title: Study of Predatory Open Access Nursing Journals.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to identify predatory journals in nursing, describe their characteristics and editorial standards, and document experiences of authors, peer reviewers, and editors affiliated with these journals.
  
  
  
  Using two sources that list predatory journals, the research team created a list of nursing journals. In Phase One, the team collected data on characteristics of predatory nursing journals such as types of articles published, article processing charge, and peer review process. In Phase Two, the team surveyed a sample of authors, reviewers, and editors to learn more about their experiences with their affiliated journals.
  
  
  
  Data from the review of predatory nursing journals were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Written comments were summarized and categorized.
  
  
  
  There were 140 predatory nursing journals from 75 publishers. Most journals were new, having been inaugurated in the past 1 to 2 years. One important finding was that many journals only published one or two volumes and then either ceased publishing or published fewer issues and articles after the first volume. Journal content varied widely, and some journals published content from dentistry and medicine, as well as nursing. Qualitative findings from the surveys confirmed previously published anecdotal evidence, including authors selecting journals based on spam emails and inability to halt publication of a manuscript, despite authors' requests to do so.
  
  
  
  Predatory journals exist in nursing and bring with them many of the "red flags" that have been noted in the literature, including lack of transparency about editorial processes and misleading information promoted on websites. The number of journals is high enough to warrant concern in the discipline about erosion of our scholarly literature.
  
  
  
  Nurses rely on the published literature to provide evidence for high-quality, safe care that promotes optimal patient outcomes. Research published in journals that do not adhere to the highest standards of publishing excellence have the potential to compromise nursing scholarship and is an area of concern.
authors.affiliation: Thelma M. Ingles Professor of Nursing, Director of Evaluation and Educational Research, Duke University School of Nursing; Editor, Nurse Educator and Journal of Nursing Care Quality, Durham, NC, USA. marilyn.oermann@duke.edu.
authors.forename: Marilyn H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Oermann
authors.affiliation: Research & Education Librarian, Liaison to the School of Nursing, Duke University Medical Center Library & Archives, Durham, NC, USA.
authors.forename: Jamie L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Conklin
authors.affiliation: Editor-in-Chief, CIN: Computers, Informatics, Nursing, and Nurse Author & Editor; President and Owner, Maine Desk LLC, Portland, ME, USA.
authors.forename: Leslie H
authors.initials: LH
authors.lastname: Nicoll
authors.affiliation: Editor, Advances in Nursing Science; Professor Emerita, University of Connecticut School of Nursing, Storrs, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Peggy L
authors.initials: PL
authors.lastname: Chinn
authors.affiliation: Assistant Professor, Duke University School of Nursing, Durham, NC, USA.
authors.forename: Kathleen S
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Ashton
authors.affiliation: Assistant Professor, Duke University School of Nursing, Durham, NC, USA.
authors.forename: Alison H
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Edie
authors.affiliation: Statistician III, Duke University School of Nursing, Durham, NC, USA.
authors.forename: Sathya
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Amarasekara
authors.affiliation: Associate Director of Research Operations, Duke Office of Clinical Research, Durham, NC, USA.
authors.forename: Susan C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Budinger
mesh_terms: D001319:Authorship; D035081:Editorial Policies; D006801:Humans; D009729:Nursing; D066295:Open Access Publishing / Q000592:standards*; D010380:Peer Review; D010506:Periodicals as Topic / Q000592:standards*
keywords: Editorial standards; ethical issues; nursing journals; predatory journals; publishing