What are the major considerations for authors to publish on a journal?
Open access is important for research and researchers. However, how indispensable open access is for researchers and research? The survey conducted by Ithaka SR (a consulting firm for non-profits) attempted to answer this very question.
The survey result reveals that researcher’s decision to choose a particular journal is primarily influenced by how widely the journal is pertinent to the authors’ faculty. Journals’ circulation i.e. how widely it has been read is also another crucial consideration for authors.
Moreover, journal’s reputation, mostly expressed in terms of its impact factor, is another factor that influences researchers’ decision making as to where to publish. Surprisingly, authors are less interested to publish on journals with APCs (article processing charges), the survey findings reveal.
According to the survey, the time it takes to publish an article is another important factor that affects authors’ decision.
Nevertheless, consideration such as whether the journal is fully open access or not, is not among the top five factors that affects decision making process of the authors.
