6533b7dcfe1ef96bd1272183
RESEARCH PRODUCT
Do editors have a silver bullet? an agent-based model of peer review
Juan Bautista CabotaFrancisco GrimaldoFlaminio Squazzonisubject
Agent-based modelMatching (statistics)Actuarial scienceOperations researchComputer scienceProcess (engineering)media_common.quotation_subjectReferee behaviourAgent-based modelling Editor Peer review Referee behaviour Referee-author matching policyPeer reviewAgent-based modellingSilver bulletQuality (business)Referee-author matching policySelection (genetic algorithm)Editormedia_commondescription
This paper presents an agent-based model of peer review that looks at the effect of different editorial policies of referee selection. We tested four author/referee matching scenarios as follows: random selection of referees, selection of referees with a similar status to submission authors, selection of higher-skilled and lower skilled referees. We tested these scenarios against three types of referee behaviour, i.e., fair, unreliable and strategic and measured their implications for the quality and efficiency of the process. Results show that in case of randomness of referee judgment, any editorial policy is detrimental for peer review. If referees behave strategically, certain matching policies, such as selecting referees of good quality, might counteract possible bias.
| year | journal | country | edition | language |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014-05-27 |