Where there is no local author: a network bibliometric analysis of authorship parasitism among research conducted in sub-Saharan Africa

Rees, Chris A.; Ali, Mohsin; Kisenge, Rodrick; Ideh, Readon C.; Sirna, Stephanie J; Britto, Carl; Kazembe, Peter N.; Niescierenko, Michelle; Duggan, Christopher; Manji, Karim

doi:10.1136/bmjgh-2021-006982

Cited by 30 publications

(41 citation statements)

References 35 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…For example, a recent bibliometric analysis published in October 2021 analyzed the concept of authorship parasitism, when none of the study authors were affiliated with the LMIC in which a study took place. 19 This paper observed that 14.8% of 32,061 published studies in SSA indexed in PubMed between 2014 and 2018 fell into this category. SSA authorship under-representation has also been described in SSA studies in other specific fields such as infectious disease, 8 geoscience, 20 COVID-19 pandemic research, 9 and collaborative research.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 91%

Authorship Distribution and Under-Representation of Sub-Saharan African Authors in Global Oncology Publications

Tuyishime

Hornstein

Lasebikan

et al. 2022

JCO Global Oncology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

PURPOSE Local researchers must be engaged in research conducted in their populations. However, local authors from low- and middle-income countries are often under-represented in global health journals. This report aims to assess and describe the representation of authors in the Journal of Clinical Oncology Global Oncology ( JCO GO). METHODS This retrospective cross-sectional study describes data from JCO GO articles published between October 2015 and March 2020. Data were collected on studied countries, authorship position, classified as first, middle, or last, and country of authors' institutional affiliations. Countries were then categorized on the basis of their World Bank region and income classifications. We describe aggregate authorship distribution and distribution by region and income classification. Additionally, we explore the relationships between author's country and studied country. RESULTS Of the 608 articles identified, 420 (69.1%) studied a single country population. Although articles represented studies from all World Bank regions, the sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) region accounted for the highest number (n = 145; 34.5%). In all other regions except SSA, most of the first (66.7%-100%) and last authors (56.6%-95.2%) had primary institutional affiliations based in the same region as the studied country. However, among articles about SSA countries, SSA first authors (n = 65; 44.8%) and last authors (n = 59; 40.7%) were under-represented. In fact, there were more North American first (n = 74; 51.0%) and last authors (n = 72; 49.6%) than SSA authors. There was higher SSA representation among middle authors (n = 97; 68.8%) in studies from the region. A similar trend was also noted with the under-representation of authors from low-income compared with high-income countries. CONCLUSION SSA authors are under-represented in global oncology articles. Concerted strategies are needed to build local capacity, promote meaningful engagement, and foster equity.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 91%

Authorship Distribution and Under-Representation of Sub-Saharan African Authors in Global Oncology Publications

Tuyishime

Hornstein

Lasebikan

et al. 2022

JCO Global Oncology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Additionally, prior research on authorship 'parasitism' in research conducted in sub-Saharan Africa has found that studies without any local authorship were less likely among articles with >10 authors. 3 Together, these findings may be explained by larger authorship groups being more likely to include LMIC authors in token middle authorship positions to ensure formal or informal expectations for local author inclusion are met. Additionally, certain subfields within GEM, such as disaster and humanitarian response appear to have even greater inequities; further research is needed to understand how research within crisis settings may differ from general GEM research, and how long-standing colonial structures in the humanitarian sector may influence authorship decisions.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…1 Despite the field's emphasis on equity, a growing body of literature has highlighted pervasive inequities in global health research that mirror existing power asymmetries between researchers based in low and middle-income countries (LMICs) versus high-income countries (HICs). [2][3][4][5][6] One such inequity is seen in authorship representation in global health research conducted in LMICs. 2 4 7 Previous evaluations of authorship equity within the general global health literature have shown under-representation of LMIC authors and a predominance of authors affiliated with HIC institutions.…”

Section: What This Study Addsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Global health is a broad and interdisciplinary field focused on ‘improving health and achieving equity in health for all people worldwide’ 1. Despite the field’s emphasis on equity, a growing body of literature has highlighted pervasive inequities in global health research that mirror existing power asymmetries between researchers based in low and middle-income countries (LMICs) versus high-income countries (HICs) 2–6. One such inequity is seen in authorship representation in global health research conducted in LMICs 2 4 7.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Authorship representation in global emergency medicine: a bibliometric analysis from 2016 to 2020

et al. 2022

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

IntroductionHigh-income country (HIC) authors are disproportionately represented in authorship bylines compared with those affiliated with low and middle-income countries (LMICs) in global health research. An assessment of authorship representation in the global emergency medicine (GEM) literature is lacking but may inform equitable academic collaborations in this relatively new field.MethodsWe conducted a bibliometric analysis of original research articles reporting studies conducted in LMICs from the annual GEM Literature Review from 2016 to 2020. Data extracted included study topic, journal, study country(s) and region, country income classification, author order, country(s) of authors’ affiliations and funding sources. We compared the proportion of authors affiliated with each income bracket using Χ2 analysis. We conducted logistic regression to identify factors associated with first or last authorship affiliated with the study country.ResultsThere were 14 113 authors in 1751 articles. Nearly half (45.5%) of the articles reported work conducted in lower middle-income countries (MICs), 23.6% in upper MICs, 22.5% in low-income countries (LICs). Authors affiliated with HICs were most represented (40.7%); 26.4% were affiliated with lower MICs, 17.4% with upper MICs, 10.3% with LICs and 5.1% with mixed affiliations. Among single-country studies, those without any local authors (8.7%) were most common among those conducted in LICs (14.4%). Only 31.0% of first authors and 21.3% of last authors were affiliated with LIC study countries. Studies in upper MICs (adjusted OR (aOR) 3.6, 95% CI 2.46 to 5.26) and those funded by the study country (aOR 2.94, 95% CI 2.05 to 4.20) had greater odds of having a local first author.ConclusionsThere were significant disparities in authorship representation. Authors affiliated with HICs more commonly occupied the most prominent authorship positions. Recognising and addressing power imbalances in international, collaborative emergency medicine (EM) research is warranted. Innovative methods are needed to increase funding opportunities and other support for EM researchers in LMICs, particularly in LICs.

show abstract

“…African researchers who contribute to data collection in such projects are not always credited for their work. A 2021 study 17 revealed that about 15% of 32,061 articles on global health research conducted in sub-Saharan Africa had no authors based in the country in which the research took place.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Africa: sequence 100,000 species to safeguard biodiversity

Ebenezer¹,

Muigai²,

Nouala³

et al. 2022

Nature

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

leeper fish (Bostrychus africanus) are a staple food in West Africa. Harvesting them provides an important source of income for hundreds of communities across the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean. Yet little is known about the genetics of this fish -information that is crucial to safeguarding its genetic diversity, and to enhancing its resilience in the face of climate change and other pressures.This situation is all too familiar across Africa. Consider orphan crops, which have a crucial role in regional food security, even though they are not typically traded internationally. More than 50% of these have not had their genomes sequenced -from the The red mangrove tree is indigenous to Africa and is being sequenced as part of the African BioGenome pilot project.

show abstract

Where there is no local author: a network bibliometric analysis of authorship parasitism among research conducted in sub-Saharan Africa

Cited by 30 publications

References 35 publications

Authorship Distribution and Under-Representation of Sub-Saharan African Authors in Global Oncology Publications

Authorship Distribution and Under-Representation of Sub-Saharan African Authors in Global Oncology Publications

Authorship representation in global emergency medicine: a bibliometric analysis from 2016 to 2020

Africa: sequence 100,000 species to safeguard biodiversity

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About