The predatory journals phenomenon

Abstract

Science policy is becoming one of the priority areas of government activity. Various indicators are used to determine the development of science. One of them is the presence of publications in foreign peer-reviewed journals. This indicator is important when advancing in a career, obtaining a degree, and funding projects. The demand for such articles has led to the formation of the phenomenon of predatory journals or pseudoscience, when researchers, for various reasons, publish their articles in low-grade journals. Determining the main characteristics of such journals, as well as identifying the reasons why the author is sent articles there, is the purpose of this work. Also, this article presents an analysis of the publications of Kazakhstani scientists and reveals the motives of researchers who publish in predatory journals. The main hypothesis is that the policy pursued by the state negatively affects publication practices, namely, it contributes to an increase in the proportion of articles in predatory journals. The scientific and practical significance of the work lies in the assessment of the ongoing scientific policy of the state. The article uses a secondary data analysis, based on the Scopus and SJR databases, and an analysis of the publication activity of Kazakhstani scientists was carried out. Proposed measures to combat pseudoscience.