Can publication standards be lowered during a pandemic?

Abstract

The peer-review system is the guarantee of the quality of publications. It has its flaws and is sometimes contested, but we have no better alternative. The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has led to an increased demand from researchers, journalists and citizens for rapid information. How have scientific journals evolved to rapidly disseminate research data that is as valid as possible? The number of manuscript submissions has doubled or tripled compared to similar periods in 2019 for most journals. Editorial boards were faced with unexpected volumes of articles to review, with a shortage of reviewers, in an environment of competition between researchers and journals to publish quickly. New sections have been created, peer-review has been accelerated and even simplified, with open access publications. Questionable research practices were observed; prestigious journals published articles whose quality standards were no longer those of normal times. Journals were manipulated with the complicity of the scientific community. These practices show that open science principles and declarations such as the Singapore Declaration on Research Integrity have little impact on the behaviour of some researchers.