The ‘publish or perish’ mentality is fuelling research paper retractions – and undermining science
The “publish or perish” paradigm is increasingly antithetical to the process of scientists making important discoveries, both big and small, and then typically publishing their findings in scientific journals for others to read. This sharing of knowledge helps to advance science: it can, in turn, lead to more important discoveries. But published research papers can be retracted if there is an issue with their accuracy or integrity. And, according to research shared by Nham Tran, in recent years, the number of retractions has been rising sharply. For example, in 2023 more than 10,000 research papers were retracted globally. This marked a new record, and in combination with AI’s impact on scientific publishing, has created a volatile environment in which scholarly literature is increasingly challenged for data accuracy.