Abstract
Abstract To manage the transition to the open access (OA) model of scholarly publishing, we need to understand better what enables, encourages and inhibits the adoption of OA publishing among scientists, and to appreciate individual differences within disciplines. The study adopts a psychological perspective to elucidate motivations, capabilities and opportunities for OA publishing among bioscientists in the UK. To identify differences within the discipline, bioscientists with starkly different past practices for disclosing research data and technologies were interviewed. The sampled bioscientists face similar obstacles and enablers in their physical environment, but that their motivations and experience of their social environments differ. One group is strongly motivated by their moral convictions and beliefs in benefits of OA and feels peer pressure related to OA. The other group expresses fewer pro-OA beliefs, holds beliefs demotivating OA publishing, but feels pressure from research funders to adopt it. The former group makes more frequent use of OA publishing, which suggests that only those with strong motivations will work to overcome the social and physical obstacles. The individual differences within the discipline suggest that bioscientists are unlikely to respond to OA policies in the same way and, thus, the appropriateness of one-size-fits-all OA policies is questioned.
Highlights
The knowledge transfer channels among universities, industry and other users have been the topic of much investigation in recent decades (Perkmann et al, 2013; Azagra-Caro et al, 2017)
As the academic publishing industry undergoes significant changes driven by the open access (OA) mandates of public research funders (Harvie et al, 2013; Beverungen et al, 2013), OA publishing is emerging as a new knowledge disclosure practice (Houghton and Oppenheim, 2010; Suber, 2012)
What kind of policies and other interventions are appropriate for governments, research funders, universities and publishers to encourage the adoption of OA publishing in academia? This paper aims to shed some light on how this transition should be managed
Summary
The knowledge transfer channels among universities, industry and other users have been the topic of much investigation in recent decades (Perkmann et al, 2013; Azagra-Caro et al, 2017). As the academic publishing industry undergoes significant changes driven by the open access (OA) mandates of public research funders (Harvie et al, 2013; Beverungen et al, 2013), OA publishing is emerging as a new knowledge disclosure practice (Houghton and Oppenheim, 2010; Suber, 2012). This new practice makes research outputs openly and freely accessible and, it is believed, makes it easier to evaluate, replicate and build upon knowledge produced by others and, to facilitate scientific and technological advancements and the mobilisation of knowledge for social and economic benefits (Gaulé and Maystre, 2011; McKiernan et al, 2016; European Commission, 2016). What kind of policies and other interventions are appropriate for governments, research funders, universities and publishers to encourage the adoption of OA publishing in academia? This paper aims to shed some light on how this transition should be managed
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