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What Motivates Authors of Scholarly Articles? The Importance of Journal Attributes and Potential Audience on Publication Choice

Author

Listed:
  • Carol Tenopir

    (School of Information Sciences, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA)

  • Elizabeth Dalton

    (School of Information Sciences, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA)

  • Allison Fish

    (School of Informatics and Commuting, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA)

  • Lisa Christian

    (School of Information Sciences, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA)

  • Misty Jones

    (School of Information Sciences, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA)

  • MacKenzie Smith

    (University Library University of California Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA)

Abstract

In this article we examine what motivations influence academic authors in selecting a journal in which to publish. A survey was sent to approximately 15,000 faculty, graduate students, and postdoctoral researchers at four large North American research universities with a response rate of 14.4% ( n = 2021). Respondents were asked to rate how eight different journal attributes and five different audiences influence their choice of publication output. Within the sample, the most highly rated attributes are quality and reputation of journal and fit with the scope of the journal; open access is the least important attribute. Researchers at other research-intensive institutions are considered the most important audience, while the general public is the least important. There are significant differences across subject disciplines and position types. Our findings have implications for understanding the adoption of open access publishing models.

Suggested Citation

  • Carol Tenopir & Elizabeth Dalton & Allison Fish & Lisa Christian & Misty Jones & MacKenzie Smith, 2016. "What Motivates Authors of Scholarly Articles? The Importance of Journal Attributes and Potential Audience on Publication Choice," Publications, MDPI, vol. 4(3), pages 1-22, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jpubli:v:4:y:2016:i:3:p:22-:d:74156
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. David J. Solomon & Bo‐Christer Björk, 2012. "Publication fees in open access publishing: Sources of funding and factors influencing choice of journal," Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 63(1), pages 98-107, January.
    2. Josefina Coloma & Eva Harris, 2005. "Open-Access Science: A Necessity for Global Public Health," PLOS Pathogens, Public Library of Science, vol. 1(2), pages 1-3, October.
    3. Bo-Christer Björk & Patrik Welling & Mikael Laakso & Peter Majlender & Turid Hedlund & Guðni Guðnason, 2010. "Open Access to the Scientific Journal Literature: Situation 2009," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 5(6), pages 1-9, June.
    4. Michael Norris & Charles Oppenheim & Fytton Rowland, 2008. "The citation advantage of open‐access articles," Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 59(12), pages 1963-1972, October.
    5. David J. Solomon & Bo-Christer Björk, 2012. "Publication fees in open access publishing: Sources of funding and factors influencing choice of journal," Journal of the Association for Information Science & Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 63(1), pages 98-107, January.
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    Cited by:

    1. Alexandre López-Borrull & Mari Vállez & Candela Ollé & Mario Pérez-Montoro, 2021. "Publisher Transparency among Communications and Library and Information Science Journals: Analysis and Recommendations," Publications, MDPI, vol. 9(4), pages 1-12, November.
    2. Sandro Serpa & Maria José Sá & Ana Isabel Santos & Carlos Miguel Ferreira, 2020. "Challenges for the Academic Editor in the Scientific Publication," Academic Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies, Richtmann Publishing Ltd, vol. 9, May.
    3. Noella Edelmann & Judith Schoßböck, 2020. "Open Access Perceptions, Strategies, and Digital Literacies: A Case Study of a Scholarly-Led Journal," Publications, MDPI, vol. 8(3), pages 1-22, September.
    4. Ilgaz Arikan & Oded Shenkar, 2022. "Neglected elements: What we should cover more of in international business research," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 53(7), pages 1484-1507, September.
    5. Raminta Pranckutė, 2021. "Web of Science (WoS) and Scopus: The Titans of Bibliographic Information in Today’s Academic World," Publications, MDPI, vol. 9(1), pages 1-59, March.
    6. Kendall Faulkner, 2021. "Faculty Use of Open-Access Journals: A Case Study of Faculty Publications and Cited References at a California University," Publications, MDPI, vol. 9(3), pages 1-12, August.
    7. Mason, Shannon & Merga, Margaret K. & González Canché, Manuel S. & Mat Roni, Saiyidi, 2021. "The internationality of published higher education scholarship: How do the ‘top’ journals compare?," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 15(2).

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