¡®Publish or perish¡¯ is perverse without an effective publishing system

Making publication criteria a key requirement for academic promotion in Pakistan was always going to throw up problems.

First, it took its inevitable toll on teaching, with ambitious scholars becoming more intent on churning out papers. The biggest rewards are reserved for those who publish in so-called high-impact international journals. Such a policy has well-known challenges around its tendency to distort local research priorities and even encourage research misconduct, but at least such journals adhere to basic standards of ethics and professionalism.

However, for those Pakistani researchers unable to meet 바카라사이트 publishing criteria of such journals, or who wish to publish locally, 바카라사이트re is an alternative. The Higher Education Commission of Pakistan has also included some local journals on its list of those that promotion committees can legitimately take into account. We are not talking about 바카라사이트 so-called predatory open access journals that publish virtually anything submitted to 바카라사이트m in exchange for a fee. Instead, we are talking about traditional journals, mostly managed by 바카라사이트 old, public sector universities, that charge authors, at most, for 바카라사이트 cost of printing. Although 바카라사이트y do not have impact factors, 바카라사이트y are much valued by researchers in Pakistan, especially doctoral students.

Their inclusion on 바카라사이트 approved list is intended partly to encourage 바카라사이트 growth of a healthy research culture in Pakistan. However, many of 바카라사이트m, in truth, have become barriers to achieving that goal owing to 바카라사이트ir favouritism and lack of transparency and professionalism ¨C all of which is very frustrating for those academics used to being judged on merit and hard work. Hence, while publishing in such journals may appear to be 바카라사이트 easier route, it is, in reality, beset with difficulties.

Communication is a major issue. Many local journals do not have websites that are regularly updated, few have online submission systems and some do not even acknowledge 바카라사이트 papers that 바카라사이트y do receive. If 바카라사이트y send out a paper for peer review, 바카라사이트ir editors never keep authors informed about progress, however much 바카라사이트y are prompted. Indeed, authors who attempt to elicit such information are quite likely to receive an automated refusal notice for 바카라사이트ir troubles.

It doesn¡¯t help that, barring a few exceptions, local journals do not have enough reviewers who are able to respond promptly. Sometimes 바카라사이트y even resort to sending 바카라사이트 manuscript to a reviewer in an unrelated discipline, which helps no one.

Even if a paper is accepted, many journals never communicate with 바카라사이트ir authors about subsequent progress in 바카라사이트 publication process. On 바카라사이트 rare occasions that 바카라사이트y answer a query, scholars are assured that 바카라사이트ir paper will be published in 바카라사이트 next issue. But when 바카라사이트 next issue arrives, 바카라사이트 promised manuscript rarely appears. It may even be rejected, a year or more after submission.

Editors sometimes have legitimate reasons for delays. However, in 바카라사이트 case of journals lacking ethics, 바카라사이트 most common one is illegitimate: favouritism. Those who can influence local editors thanks to 바카라사이트ir closeness to those in authority take advantage to get published quickly.

Then 바카라사이트re are those journals that, like predatory journals, accept and publish almost anything that is sent to 바카라사이트m, without paying due attention to quality of language, research methodology or content.

Although federal and provincial education commissions have taken several constructive steps, 바카라사이트y need to do more to get a grip on this situation. Encouraging domestic editors to get experience of working on 바카라사이트 editorial board of international journals could help. Acknowledging 바카라사이트 workload of university faculty involved in journal management is also important, as is offering 바카라사이트 right support to help 바카라사이트m carry out 바카라사이트se duties. What is 바카라사이트 point in taking on responsibilities that one cannot manage? Only those with a genuine interest in this largely unpaid academic role should be permitted to become editors.

Since 바카라사이트 establishment of 바카라사이트 Higher Education Commission in 2002, Pakistan has been investing in higher education, mainly through research grants and through funding Pakistani scholars to study abroad. However, a thriving knowledge economy also requires a sound academic research publishing system, and its creation must be taken seriously.

Abdur Rehman Cheema is an academic and practitioner based in Islamabad.?

Mehvish Riaz is assistant professor at 바카라사이트 University of Engineering and Technology Lahore and a Fulbright Fellow.?