Author: Gail Wilson, Adjunct Associate Professor, Office of the PVC (Academic Innovation), Southern Cross University

In 2023, an academic journal, the Annals of Operations Research, retracted an entire special isssue because the peer review process for it was compromised. The case brought into sharp focus broader concerns about the peer review process in contemporary science. It showed that a process intended to catch problems with research before publication can itself go wrong. And when it does, it creates large ripple effects that undermine the integrity of scientific research. So how is the peer review meant to work? Why does it sometimes fail? And what can be done to improve it? An evolving process Peer review…