Topic 2

The Scholarly Publishing Environment

“Scholarly communication” is a slightly jargon-y term for what might be broadly thought of as academic publishing. Librarians like “scholarly communication” because it can be a broader, more encompassing term than “academic publishing.” While “academic publishing” basically means the system of disseminating (only) academic journal articles and scholarly monographs, the newer term “scholarly communication” takes into account a wider variety of 21st-century formats and practices that scholars undertake to share their work, such as open-access publishing, which make strives to make research freely available to all. As I have done in this module, I usually bridge the two terms to talk about the “scholarly publishing environment.”

In addition to its expanded formats and methods, the contemporary scholarly publishing environment involves resources that are produced, purchased, and provided in the complex relationship between academic and non-academic publishers, databases (or search service providers), and libraries. All of this ultimately affects your own concerns as a doctoral researcher: how do scholars find and access their research materials?

To reflect and expand upon your understanding of scholarly publishing, the assignment for “The Scholarly Publishing Environment” asks you to complete a questionnaire about accessing journals and databases. While completing this questionnaire or worksheet, you will reflect upon some of your past research experiences and consider issues about who produces the materials scholars use in doctoral research and how they are presented to researchers in libraries. The questionnaire is designed to be a self-guided exercise; however, please feel free to let me know if you would like feedback on your completed questionnaire. Or, if you have specific questions about any aspect of the scholarly publishing environment, please don’t hesitate to contact me.