e-Publication & Open Access in the Arts & Humanities in the UK
Malcolm Heath, Michael Jubb, David Robey, January 2008
Report summary
A report designed to address the interests and needs of researchers in the arts and humanities with regard to Open Access (as opposed to those in the sciences whom the authors say get most of the attention). Also: the libraries that serve them.
They review past discussions and focus on the UK’s Arts and Humanities Research Council and the Research Information Network to highlight specific discussions – after first explaining what these two bodies are and do.
The take-up of Open Access is generally slower in the arts. Online publication is becoming increasingly widespread and popular, yet according to a Research Information Network Survey only 14% of arts researchers say they are familiar with the options of making their research outputs Open Access. Consequently, very few have used it. Fewer arts researchers than scientists read Open Access journals too.
The authors attribute this low level of awareness and take-up to the nature of arts and humanities research and also the way it is funded. Notably, there are few specific funds for publication fees.
They suggest the ‘overlay’ journal as a possible solution. That’s to say a journal that becomes “a specialist peer review service”. Not a publisher of content, but an interface to papers within repositories that have met quality standards.
They then look at problems related to storing arts and humanities journals in repositories; generally associated with the fact their long shelf life - and the fact that publishers may be less likely to allow open-access posting of them, even after an embargo period.
They also investigate the resource constraints on purchasing arts and humanities journals and the possible costs and benefits of moving to new models.
On the subject of monographs, they note how popular they remain in these subject areas and the simple fact that print is preferred because monographs are still easier to read on paper than in electronic formats. They question the potential benefits of print on demand in this regard and conclude that they are not yet clear.
One development that has clear benefits are the electronic editions of manuscripts that include hyperlinked pictures, critical apparatus, edited text, original text and etc.
They also explore the new EthOS initiative to make UK theses available for global use and electronic data publication.
More general issues that they explore include the scope for “open peer review”, the potential of “interactive publications” for comment and response, the need for better awareness and training for researchers as regards Open Access and e-publishing, and potential inequalities of access that could arise from the restrictive licensing conditions of e-books.
They conclude by saying that even though progress may seem slow at first glance, the advances in the arts and humanities from a decade ago are considerable and that Open Access advocacy should be extended to researchers in these fields as well as the sciences.
Key points
Making the case for OA for researchers
“Surveys undertaken on behalf of the Association of Learned and Professional Society Publishers clearly demonstrate that in the arts and humanities a lower proportion of scholarly journals are published online than in science, technology and medicine.”
Due credit needs to be given to e-publications and e-resource projects for institutional and funding purposes such as the UK Research Assessment Exercise.
Institutions
“…there is evidence to suggest that library subscriptions to arts and humanities journals have been reduced in some institutions in order to meet the rising costs of science journals.”
Publishers
“It is especially important… that careful thought should be given to the costs, benefits and implications of moving to new models. The issues include how to sustain the positive role that the established subscription model has played in journal development, the valuable support it has provided for the work of learned societies, and the UK’s strong position as a publisher, and exporter, of learned journals in the arts and humanities.”
The economic case for OA
Although the cost relating to arts and humanities journals are lower than in the sciences, so are funding levels and Open Access could potentially make large savings while ensuring more material is available to more researchers.
Read the full report