Coercive Citations in Peer Review: A Preprint's Shocking Findings

An analysis of 18,400 open-access articles reveals that reviewers are significantly more likely to approve a manuscript if their own work is cited in subsequent versions. This preprint study, analyzing data from four open-access publishers, found that reviewers who were cited were more likely to approve articles than those who weren't. The study also analyzed reviewer comments, finding that reviewers requesting citations used more coercive language when rejecting papers. This raises concerns about potential conflicts of interest and academic integrity in the peer-review process.