In praise of preprints

Abstract

Background/context A preprint is a scholarly manuscript posted by the author(s) in an openly accessible platform, usually before or in parallel with the peer review process. While the sharing of manuscripts via preprint platforms has been common in some disciplines (such as physics and mathematics) for many years, uptake in other disciplines traditionally had been low, possibly influenced by differences in research culture and strong opposition by some journal publishers [1]. The landscape has evolved rapidly in other fields in recent years, however, thanks to the launch of additional, discipline-specific preprint platforms and increased support by funders and initiatives such as ASAPBio [2, 3]. Why use preprints? Preprint servers provide researchers with a platform to disseminate their work quickly and broadly, in a shorter timeframe than that needed at a peer-reviewed journal. Researchers can establish precedence and may be able to obtain feedback before (or, sometimes, in parallel with) peer review at a journal and from a wider audience than the two or three reviewers traditionally involved in reviewing manuscripts. The availability of preprints can also facilitate interactions between researchers working on similar areas or projects, and may help foster collaboration between groups. Some funders allow inclusion of preprints in grant applications [4] and thus, posting work as a preprint can help authors to provide evidence of research productivity. Preprint platforms do not currently incur submission fees and, thus, provide a free service to both authors and readers. The long-term sustainability of this business model is an open question, although some feel that the operational costs can be offset via grants and partnerships with other parties [5]. Some preprint platforms provide features where readers can publicly log comments, critiques and suggestions. Even if commenting features are not available, readers can contact the researchers directly. Authors may then use the feedback from the preprint posting to revise their manuscript before submission to a journal, or in addition to the reviewer comments from traditional peer review. From an editor's perspective, preprint platforms can also provide opportunities to scout upcoming work and invite the submission of suitable manuscripts to their journal. Preprint servers and journals may also enter partnerships to facilitate easy submission of preprint papers to a participating journal; bioRxiv is a recent example of a preprint server entering such a scheme with some journals to facilitate the direct transfer of papers posted as a preprint on their server.

Is rapid scientific publication also high quality? Bibliometric analysis of highly disseminated COVID‐19 research papers

“…Preprint servers (e.g., medRxiv, bioRxiv) accelerate access as well as the potential misinterpretation of results, and are a prominent part of the scientific community response to urgent health crises (e.g., Ebola, Zika, COVID‐19) (Johansson et al, 2018; Peiperl, 2018). Supporters argue that the transparency and critique received at preprint stage improves the final manuscript (Elmore, 2018b; Fry et al, 2019). Whilst conversely, it is claimed that the misleading nature of some of these early findings may be damaging (Yeo‐Teh & Tang, 2021), as retractions continue to be a rarity and on average take 3 years (Abritis et al, 2021).…”

How to get published inPalynology(or any other journal)

“…Preprints are draft or final versions of manuscripts that are entered into the public record, normally via online servers, before they have been formally peer reviewed or published by a journal (e.g. Berg et al 2016;Maslove 2018;Fry et al 2019). The modern concept of preprints is a revival of a practice initiated during the 1960s; this was discontinued because journals refused to accept articles that had previously been circulated as analog preprints (Cobb 2017).…”

Preprints as an alternative to conference proceedings: A hands‐on experience at EDICIC Iberian Meeting 2019

“…In general, publishers are willing to consider for publication this kind of material. For instance, as a response to Sheldon (2018) who warned that preprints could promote confusion and distortion, all the journals of the Microbiology Society jointly published an editorial (Fry et al, 2019) praising the role of preprints in enhancing scientific communication. Similarly, Nature journals (2021) ‘encourage posting of preprints of primary research manuscripts’ and Wiley (2021) ‘believes journals should allow for the submission of manuscripts which have already been made available on such a [preprint] server’.…”