IGI Global's Acquisitions Team highlight the top current concerns of editors

Concerns on the Rise for Editors and Potential Solutions: Part 1 of 3: Inclusion and Diversity

By IGI Global on Jun 3, 2019
When editing an academic publication, editors face many challenges. From keeping to the publication’s contracted schedule to curating quality content that keeps the publication on the cutting-edge of research, editors understandably have significant expectations that fall upon them. With the success and prestige of the publication at the forefront of the editors’ minds, recent surveys have shed light into the most common areas of concern that editors share.

Among their top current concerns are:

    1) Inclusion and Diversity
    2) Data Use
    3) The Academic Culture

Here, we will shed light on the first issue, the issue of inclusion and diversity. Since this is a three-part series, we encourage you to check back in the next edition of this newsletter for a segment on data use.

Within the academic community inclusion and diversity has become a major focal point. Indices have adopted this as one of their top selection criteria and institutions, libraries, ethical committees, and researchers and scholars alike are placing great importance and value in it. Imagine adopting a publication for your courses or utilizing a publication for your own research needs and coming to find that every single author in an edited work is from the same institution, or from the same country? And all the chapters are talking solely about that specific country with no reference to applications in other countries? Not only would this limit the breadth of knowledge within the publication, but it would also force you to question the credibility of the work. Maybe even questioning a potential conflict of interest.

Whether it be across review boards, across contributions, among editors of a work, inclusion and diversity is of critical importance. While many editors are embracing more diversity in their works, they are also finding it to be quite difficult, bringing forth a whole new set of challenges for them. Many editors are citing that encouraging a more diverse range of voices means an influx of writers from non-English speaking backgrounds which is subsequently leading to significant language barriers. These language barriers are affecting their processing of materials which at times can also impact the overall quality and timely publication of the work.

It’s important to note though that editors aren’t the only ones experiencing challenges. As the majority of reference publications are published in English (with the option of purchasing translation rights), ESL (English as a Second Language) and EFL (English as a Foreign Language) authors will find themselves experiencing great difficulty navigating a language they are not wholly familiar with. This can lead to broken text that lacks fluidity, and sadly creates a distraction during the review process.

So, what are the potential solutions?

Well…translation and copy editing services become paramount aspects of the publication process.

For those who do not speak English natively, translation and copy editing services can level the playing field by making certain that ESL and EFL authors can have their research findings transcribed well prior to even submitting the work to a publisher for consideration, shoring up their grammar and spelling and ensuring that the work maintains focus on the research itself. Having the work professionally translated and copy edited prior to it being evaluated during the peer review phase will prevent reviewers from being distracted by grammar and syntax issues and allow them to focus on the concepts presented. Then, having another layer of copy editing performed later in the process, following the peer review, ensures that the final manuscript is polished prior to final publication.

In short, utilizing professional editing services is a great way to elevate the writing and language used within academic papers.

IGI Global has partnered with the editorial services provider, eContent Pro International®, for translation and English language copy editing services and encourages any authors and editors that plan to work with IGI Global to consider using their services for future publications.
Newsroom Contact
Caroline Campbell
Marketing Manager
ccampbell@igi-global.com
(717) 533-8845, ext. 144
www.igi-global.com/
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