of the senior editor, usually an Editor-in-Chief, cannot be overstated. It is a role that has rich traditions, and even though it is subject to evolution and change, the fundamental necessity of strong editorial leadership by accomplished members of the discipline remains the bedrock of credibility in scholarly publishing. The associate editors and editorial advisory board (or its equivalent) also play crucial roles in assuring quality and credibility, but it is the senior editor who provides the vision, direction, and standards on which the journal rests. The publisher, and any affiliated associations, are also key players in supporting the editorial roles, but sound editorial leadership requires independence from the interests of the publisher or association. A lack of this leadership is an obvious red flag.

Originality of editorial content

As shown in Table 1 below, the sources of evidence for originality rely heavily on author self-report and peer review. The online capability to scan for evidence of plagiarism provides an important checkpoint, but perhaps the most important aspect of this quality is simply a clear statement of the journal’s expectation of originality.

Author identity, credentials, and confirmation of authorship

The availability of unique online IDs (such as ORCiD) helps confirm and track unique author identities, and a statement related to conflict of interest is important in establishing sound authorship. The most important dimension here is a policy concerning what counts as authorship. The International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) provides guidance on authorship criteria.

Manuscript preparation standards

The instructions for manuscript preparation are not only important in terms of the review and production activities, they also reflect the quality standards that the journal expects for all submissions. A comprehensive Information (or Instructions) for Authors indicates a similarly comprehensive level of quality. They should include:

• A clear description of the purposes of the journal.
• A detailed review of the publishing process so authors understand the time that is required to assure scientific quality.
• Policies related to the selection of peer reviewers for each manuscript.
• The basis for final editorial decision.
• Clear requirements for manuscript preparation, including style and format of citations and references.
• Guidelines that should be adhered to for certain article types or studies (e.g., clinical trials, systematic reviews, meta-analyses). These might include PRISMA or STROBE.
• Policies related to permissions needed for quotes, tables, and figures used or adapted as well as patient consent.
• Policies related to the use of social media.

Manuscript review and selection processes

Transparency about a journal’s manuscript review process and policies governing how they select manuscripts for publication, with or without peer review, must be thoroughly explained, as well as the guidelines that govern the appointment of peer reviewers. Conflict of interest statements should be obtained for every author listed on every article, reviewed, and published.

Manuscript production standards

One of the assurances that is a hallmark of quality is adherence to the scientific credibility of the editorial content throughout the production process. Details of these processes (and the standards that govern copyediting and formatting) are seldom described, but they do occur behind the scenes and are evidenced by a lack of grammatical errors and the occasional occurrence of corrections, errata, corrigendum, and even retractions. The boundaries and commitments that govern copyediting are crucial indicators of quality.

Post-production archiving

Assurance of the permanence of scientific literature, now provided by the use of DOIs (Digital Object Identifiers), is vital for all scholarly disciplines and can be readily confirmed online.

Trust your gut!

Always trust your instincts. If a journal seems off, do some investigation. Reach out to the Editorial Office and do some other research to find out about the journal’s reputation. Don’t submit if you question a journal’s legitimacy.

Infographic showing the differences between legitimate and predatory publishers.

Table 1: Spotlight on editorial features, sources of confirmation, and website documenting features

Table from https://wkauthorservices.editage.com/resources/author-resource-review/2017/June-2017.html

Further Resources

Think. Check. Submit.

Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ)

The National Library of Medicine (NLM) Catalog (Note: The NLM lists only biomedical journals. If a journal is missing or if it has an entry in the NLM Catalog but not in MEDLINE, it may mean that it is in a different specialty)

Cabells (Note: This is a subscription database.)

1. Elmore SA, Weston EH. Predatory Journals: What They Are and How to Avoid Them. Toxicol Pathol. 2020 Jun; 48(4): 607–610. doi: 10.1177/0192623320920209
2. University of Pittsburgh Library System. Illegitimate & Predatory Publishing: About Illegitimate & Predatory Publishing. Updated September 13, 2023. Accessed September 14, 2023. https://pitt.libguides.com/predatorypublishing
3. COPE Council. COPE Discussion Document: Predatory Publishing. November 2019. doi: https://doi.org/10.24318/cope.2019.3.6

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