Re: Publish OA if you can - self-archive either way

From: Charles Oppenheim <C.Oppenheim_at_LBORO.AC.UK>
Date: Mon, 17 Oct 2005 21:57:21 +0100

All this debate about whether OA damages journal sales can be summarised as
follows:

it seems "obvious" to many that increased use of OA will lead to journal
cancellations. This is the "publisher hypothesis".

An alternatrive view is that there is no cause and effect relationship
between OA and cancellations. This is the "Harnadian hypothesis"

The evidence so far does not support the "publisher hypothesis", and there
is no evidence so far to refute the "Harnadian hypothesis".

So I suggest we keep on open mind on these hypotheses rather than shout at
each other. Surely what is important is not whether one hypothesis or other
is correct, but that researchers get their output widely read??

Charles Oppenheim
Received on Tue Oct 18 2005 - 00:02:16 BST