Physics Researchers' Perception of Advantages and Disadvantages of Open Access Journals: A study

Abstract

The purpose of this research project is to explore the perception of open access journals among physics researchers. The paper presents the findings of questionnaire survey and interviews to examine perceived advantages and disadvantages of open access journals . Even though Bangalore has a large number of physics researchers spread across various research institutions, this study is limited to physics researchers of Indian Institute of Science and Raman Research Institute, Bangalore, India. We believe that results of this survey will help both libraries and publishers in understanding awareness about open access journals. A structured questionnaire was distributed to 260 physics researchers; 200 responses were obtained. The analysis revealed that researchers give priority to factors like quality of peer review and impact factor before selecting an open access journal for publishing. Further, this study also showed that 80 per cent of researchers agree that there is fundamental benefit in open access publishing.