Early career researchers and predatory journals during the Covid-19 pandemic. An international analysis

Around 170 early career researchers (ECRs) from 8 countries were interviewed about the whole range of their scholarly communication attitudes/behaviours during pandemic times and this paper analyses what they said about predatory journals in a wide range of scholarly communication contexts. Because of the delicacy of the topic there was just one question exclusively directed at predatory journals, which asked about policies rather than actions, which yielded nevertheless wide-ranging comments on the topic. ECRs also volunteered information on predatory journals in another half dozen questions, most notably including one on questionable research practices. The source of data was mainly the final interview of three undertaken, with some comparisons made to rounds one and two. Findings disclose the existence of a whole raft of formal and informal assessment policies/codes that direct ECRs to legitimate journals and away from predatory ones. Despite being junior, ECRs are very accultured to the criteria of what is considered as prestige and quality and believe predatory publishing is not even conceivable. They are far more concerned about low-quality research, preprints and borderline ‘grey' journals. The pandemic has increased the level of questionable practices and low-quality research, but predatory journals were only singled out by a relatively small number of ECRs. © 2023, El Profesional de la Informacion. All rights reserved.

Exploring psychological vulnerability and responses to the COVID-19 lockdown in Greece

This study explores the psychosocial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the population in Greece during the general lockdown period. Specifically, depression, anxiety and stress scores, as well as the factors associated with vulnerability to developing mental health conditions during this period, were investigated. A total of 911 adults participated in an online survey by completing a self-reporting questionnaire that included demographic questions, DASS-42 items (anxiety, stress and depression scales) and other questions related to personal experience. Regression modelling uncovered a significant relationship between gender and DASS scores, with women having significantly higher scores than men for all mental health problems. Participants aged 20-39 years were especially vulnerable to experiencing poor mental health. Unemployed participants reported having worse mental health than others. Having more perceived psychosocial support during the pandemic was associated with lower overall scores. Thus, women, young adults and the unemployed exhibited particularly high levels of vulnerability, while individuals who received social support from relatives and friends during the lockdown were more resilient to the effects of social isolation. © 2022. All Rights Reserved.

Early career researchers in the pandemic-fashioned ‘new scholarly normality’: voices from the research frontline

After two-years of talking to around 170 early career science/social science researchers from China, France, Malaysia, Poland, Russia, Spain, UK and US about their work life and scholarly communications during the pandemic, the Har-bingers-2 project is in possession of a mountain of verbatim data. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the kinds of comments ECRs are raising, with a focus on those that provide a particular interesting and illuminating take on ECRs’ experiences under difficult times. Comments, for instance, that might challenge the established order of things or that presage big changes down the line. The selection of comments presented here were made by the national interviewers shortly after the completion of the last of three rounds of interviews (two interviews in the case of Russia). The understandings, appreciations and suggestions thus raised by the ECRs are insightful and constructive, which is what we might have expected from this cohort who are very much at the forefront of the research enterprise and veritable research workhorses. Sixteen broad scholarly topics are represented by quotes/comments, with the main focus of the comments on a subset of these: research performance and assessment, scholarly communication transformations, networking and collaboration, social media and access to information/libraries, which suggests, perhaps, where the action, concerns and interest mainly lie. © 2022, El Profesional de la Informacion. All rights reserved.

3D PRINTED MEDICAL DEVICES: ISSUES FOR PATIENT SAFETY

One consequence of the Covid19 pandemic in 2020 was disrupted supply chains for medical devices. In response, many providers began onsite 3d printing medical devices, without special training or custom tailored instructions. Traditional laws protecting patient safety and tort liability regarding possible malfunction of medical devices are not prepared to address the manufacture of medical devices by enduser health care facilities. The USA Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is one regulatory body that has expressed its desire to validate these uses of 3d printing in emergencies, despite concern about these home-grown devices from the standpoint of patient safety. This article explores the uncharted legal landscape concerning the growing need for national or international regulation addressing 3D printed medical devices in Health care facilities (HCFs) and point of care (POCs) venues. New laws may be needed to protect the integrity of medical products within an overarching duty to protect patient safety. © 2022, William S. Hein & Co., Inc.. All rights reserved.

Early career researchers in the pandemic-fashioned ‘new scholarly normality’: a first look into the big changes and long-lasting impacts (international analysis)

After two-years of repeat interviewing around 170 early career science/social science researchers from China, France, Malaysia, Poland, Russia, Spain, UK and US about their work life and scholarly communications in pandemic-times, the Harbingers project is now in possession of a mountain of data on what constitutes a very important academic topic. The purpose of the paper is to share the early highlights of the data, with a focus on the main and lasting impacts of the pandemic. The data presented comes from the national interviewers, who had conducted 3 rounds of interviews with their 20 or so early career researchers (ECRs) over two years and, thus, knew them well. They were asked to provide an ‘aerial view’ by identifying the most important impacts they had detected while things were still fresh in their minds. The main findings are that: 1) ECRs, the research workhorses, have generally proved to be resilient and perseverant and some have prospered;2) the pandemic has fast-tracked researchers to a virtual and remote scholarly world, with all the advantages and disadvantages that comes with it. The data, however, is nuanced, with significant differences occurring between countries, especially China and France. The paper also updates a literature review on the topic previously published in this journal. © 2022, El Profesional de la Informacion. All rights reserved.

Evaluation of the condition of social processes based on qualimetric methods: The COVID-19 case

The Covid-19 pandemic mainly affected those target groups who, due to the nature of their duties, were unable to isolate themselves. The consequences of such work are psychological tension with various symptoms. In this situation, the formation of a system for localizing its consequences becomes a very important task. Three parts are distinguished: a quantitative assessment of the scale and nature of the pandemic, a quantitative assessment of the need to localize the consequences and the analysis of current system;third, the formation of a monitoring system. The chosen system allows verbal assessments to be transformed into quantitative ones. Based on it, the aggregated values of seven essential signs of psychological stress in the target groups (medical and social workers, police, customs officers, educators, pharmacists, and entrepreneurs) were identified: anxiety (0.80), stress (0.78), aggression (0.63), insomnia (0.62), persistent fatigue (0.61), depression (0.56), sadness (0.49). The application of the methodology allows forming a monitoring system considering the scale of the pandemic impact and the psychological consequences. The mental distress caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has been shown to be characterized by such negative effects as anxiety, stress, insomnia, persistent fatigue, depression and persistent sadness. The study revealed that the major shortcomings in the system developed for localizing the negative effects are as follows: insufficient efforts of state institutions even in the case the negative effects are getting worse;inadequate provision of psychological assistance conditioned by unreasonably high prices and deficient legal framework.

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on Saudi medical students' career choices and perceptions of health specialties: findings from a national cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating effect on people across the globe. Its impact on medical students' education has also been profound. Here, we aimed to comprehensively determine the nature of this impact on their choice of specialty. METHOD: A cross-sectional study was conducted among medical students in Saudi Arabia during the pandemic from May to June 2021. Data collected from 1984 medical students were analyzed. RESULTS: Of the total sample, 810 (40.8%) respondents reported that the pandemic could affect their choice of specialty, with the majority being in the third year (n = 235). Across all class-years, the most common reason chosen was the inability to explore specialties of interest (n = 539, 66.5%). Another reason cited was the inability to support residency application (n = 175, 21.6%). A majority expressed concerns regarding enrollment in research activities. As high as 17.9% (n = 356) of the respondents admitted that they were trying to avoid specialty with frontline exposure to COVID-19, while 353 students (17.8%) were considering local training programs only. While examining certainty levels, of the 1174 (59.2%) students who reported not being affected by the pandemic, 924 (78.7%) had a weak certainty level. The majority were in the third (54.8%, n = 342) and fourth years (44.8%, n = 212). CONCLUSIONS: This study is the first attempt to thoroughly examine the effect of COVID-19 on medical students' choice of specialty. This effect unfurled in 4 out of 10 surveyed students. Many students reported concerns regarding the inability to explore medical specialties and the inadequacy of obtained clinical knowledge. However, a subsidiary effect was observed among students who were assertive about their choice of specialty. These findings shed new light on the exigency of establishing a career counseling framework designed to meet individual learner needs, thereby galvanizing their morale. Further research could explore the long-term implications of the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties Matching System.

Symptoms of Depression and Anxiety During the Early Phase of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Sweden.

In this cross-sectional study we aimed to assess symptoms of depression and anxiety at an early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic, and to explore factors predictive of these mental health outcomes. A sample of 1,503 participants, recruited from the general Swedish population, completed an online survey distributed through social media. In this sample, 22.2% reported clinically significant levels of depressive symptoms (PHQ-9 ≥ 10) and 10.9% indicated possible major depression using the PHQ-9 algorithm. Moreover, 28.3% reported clinically significant levels of anxiety (GAD-7 ≥ 8) and 9.7% severe anxiety and possible GAD (GAD-7 ≥ 15). Multiple linear regression analyses identified some common predictors for both outcomes. Age, having a stable income, and sufficient social stimulation, sleep, and recovery showed negative associations, whereas worry about the economy and overall burden showed positive associations. These results suggest an impact on mental health already at an early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic.