An Open Access Model for Quality Scientific Outputs in a Quasi-Linear Information Society: A Pareto Optimality Approach

Introduction

The deployment of an appropriate model for information dissemination and use to ensure information produced are easily and freely accessed by potential users has attracted much debate among information professionals, scholars and stakeholders. Ogunmodede, Apata and Nwokeoma (2017) noted that access to and utilization of information such as research publications is vital for modern development. According to Olurode (2017), there is a dire need in recent times for the call for the use and application of research findings and publication to enhance development and reduce human sufferings especially in developing countries such as Nigeria. Different models have been introduced and deployed by various information producers/users such as Arthur-Fee for publication- where author pay for publications and users obtain easy and free access to published articles; and/or user-fee for access- where authors do not pay for publication but such information are provided for users at a particular fee, thereby restricting users’ access; among others.

Even within the open access model, there are different types of sub models: “gold, green, and hybrid models”. A gold journal is an open access journal which makes published contents available for free on the publisher’s website for readers/users. In this type of journal, there is a delayed open access, where articles become free for readers on the publisher’s website after some time (usually 12 months) after initial publication (Kieńć, 2015). A green journal is a journal which publishes non-free content, but allows its authors to republish their articles in open access repositories. Thus, while such article on the publisher’s website is pay-walled, the author can place the same text somewhere on the Internet using avenues such as Google scholar, Academia, Research Gate, or on a blog, among others. The Hybrid journals are generally pay walled and offer the possibility for authors to open individual articles by paying an extra fee otherwise their articles would be placed on subscription before user can access them. Despite all these models, there seem to be dilapidating bridges between publishers and authors, publishers and users, etc. thus, the need for efficient model as provided by this study to fill these bridges.

These models and sub models have attracted debates in the information industry (Hall, 2008; Suber, 2012) especially in developing economies where poverty is very high and the market system for such information industry is distorted and affected by so many factors such as poverty, inflation, unemployment, illiteracy, lack of a knowledge based society, among others. Since the major objective for publishing research findings and information is to ensure that such findings are effectively and easily accessed and used by potential users, it is expedient that users are given access to such works. This has given birth to the use of open access models to achieve an efficient information society nevertheless some publishers do use other models to ensure their continuity in the industry. According to Hall (2008), open access offers solution to many of the problems currently confronting scholars as a result of the decline in state funding for higher education and increasingly market-and profit-driven nature of the academic publishing industry. The possibility of making research findings and publications open access and available at very low or no cost to the public on a global scale have been hotly debated within scientific, technical and medical circles (Hall, 2008). Peterson, Emmett & Greenberg (2013) have stated that communication of research findings is the life blood of the academic society. In other words, it can be reaffirmed that dissemination of research findings and scholarly works is the life blood of the information society which include tertiary institutions.