Survivor research – navigating a publishing barrier: a case study

Abstract

Survivor research refers to those people with lived experience of psycho-emotional distress undertaking a unique type of research that results in any societal change. Survivor research is an anathema to an academic community in that it is often biasedly seen as of a lesser integrity. There is a growing population of survivor researchers who form the Survivor Research Network to support those people to research and publish. However, gaining acceptance by peer reviewed journals remains problematic. This current issue article addresses the challenges of anonymous peer review by those who are not peers of survivor researchers. I present a case describing how reviewers from four journals chose to reject an article by a survivor researcher. The evidence is presented among views of notable survivor researchers who work in this field, also mentioning the wider challenges to all researchers seeking publication.