Dr.Stewart is an editor of a psychology journal.She wants to ensure that reviewers give honest reviews of the papers they are asked to read.Which of the following could she do to increase the likelihood of honest feedback?
A) Increase the number of peer reviewers
B) Decrease the number of peer reviewers
C) Use reviewers from fields other than psychology
D) Make sure the identity of peer reviewers is unknown
E) Give reviewers a longer amount of time to read papers

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Making sure the identity of peer reviewers is unknown would decrease the likelihood of biased or dishonest feedback as reviewers would not feel pressured to give positive reviews to maintain a relationship with the authors or to avoid potential conflicts with colleagues. This strategy is called double-blind peer review and is widely used in academic publishing to ensure the objectivity and quality of feedback. Increasing the number of peer reviewers or giving longer time to read papers may not necessarily increase the honesty of feedback, as it may still be influenced by personal research interests or biases. Using reviewers from fields other than psychology could be useful to get a different perspective on the topic, but it may not necessarily lead to more honest feedback. Decreasing the number of peer reviewers may increase the workload of each reviewer and reduce the diversity of perspectives, which could also affect the quality of feedback.

DrStewart Is an Editor of a Psychology Journal