Preprints are manuscripts that have been posted online prior to undergoing peer-review and differ from published author manuscripts and published articles in this way. Most preprints are also submitted for traditional peer-review and publication in scholarly journals. Preprints are posted to preprint servers or repositories that are accessible to the public. It is important to note that content in a preprint may change upon peer-review.
Preprints are becoming more common for authors who want to share their research findings quickly and openly. Most authors release their pre-prints while their papers are going through the peer review stage to be subsequently published in a journal but doing so depends on the agreement you have with a publisher. Papers are reviewed by moderators, in contrast to peer review, then posted quickly for the public to access.
- Supports open, free, and early sharing of research results.
- Research is disseminated quickly, whereas peer-review can take a long time to complete.
- Researchers can gain credit early for their work and receive more citations.
- The community can review and provide feedback on the works instantly, providing greater scrutiny on the author’s research findings.
- Preprints may also provide a glimpse into research that did not work, which can enhance literature reviews.
- Preprints are multilingual and diverse.
- Preprints have not been peer reviewed.
- Retracted articles may linger in a preprint repository.
- Preprints should not be cited or quoted as if they have been through the peer-review process.
- Some of the people commenting on the preprint may not be sufficiently well-informed to do so in a meaningful way.
Accessing Preprint Servers
Check out the OpenDOAR repository of preprint servers, hosted by Sherpa Romeo