RETRACTED ARTICLE: Predatory publishing in Scopus: evidence on cross-country differences

Area of Science:

• Scholarly communication
• Bibliometrics
• Research integrity

Background:

• Predatory publishing poses a significant threat to the integrity of scholarly communication.
• Identifying and understanding the global landscape of predatory publishing is crucial for academic stakeholders.

Purpose of the Study:

• To map the presence of predatory journals within the Scopus citation database.
• To analyze cross-country variations in scholarly publishing within these predatory journals.

Main Methods:

• Utilized Beall's lists to identify "potential, possible, or probable" predatory journals and publishers.
• Extracted ISSNs from Ulrichsweb and cross-referenced with Scopus database records.
• Analyzed publication data from 2015-2017 for 324 identified predatory journals across 172 countries and 4 research fields.

Main Results:

• Identified 324 predatory journals indexed in Scopus, with 164,000 articles published between 2015-2017.
• Observed significant heterogeneity in predatory article prevalence across countries, with some nations showing up to 17% of articles in predatory journals.
• Found that countries with substantial research sectors, medium economic development, and those in Asia and North Africa are particularly vulnerable.

Conclusions:

• Predatory publishing prevalence varies significantly by country, with developing nations being disproportionately affected.
• Countries with developing research sectors, particularly in Asia and North Africa, are most susceptible.
• Policymakers and research stakeholders in vulnerable countries must prioritize robust research quality assessment to combat predatory publishing.