Abstract: In recent years the scientific journal market faces significant evolutions that may cause major changes in the way of publishing research results. In this connection, open access is the prime alternative to publishing in traditional journals, whose subscription-based business model inhibits the distribution of scientific knowledge. But despite strong support for open access among researchers, today this new paradigm is realized only in a few disciplines. A main reason for this lies in the lack of individual incentives for authors to make their publications freely accessible. In this paper we focus on the argument that open access articles are cited more often than articles in traditional journals. Based on a simulation of the citation network, which emerges on the scientific publishing market, we demonstrate how an individual author can increase her citations, and thus her standing in the community, when switching to open access. Especially first movers may benefit from the change of their publication behavior.
The open access movement:
Putting peer-reviewed scientific and scholarly literature
on the internet. Making it available free of charge and
free of most copyright and licensing restrictions.
Removing the barriers to serious research.
I recommend the OA tracking project (OATP) as the best way to stay on top of new OA developments. You can read the OATP feed on a blog-like web page or subscribe to it by RSS, email, or Twitter. You can also help build the feed by tagging new developments you encounter.
