Since 1954 Ammons Scientific (AmSci) has been publishing peer-reviewed journals in the field of psychology and related social sciences. For the past 19 years, the managing editor, Dr. Stephanie A. Isbell, has been ensuring that the research articles published in the Ammons Scientific Journals are original and robust.
Approximately 60% of the articles submitted to AmSci come from individuals in countries where English is a second language, which can lead to unique issues related to originality and translation. AmSci suspected they might have an issue after some content was determined to be plagiarized by peer reviewers. “Some people have difficulty writing in English, so there is more of a tendency to want to say something how someone else said it,” said Isbell. “In some cultures it is considered respectful to copy what someone else has said, so we try to work with that individual as best as we can to revise the material to ensure that it is original content.” In addition, AmSci also encountered some issues regarding authors’ self-plagiarism. “The whole self-plagiarism idea is difficult for even U.S. authors to comprehend,” Isbell said. Citing that when authors take pieces of their own work and reuse them, or split one specific study into two papers for more exposure, it affects not only the quality of the work, but the impact it has on the reader. “A lot of people are chopping their studies up in an effort to get two papers out of them instead of one,” said Isbell. “iThenticate helps to identify authors attempting to publish the same samples they have published elsewhere.”
In order to solve the issues of previously submitted or unoriginal work being submitted for peer-review, AmSci uses iThenticate to check articles before they go through the peer-review process. AmSci has united with more than 280 top-tier publishers in an initiative called CrossCheck, which is a partnership between CrossRef and iThenticate that provides scholarly publishers with iThenticate’s anti-plagiarism services in order to prevent duplication and other academic misconduct issues. If AmSci finds an article is in question, they send the author a report highlighting specific items that have matched content in iThenticate’s massive database.
As one of the first 10 companies to begin using iThenticate, AmSci has seen notable results in the peer-review process. “We allow authors to redo their work before peer review,” said Isbell. “We have yet to have someone submit a second manuscript with plagiarized text.” Isbell also stated that she has been impressed with iThenticate’s responsiveness and ability to detect previously published content. “The idea that publishers can come together and take a unified look at how things are being published is beyond valuable. I think iThenticate has helped us to develop our service to authors and ensure quality.”
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Publishes peer-reviewed journals in the field of psychology
Journals include Psychological Reports and Perceptual and Motor Skills
Headquartered in Missoula, MT
We have yet to have someone submit a second manuscript with plagiarized text.Dr. Stephanie A. Isbell, Managing Editor
