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The Harbingers project, which studied the working lives and scholarly communication behaviour of early career researchers (ECRs) over 6 years, found evidence of changing attitudes to questionable (grey) publishing. Thus, whilst predatory publishers have come to be treated with equanimity, as a problem easily dealt with, there was growing concern with the high volume of low-grade research being generated, some of which by 'grey' open access publishers for want of a better name (questionable and non-standard have also been used). With the recent announcement (2023) that the government of Malaysia (a Harbinger case country) is not providing Article Processing Charges (APCs) for articles published by MDPI, Frontiers and Hindawi on quality and cost grounds, we set out to see what lay behind this decision and whether other countries exhibited similar concerns. Information was obtained by asking Harbinger country leads, mostly embedded in research universities, from Australia, China, France, Israel, Malaysia, Poland, Spain, UK, and the US to conduct desk research to establish what is happening. It was found that countries, like ECRs, appear to have formed into two different camps, with China, Poland, France, and Spain joining Malaysia in the camp of those who felt concerned about these publishers and the UK, US, Israel, and Australia belonging to the camp of the unconcerned. Explanations for the split are furnished and whether the Malaysian position will prevail elsewhere is considered. Finally, in this paper, we have aired issues/concerns, rather than provided robust, systematic data. For a systematic study we shall have to wait for the fuller study we are hoping to conduct. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper aims to understand the context and drivers of researchers' decision to submit a manuscript to a journal with questionable practices. Using OMICS as a case study and asking authors for their views, the paper presents their profile, motivations and publishing experiences. The methodology is based on a questionnaire sent by e-mail to all authors of articles in journals published by OMICS (+2200). The authors were asked about (a) the factors that influenced their decision to submit their article; (b) their publishing experience with OMICS; (c) their level of satisfaction; and (d) whether or not they would repeat the experience. A total of 86 responses were collected and 18 e-mails were received. The analysis made it possible to add details to the profiles of authors already identified in the literature, but also allowed new and more nuanced profiles. This research extends our knowledge on the phenomenon of predatory publishing from the authors' feedback and provides a better understanding of the socio-economic, psychosocial and geo-political conditions that drive researchers' decisions to submit their work to a possible, potential, or probable predatory journal. At the same time, it reveals some of the strategies used by OMICS to persuade authors to submit their papers. The findings will help to inform institutional policies that seek to put in place efficient measures to combat predatory publishing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents findings from a study into the attitudes and practices of pandemic‐era early career researchers (ECRs) in regard to obtaining access to the formally published scholarly literature, which focused on alternative providers, notably ResearchGate and Sci‐Hub. The study is a part of the Harbingers project that has been exploring the work lives and scholarly communication practices of ECRs in pre‐pandemic times and during the pandemic, and utilizes data from two rounds of interviews with around 170 ECRs from the sciences and social sciences in eight countries. Findings show that alternative providers, as represented by ResearchGate and Sci‐Hub, have become established and appear to be gaining ground. However, there are considerable country‐ and discipline‐associated differences. ECRs' country‐specific level of usage of the alternative providers is partly traceable to the adequacy of library provisions, although there are other factors at play in shaping ECRs' attitudes and practices, most notably convenience and time saving, as well as the fact that these platforms have become embedded in the scholarly dashboard. There is a dearth of evidence of the impact of the pandemic on ECRs' ways of obtaining scholarly papers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents early data from an investigation of the work lives and scholarly communication practices of 177 early career researchers (ECRs) from eight countries. Utilizing mainly coded and textual data from interviews, the paper reports on the findings that pertain to publishing papers in peer reviewed journals. We examine which factors are taken into account when choosing the journal to publish their research in, identifying similarities/differences by country, age, academic status and discipline. Also, explored is whether the pandemic has changed decision‐making. Main findings are that the aim for ECRs is to publish in the 'best' journals, variably measured by prestige, impact factor, standards of peer review and indexation. Appropriateness of audience is the only factor unrelated to the quality of the journal that figures highly among the factors that guide ECRs in the process of selecting a journal. The pandemic has made little difference to the majority of ECRs when they decide on a journal for publishing their research. However, there is a greater awareness of the need for a faster turnover rate, brought on by the importance accorded to speedy publication during the pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to take account of the impact of the pandemic on the already changing scholarly communications and work-life of early career researchers (ECRs), the 4-year long Harbingers study was extended for another two years. As a precursor to the study (featuring interviews and a questionnaire survey), currently underway, an analytic review of the pertinent literature was undertaken and its results are presented here. The review focuses on the challenges faced by ECRs and how these compare to the ones more senior researchers have to tackle. In the examination of the literature three general questions are posed: Q1) What are the identifiable and forthcoming impacts of the pandemic-induced financial pressures felt in the Higher Education sector on ECRs’ employment and career development prospects? Q2) What are the identifiable and forthcoming pandemic-associated disruptions in the pace/focus/direction of the research undertaking? Have any disruptions been predicted to exert an impact on ECRs’ research activities, and if so, with what scholarly consequences? Q3) How is the work-life of ECRs shaping up under the virus-dictated rules of the ‘new normal’ in the research undertaking? What challenges, if any, arise from the changes in practices identified, and what might their potential consequences be for ECRs? The broad conclusion of the study is that the literature leaves little room for doubt: junior researchers are already disproportionally affected by and bear the burden of the ongoing pandemic-incurred hardships and they are likely to remain similarly impacted when more trials, still unfolding, materialise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Harbinger project was a 3‐year‐long international study of the changing attitudes and behaviours of early career researchers (ECRs). One of the aims of the project was to discover if ECRs were adopting disrupting platforms that, legitimately or illegitimately, promote openness and sharing. It has been alleged that such an adoption appeals to them as Millennials. More than 100 ECRs from seven countries were questioned annually, and questions about Sc‐Hub were raised as part of discussions about discovery and access. Interview data were supplemented by desk research and Google Trends statistics. It was found that Sci‐Hub use was increasing and that a quarter of the ECRs now use it, with French ECRs being the biggest users. However, Sci‐Hub is making little headway with ECRs from the UK, USA, Malaysia, and China, although in China's case, this can be explained by it being banned and the country having its own equivalent, www.91lib.com. Sci‐Hub is used as much for convenience as necessity; use is not connected to the strength of library provision and and it has been suggested that it represents a bigger threat to publishers than ResearchGate, whose star might be waning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this article is twofold: a) to describe and compare methods of early career researcher (ECR) assessment/appraisal; b) to explain how ECRs build, showcase, and monitor their reputation in an era of novel developments in scholarly communications. In all, 116 ECRs from China, France, Malaysia, Poland, Spain, the UK, and the US were questioned about appraisal and reputation in structured in-depth interviews. Desk research supplemented the interview data. It was found that ECRs are assessed very traditionally, largely on journal papers, and cannot (although some would like to) see this state of affairs changing. Mainly, they would prefer that less weight be given to the volume of papers published and more weight given to the quality of their research and its impact on the body of knowledge in their field. Unavoidably, then, ECRs' efforts to build, showcase, and monitor their reputation are still very much associated with research achievements. Nevertheless, online scholarly communities, and ResearchGate in particular, are gaining ground among ECRs, with increase in visibility and citations, and therefore a maximization of research impact, considered to be their main reputational benefits. Metrics are regarded as ‘a rule of the game' that has to be accepted, although ECRs have minimal interest in altmetrics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Molecular biology is an innovative field, often studied for its cutting-edge practices. However, very few studies have focused on grey literature. The part played by grey literature in the researcher's process of producing new knowledge remains largely unknown. By choosing the CRCL, an internationally recognized French laboratory, as the ground for our study, we were able to investigate precisely this question by observing the informational behavior of 13 researchers in their daily work. Our study combines three methodological techniques (semi-structured interviews, ethnographic observation and characterization of the scientific material produced). Our approach consisted in identifying the reality of grey literature in the researchers' informational habits. The results illustrate how a shift has occurred within grey literature, converging towards scientific data, which is becoming the field's new high added value « grey » deposits. Grey literature is more than ever taking a central role in molecular biology in the digital era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a survey on usage statistics management in academic libraries in France. The objective is to provide empirical evidence on real methods and processes, best practices and problems experienced by librarians. The survey adapted Baker and Read's methodology to the French context. One-third of French academic libraries answered the survey. Results show that usage statistics are crucial for librarians' daily work. COUNTER reports are mostly used, specifically the JR1 format. Two-thirds of the libraries enhance the usage statistics with other data. Librarians face three major difficulties: lack of time, lack of usage data produced by French vendors, and the need for customized tools. The article contains a short literature review and ends with recommendations for further studies. It is the first published survey on usage data management in France and allows for comparison with results from other countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article seeks to understand the e-journal search patterns of STM (science, technology, and medicine) researchers from the French academic network by studying how researchers seek, read, and use articles on the ScienceDirect platform. The methodology combines two approaches. The first approach is quantitative and is based on statistical data concerning search activities on ScienceDirect between January 2008 and April 2009. The second approach is qualitative and is based on semi-directed interviews of researchers authorized to access ScienceDirect. The researchers' information-seeking activities on ScienceDirect follow two complementary usage logics. On the one hand, they follow search and discovery itineraries, and, on the other hand, they implement continuous and recurrent access mechanisms. In both cases, the researchers' searching behaviours on ScienceDirect are similar to their behaviours on the Web. This study concerns a previously unpublished large-scale analysis of STM searching behaviours. Furthermore, the mixed methodology used allows the results to be compared and, thus, the clearest and most objective interpretation to be obtained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The article aims to investigate the customers for the document supply of print serials. Design/methodology/approach – The study is based on data from INIST-CNRS for document supply requests in pharmacology. Data were collected from 1998 to 2005 (10,000+ customer accounts with 4.6m orders). Findings – The article provides information about the distribution of orders per customer type, about the geographical origin of customers, about the ordering trends among pharmaceutical customers and of pharmaceutical journals. Originality/value – This is the last of three articles on a longitudinal study over 13 years on different aspects of the relationship between document supply and impact factor (citations) in pharmacology, a scientific domain with a high use of scientific information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The article aims to investigate the correlation between citations and the document supply of print serials. Design/methodology/approach – The study is based on data from INIST-CNRS for document supply requests and from ISI for citations from 89 serials with JCR impact factors in pharmacology. Data were collected from 1992 to 2004. Findings – The results distinguish four groups of serials with different relationships between document supply requests and citations. The characteristics of the serials of the four groups are described (year of creation, price, etc.). The evolution of the correlation between document supply and citations is analysed. Originality/value – This is the second of three articles on a longitudinal study over 13 years on different aspects of the relationship between document supply and impact factor (citations) in pharmacology, a scientific domain with a high use of scientific information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The article seeks to investigate the evolution of document supply of print serials. Design/methodology/approach – The study is based on data from INIST-CNRS – document supply requests and access to electronic resources – of 95 serials with JCR impact factors in pharmacology. Data were collected from 1992 to 2003. Findings – The results distinguish four groups of serials each with a different evolution of document supply requests. Nevertheless, the overall decline from 1999 is a global phenomenon linked to growing access to online journals and there seems little likelihood of a slowdown for the next few years. Originality/value – This is the first of three articles on a longitudinal study over 12 years on different aspects of the relationship between document supply and impact factor (citations) in pharmacology, a scientific domain with a high use of scientific information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – This article seeks to investigate the impact of the open archive initiative on the document supply of grey literature. Design/methodology/approach – The article is based on a comparative survey of five major institutions: The British Library (UK), CISTI (Canada), INIST-CNRS (France), KISTI (South Korea) and TIB Hannover (Germany). Findings – All major document suppliers are more or less deeply involved in the open archive movement, and this involvement has an obvious impact on the policy of acquisition, archiving and supply of grey literature (dissertations, reports, conferences, etc.). Originality/value – Even if the impact of increased access to digital resources on document supply is relatively well documented, little is known about the specific effect on grey literature, especially in the OA environment. This study provides some evidence concerning this effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the proceedings of the conference "Academic Publishing in Europe" held in the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Science at the famous Gendarmenmarkt in the historical center of Berlin near Humboldt University on January 22-23, 2008. About 230 professionals from 15 countries from The Netherlands, Germany, and Great Britain attended the conference.