PEER-REVIEW FOR JOURNALS AS IT STANDS TODAY - PART 2

This two-part article reviews the current literature on journal peer r eview. Research on this subject has grown during the 1980s and 1990s a nd has increased our awareness of both the myths and facts about peer review. Part 1 summarizes research findings on the participants in the system (the appointment mechanisms of editors and referees, and revie wer tasks and qualifications) and systemic problems of reliability, ac curacy, and bias. Part 2 describes current research on how fraud, favo ritism, and self-interest may affect the review system and on such pol icy issues as interference of particularistic criteria; connections am ong editors, authors, and referees; and double-blind review. Although the literature indicates that peer review has many problems, the autho r concludes that it is difficult to imagine how science could advance without such a key quality control mechanism.