ERROR 1
ERROR 1
ERROR 2
ERROR 2
ERROR 2
ERROR 2
ERROR 2
Password and Confirm password must match.
If you have an ACS member number, please enter it here so we can link this account to your membership. (optional)
ERROR 2
ACS values your privacy. By submitting your information, you are gaining access to C&EN and subscribing to our weekly newsletter. We use the information you provide to make your reading experience better, and we will never sell your data to third party members.
Three in four researchers are satisfied with science’s quality control system, according to a new survey of more than 3,000 academics.
The survey results were released on Sept. 16 by Sense about Science, an advocacy group that promotes public understanding of science, and Elsevier. They largely echo the findings of a similar survey from a decade ago. The 2009 survey found that 69% of more than 4,000 reviewers were satisfied with the reviewing process. That number has now gone up to 75%, according to the new survey, which itself has yet to be peer reviewed.
Most respondents, 90%, thought peer review improves the overall quality of research. But 37% said they had doubts over the quality of at least some research they encountered in the week before they took the survey.
Data and supplementary material accompanying papers should also go through peer review, thought 76% of respondents. That feeling was strongest among chemists, with 90% saying quality checks on these supporting materials is necessary.
Citations were the indicator that 88% of respondents find most useful when assessing scholarly work. When asked about a metric that would indicate whether someone has tried to reproduce the work and if they succeeded, 82% of respondents supported the idea, with 90% of chemists saying it would be helpful.
On average, 45% of researchers said employers should recognize the time they spend reviewing. UK-based scientists said this should be the case the most often at 72%. Researchers in the US and Canada are second in agreement at 62% each.
Only 38% of respondents thought the public understands the concept of peer review well.
Join the conversation
Contact the reporter
Submit a Letter to the Editor for publication
Engage with us on X