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Diversity is the key to increasing a publication’s credibility, quality, and prospect of inclusion in indices

What Does Diversity Mean in Peer Review?

By Emily Mistishen on Sep 11, 2018
Diversity in peer review is a topic that is at the forefront of the academic community in today’s age. Words such as inclusion and bias are terms that are being incorporated into the publishing process, and publishers and editors are urged to ensure diverse review boards, whether by geographical location, research interests, gender, or race. Events such as the Fourth Peer Review Week are encouraging discussion on what exactly diversity in peer review means, the effect it has on a publication’s ethical standards, and what researchers and publishers can do to promote something so essential to the peer review process.

According to Prof. Xiang Ren from University of Southern Queensland in the chapter, “Quality Assessment and Certification in Open Scholarly Publishing and Inspiration for MOOC Credentialing,” from the publication, Open Learning and Formal Credentialing in Higher Education: Curriculum Models and Institutional Policies, “Being an intermediary, rigorous peer review and publisher gatekeeping stand at the intersection between the pre- and post- publication stages. In this system, being published is the end of a process in which quality is assessed, assured, and certified.” Peer review stands as a publication’s badge of credibility and quality, with many publications depending on it. However, despite peer review’s importance and the effect it has on institutions and researchers around the world, many review boards do not provide a diverse voice when reviewing a publication.

Profs. Elena Sandoval-Lucero, Tamara D. White, Derrick E. Haynes, Quill Phillips, Javon D. Brame, and Kathryn A. Sturtevant James from Community College of Aurora argue in their chapter, “Engaging Inclusive Excellence: Creating a College With an Equity Mindset,” from the publication, Discrimination and Diversity: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications, that using diversity in education helps students feel their voices are valued and their lives matter. While the peer review process is not the same as a classroom, a diverse review board provides a varied set of voices that can greatly improve a publication and avoid bias. A global review board allows a publication to be viewed with an international viewpoint.

Diversity in peer review not only adds a wide range of voices to a publication, but also makes publications more qualified for inclusion in indices, increases their marketability, and opens up a publication’s discussion for a wider audience. Profs. Zahid Ashraf Wani and Tazeem Zainab from University of Kashmir state that objective research evaluation and assessment depicts a publication’s significance and impact. However, diversity is required in accurately addressing a publication’s content. In their chapter, titled “Introduction to Research Evaluation,” from the publication, Scholarly Content and Its Evolution by Scientometric Indicators: Emerging Research and Opportunities, they state, “Due to differences in the nature of academic disciplines, the diversity of publishing activities and content substances, and differences in expectations of researchers of different fields, research evaluation requires different methods for different disciplines.”

However, identifying diversity’s importance in peer review is only one part of the problem and applying solutions to the issue can be difficult. In order to promote diversity, IGI Global’s development team encourages editors to utilize their Editorial Advisory Board to share calls, team up with editors from other countries, or look for professional associations and schools outside their region. While publishers have different approaches to a crucial issue, maintaining diversity in peer review is still a goal publishers and institutions should aim to reach.
Peer Review Week is an event that celebrates the essential role that peer review plays in maintaining scientific quality. The year’s event, happening September 10-15, focuses on diversity and inclusion in peer review, encouraging organizations around the world to get involved in the discussion. IGI Global, a member of the 2018 planning committee, is hosting various events as part of the celebration. To learn more about what academic publisher is doing to participate, follow IGI Global on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, or read more here.

Additionally, view the related readings below and recommend them to your library:

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