Comparison of article processing times in biological journals with different financial models

Abstract

The article processing time is currently one of the main characteristics that authors take into account when choosing a journal. In a competitive environment, journals, especially those with low rankings, need to process articles quickly to be attractive to authors. Most charge-free journals are significantly slower in terms of speed than journals with article processing charges (APC), and this is not only due to the fact that some journals with APC publish articles without peer reviewing and editing, but also because paid journals with peer reviewing and editing employ specialists who deal exclusively with the journal. Many domestic journals cannot afford to hire such free-from-other duties specialists, so the articles are processed by employees of the founding organization, who are also involved in scientific and educational work, which is why editorial processes are uneven. Also, article publication time is increased by volume restrictions related to the obligations of subscription publications and publication of the journal strictly by issues (especially if journal publishes issues every two months, quarterly, or less often). This paper compares the article processing time in four biology journals with different financial models from four countries. As expected, the article processing time in journals with APC was expectedly shorter than in charge-free ones. There is a noticeably long wait for paper publication after its acceptance in the journal, which publishes a printed version and releases articles not as they are ready but only as part of the finished issue. The article discusses possible ways to reduce processing time in charge-free journals. However, such a reduction should be adequate; editorial processes should not be expedited at the expense of the quality of editing and peer review.