The Dark Side of Academic Publishing: Unveiling the 5 Stages of 'Enshittification'
In 2023, writer Cory Doctorow coined a term that struck a chord with many: 'enshittification'. It's a word that captures a disturbing trend, and it's not just limited to the online world. Our recent research reveals that this phenomenon has crept into the realm of academic publishing, and it's time we shed some light on it.
The Rise of Academic Capitalism: A Threat to Scholarship
Academic publishing has undergone a significant transformation in recent years, and not necessarily for the better. The industry has grown exponentially, with an estimated annual revenue of over $19 billion. This expansion has led to a worrying trend - the commodification of research.
Since the 1980s, academic publishing has become a commercial venture, driven by profit margins and performance metrics. Universities, too, have adopted market-based management practices, further fueling this shift. As a result, science has become a commodity, influenced by corporate funding and managerial logic. Scholars refer to this as 'academic capitalism', and it's having a profound impact on the entire research ecosystem.
But here's where it gets controversial... The open-access movement, initially a noble cause to make knowledge more accessible, has been co-opted by major publishers. They've turned it into a profit-making scheme, shifting production costs onto authors and charging exorbitant fees. Take the prestigious journal Nature, for example, which introduced an open-access option with a per-article fee of up to €9,500.
This shift has given rise to two extremes: on one hand, we have pay-to-publish journals, including predatory outlets that offer little to no peer review or editorial oversight. On the other, we witness a decline in research quality and integrity, as profit-driven models compromise the very foundations of scholarly communication.
And this is the part most people miss... The 'publish or perish' culture in academia intensifies this downward spiral. With the sheer volume of publications, it becomes increasingly difficult to identify authoritative work. Fraudulent journals spread hoax papers and pirated content, further distorting the scholarly system.
The Five Stages of Enshittification
Our research identifies a five-stage downward spiral in the enshittification of academic publishing:
- The commodification of research shifts focus from intellectual merit to marketability.
- Pay-to-publish journals proliferate, affecting both elite and predatory outlets.
- Quality and integrity decline as profit-driven models compromise peer review.
- The volume of publications makes it hard to distinguish credible work, leading to the spread of hoax papers.
- Enshittification takes hold, overwhelming the scholarly system and distorting its purpose of advancing knowledge.
Reclaiming Academic Publishing: A Call to Action
Our research serves as a warning against the enshittification of academic publishing. It's a systemic issue that threatens the very core of scholarship. To counter this trend, we need interventions and the creation of alternatives. This includes reevaluating evaluation metrics, reducing reliance on commercial publishers, and promoting global equity in research.
There are promising alternatives already emerging. Cooperative publishing models, institutional repositories, and initiatives like the Coalition for Advancing Research Assessment advocate for broader and more meaningful assessments of scholarly impact. To reclaim academic publishing as a public good, we must return to not-for-profit models and sustainable open-access systems. Quality, accessibility, and integrity must take precedence over profit.
It's time to protect the core purpose of academic research - to advance knowledge for the benefit of all.
