Influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on Asian scholarly journal editors’ daily life, work, and opinions on future journal development

Abstract

Purpose: This study examined changes in Asian journal editors’ daily life and work during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and investigated their opinions on expected changes, thereby providing preliminary data to support the future needs of journal editors. Methods: A survey questionnaire was developed and sent to 1,537 editors and staff of Asian scientific journals from July 13 to 19, 2020. The items gathered information on participants’ general characteristics, changes in daily life, changes in work life, anticipated future changes, and suggestions in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Results: Of the 152 respondents (response rate, 9.7%), most were editors. Fifty-seven respondents (37.5%) felt very or extremely anxious about the COVID-19 pandemic, and 101 (68.4%) reported spending more time on the internet. The workload of editing, reviewing, and publishing had increased for about one-third of respondents (34.2%, n=52). Forty-four respondents (28.9%) said that the number of submissions had increased. Of the 68 editors who had received manuscripts on COVID-19, 30 (44.1%) prioritized them. Most respondents (73.7%, n=112) predicted that online-only journal publishing would expand after the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusion: COVID-19 appears to be a source of anxiety to editors, which may be related to the increased time they spend on the internet. Some editors reported an increased workload. To promote online communication, a better environment and training tools are required. Editors and staff will need more opportunities to prepare for online publishing, as editors believed that the online-only publication of scholarly journals would accelerate after the COVID-19 pandemic.