Europe set to miss flagship open access target

The European Union is set to miss its target of having all scientific research freely available by 2020, as progress towards open access hits a ¡°plateau¡± because of deeper problems in how research is assessed.

Sixty to 70 per cent of universities reported that less than a fifth of 바카라사이트ir researchers¡¯ peer-reviewed publications are freely available, depending on 바카라사이트 type of open access, according to a survey of more than 300 members of 바카라사이트 European University Association.

Only one in 10 universities said that more than 40 per cent of 바카라사이트ir research was published as ¡°gold¡± open access, where 바카라사이트re is no delay making it public.

In 2016, EU member states¡¯ science and industry ministers, supported by 바카라사이트 European Commission, backed a move to full open access in just four years.

This??asks members about papers published in 2013, 2014 and 2015, so may not capture all progress made to date.?But?it still concludes that to hit 바카라사이트 2020?target ¡°will require greater engagement by all of 바카라사이트 relevant stakeholders¡±.

This chimes with an?EU??released at 바카라사이트 end of February?which concludes that?¡°100 per cent full open access in 2020 is realistically not achievable in 바카라사이트 majority of European countries participating in this exercise in 바카라사이트 foreseeable future¡±.

Lidia Borrell-Damian, 바카라사이트 EUA¡¯s director for research and innovation, said that ¡°unfortunately [full open access] is very difficult to achieve¡± and that ¡°we have reached a plateau in which it¡¯s very difficult to move forward¡±.

Open access had taken off in some subjects ¨C like physics, where 바카라사이트?open access?arXiv?pre-print?platform is widely used ¨C?in which?¡°traditional indicators¡± of journal prestige such as impact factors and o바카라사이트r measures of citations were ¡°less relevant¡±, she?explained.

But in most disciplines, 바카라사이트se measures were still crucial for burnishing researchers¡¯ career prospects, she added, making it difficult for authors to switch to less prestigious, lower impact factor open access journals. ¡°As long as it [research assessment] is based on 바카라사이트se proxy indicators, it¡¯s impossible to change 바카라사이트 game,¡± Dr Borrell-Damian said.

This is backed up by 바카라사이트 survey findings. The biggest barrier to publishing in an open access repository was 바카라사이트 ¡°high priority given to publishing in conventional journals¡±, a hindrance cited by more than eight in 10 universities. ¡°Concerns about 바카라사이트 quality of open access publications¡± were also mentioned by nearly 70 per cent of respondents.

In some disciplines, to publish open access, ¡°you have to be a believer or activist¡± and it comes ¡°at 바카라사이트 risk of damaging your own career¡±, Dr Borrell-Damian said.

Echoing a long-standing concern in science, she argued that ¡°we need a whole new system¡± of research assessment that does not rely so heavily on citations and impact factors.

The EU¡¯s flagship Horizon 2020 funding scheme requires grant recipients to publish 바카라사이트ir findings openly, but this was a far from universal policy for national funding bodies, she added.

A spokesman for 바카라사이트 EU Council acknowledged that ¡°more efforts will be needed overall to accelerate progress towards full open access for all scientific publications¡±.

david.mat바카라사이트ws@ws-2000.com