Research Impact

A preprint, also known as the Author’s Original Manuscript (AOM), is the version of your article that exists before it is submitted to a journal for peer review. It is distinct from the peer-reviewed Author Accepted Manuscript.

Preprint servers are online platforms where researchers can share their scholarly works before they undergo formal peer review and are officially published in academic journals.

These platforms provide a way for researchers to disseminate their findings quickly, receive feedback from the research community, and establish priority for their discoveries.

Here are some key reasons to use preprint servers:

1. Rapid dissemination: Preprint servers allow researchers to share their work with the scientific community and the public promptly. This is especially valuable in rapidly evolving fields where timely communication of findings is crucial.
2. Feedback and collaboration: Posting preprints enables researchers to receive early feedback from their peers. This collaborative aspect helps improve the quality of the research before formal publication.
3. Establishing priority: By sharing preprints, researchers can establish the priority of their work, which can be essential for issues related to intellectual property and academic credit.
4. Open Access: Preprints are typically freely accessible to anyone, promoting the principles of open science and allowing a wider audience to benefit from the research.
5. Visibility: Posting preprints increases the visibility of researchers and their work, potentially leading to more citations and collaborations.

It is essential to choose a preprint server that aligns with the specific discipline of your research. The popularity of preprints, and their acceptance among different fields, vary. Researchers should consider community norms and preferences when deciding whether or not to share their work on a preprint server.

• arXiv: Originally focused on physics, mathematics, and computer science, arXiv has expanded to include multiple disciplines, such as biology, economics, and quantitative finance.
• bioRxiv: A preprint server for biology, bioRxiv allows researchers to share their work across various sub-disciplines, including genetics, neuroscience, and microbiology.
• BodoArXiv: Open preprint repository for medieval studies. Named after a Carolingian peasant made famous by historian Eileen Power (1889-1940), BodoArXiv gathers scholarly literature in medieval studies across the disciplines. It provides an open, non-profit repository for papers at different stages of gestation, including works that may later find themselves in article form and/or behind a paywall. Anyone can access and download any item on BodoArXiv freely and immediately, in adherence to the basic tenets of the Open Access movement. Beyond helping authors make their scholarship more visible and discoverable, BodoArXiv fosters collaboration and mentoring as a platform that supports various forms of peer review.
• ChemRxiv: Centered on chemistry research, ChemRxiv provides a platform for sharing preprints in areas like organic chemistry, chemical engineering, and materials science.
• EdArXiv: Education preprint server.
• Humanities Commons: the network for people working in the humanities. Discover the latest open-access scholarship and teaching materials, make interdisciplinary connections, build a WordPress website, and increase the impact of your work by sharing it in the repository.
• MediArXiv: Preprint open archive for media, film and communications studies.
• medRxiv: Focused on health sciences, medRxiv is a platform for preprints in fields like medicine, epidemiology, and public health.
• OSF.io Preprints: Open source infrastructure used by leading preprint service providers to support their communities. OSF.io Preprints supports some of the preprint servers listed here.
• PsyArXiv: Focused on psychology, PsyArXiv allows researchers in psychology and related fields to share their preprints.
• SSRN (Social Science Research Network): While not exclusively for preprints, SSRN includes a preprint repository for social sciences, economics, and humanities.

It is unlikely that a preprint will jeopardize publication. However it is good practice to check publisher policies first. Contact us if you are not sure.

The publisher Taylor and Francis, for example, states: "If you upload an early version of your article to a non-commercial preprint server, you can subsequently submit to a Taylor & Francis or Routledge journal. We do not consider posting on a preprint server to be duplicate publication and this will not jeopardize consideration for publication."