by KnowledgeWorks Global Ltd.
Looking to the year ahead once again, the KGL experts across book and journal publishing, scholarly and education markets, technology and business development, weigh in to highlight some of the industry trends we expect will be prominent in 2023.
Publishers Make CDEI a Priority
CDEI (Content Diversity Equity and Inclusion) is a growing focus, particularly in educational publishing and ed tech, and publishers are scaling up their resources and investment related to CDEI. As the industry strives to ensure that content—both past and present—is responsive, relevant, and representative of the society in which we live, we will likely see publishers move beyond surface-level approaches and adopt more in-depth strategies to broaden and modernize depictions of areas such as different ethnicities, abilities, religions, genders and family structures. Whether it’s reimagining diversity guidelines, assembling special taskforces, or engaging sensitivity readers, publishers will be going further than ever before on CDEI during the coming year. (Sonny Regelman, Executive Director, Learning Solutions) .
Quality and Quantity from China
As we recently discussed in our blog post on globalization, Chinese journal publishing is going from strength to strength, and this is a trend that is set to continue. With nearly 25% of the world’s published research coming out of China, the nation has now surpassed the US and EU in terms of annual article output. But perhaps more significantly, there has been a major shift in quality too. In 2020, Chinese research comprised 27% of the top one percent most cited papers (compared to 25% for the US), while Chinese authors contributed 29% of the articles published in the world’s most reputable journals. As these global power shifts evolve and attitudes towards Chinese academic publishing changes, it is likely that we will see enhanced collaborations between Chinese and Western researchers and an increase in cross-cultural academic teams—assuming of course that geopolitical disruption does not force these ties to unravel. (Kevin Lomangino, Director of Market Research & Development)
Open Access Leaps Forward
In August 2022, the White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) issued new policy guidance requiring that by the end of 2025, all publications and data resulting from federally funded research in the US be made “freely available and publicly accessible…without any embargo or delay after publication.” Although the policy is vague on some specifics that will greatly affect its implementation, there is broad consensus that the guidance will provide fresh momentum to the fast-growing OA movement globally and especially in the US. Publishers and societies will be watching closely as crucial details are hammered out and assessing how they can position their portfolios to thrive in this fast-changing landscape. (Cara Rivera, VP Consulting and Market Analysis)
The Rise of the (Chat) Bots
Following years of speculation and assumptions on how artificial intelligence (AI) will affect publishing (for better or for worse), applications are now coming thick and fast. Some are genuinely helpful, especially those being adopted to boost efficiency in the editorial process, and some just downright scary. A study recently reported that fake scientific abstracts and research papers generated by OpenAI’s AI-powered chatbot, ChatGPT, managed to convince scientists into thinking they were real nearly one third of the time. And ChatGPT is even being added as an author to papers submitted to legitimate journals. Journal publishers are now keeping an eye on nascent AI output detectors for reviewing papers, in order to maintain standards and scientific rigor. (Tom Beyer, Platform Services Director, KGL PubFactory)
The Art of Alt Text
Everybody knows the important role Alt Text plays in online accessibility, user experience and SEO. Yet the narrative around this fundamental pillar of accessibility is shifting from what was widely conceived as a painful but necessary task, to a modern day artform that requires a great deal of skill and experience. As the dos and don’ts become more established and its benefits championed more widely, more publishing staff and authors will be expected to apply Alt Text skills. (Waseem Andrabi, VP Learning Solutions)
Peer Review Diversifies
As journal publishers commit to DEI and to reshaping internal recruitment and staffing policies to become more inclusive, they are also starting to broaden their horizons when it comes to their editorial boards, author base and reviewer pool. When it comes to peer review, having a wide range of reviewers from different ethnic minorities, genders and underrepresented communities can bring fresh perspectives, while also helping to prevent bias. While many publishers have gone public about the importance and benefits of peer review diversification, we expect several big players to implement new reviewer DEI strategies in the year ahead. (Alexandra Kahler, Director of KGL Editorial)
KnowledgeWorks Global Ltd. (KGL) is the industry leader in editorial, production, online hosting, and transformative services for every stage of the content lifecycle. We are your source for peer review services, market analysis, educational content development, accessibility compliance, digital delivery, and more. Email us at info@kwglobal.com.