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The early bird uses bioRxiv: The impact of career stage on the usage of preprints in ecology and evolution
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  • Jesse Wolf,
  • Layla MacKay,
  • Sarah Haworth,
  • Marie-Laurence Cossette,
  • Morgan Dedato,
  • Kiana Young,
  • Colin Elliott,
  • Rebekah Oomen
Jesse Wolf
Trent University

Corresponding Author:jessewolf@trentu.ca

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Layla MacKay
Trent University
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Sarah Haworth
Trent University
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Marie-Laurence Cossette
Trent University
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Morgan Dedato
Trent University
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Kiana Young
Trent University
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Colin Elliott
Trent University
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Rebekah Oomen
University of Oslo
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Abstract

The usage of preprint servers in ecology and evolution is increasing, as it allows for research to be rapidly disseminated and available through open access at no cost. This is relevant for Early Career Researchers (ECRs), who must demonstrate research ability for funding opportunities, scholarships, grants, or faculty positions in short temporal windows in order to advance their careers. Concurrently, limited experience with the peer review process can make it challenging for those who are in the early stages of their research career to build publication records. Therefore, ECRs face different challenges relative to researchers with permanent positions and established research programs and have different requirements in terms of research output and timelines. These challenges might also vary according to institution size and country, which are associated with the availability of funding for open access journals. Herein, we hypothesize that career stage and institution size impact relative usage of preprint servers among researchers in ecology and evolution. Using data collected from 500 articles (100 from each of two open access journals, two closed access journals, and a preprint server), we demonstrate that ECRs generate more preprints relative to non-ECRs, for both first and last authors. We speculate that this pattern is reflective of the advantages of quick and open access research that is disproportionately beneficial to ECRs. There is also a marginal effect of first author institution size on preprint usage, whereby the number of preprints tends to increase with institution size for ECRs, although the interaction between ECR status and institution size was not significant. The United States and United Kingdom contributed the greatest number of preprints by early career researchers, whereas non-western countries contributed relatively fewer preprints. This research provides empirical evidence regarding motivations of preprint usage and barriers surrounding large-scale adoption of preprinting in ecology and evolution.
02 Apr 2021Submitted to Ecology and Evolution
03 Apr 2021Submission Checks Completed
03 Apr 2021Assigned to Editor
11 Apr 2021Reviewer(s) Assigned
27 Apr 2021Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
28 May 2021Editorial Decision: Revise Minor
20 Jun 20211st Revision Received
21 Jun 2021Assigned to Editor
21 Jun 2021Submission Checks Completed
21 Jun 2021Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
03 Aug 2021Editorial Decision: Revise Minor
08 Aug 20212nd Revision Received
09 Aug 2021Assigned to Editor
09 Aug 2021Submission Checks Completed
09 Aug 2021Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
24 Aug 2021Editorial Decision: Accept