Reported by Zoey Sun
The Editors Roundtable: 2024 Chinese-European Academic Journals took place successfully at the Novotel Century Hong Kong, bringing together representatives from prestigious universities, research institutions, and academic journals from China, the UK, Italy, and other European countries. The event, hosted by the Chinese Institute of Hong Kong and co-organized by the School of Public Affairs at Zhejiang University, aimed to foster dialogue between European and Chinese scientific communities amidst geopolitical tensions and promote communication of academic practices.
Prof. Huang Ping, Professor at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) and President of the Chinese Institute of Hong Kong, delivered the opening remarks, stressing the critical role of academic evaluation in promoting the long-term development of periodicals. The first session, chaired by Huang, focused on the evaluation systems for humanities and social science journals.
Mr. Jing Linbo, President of CASS Evaluation Studies (CASSES), introduced the China Humanities and Social Sciences Journal AMI Comprehensive Evaluation (AMI), which assesses journals based on three key dimensions: attraction power, management power, and impact power. He also explained the changes in the AMI in terms of evaluation scope, classification of journals, evaluation indicators, and evaluation results.
Jing highlighted that the AMI combines qualitative and quantitative indicators, strongly emphasizing peer review. Although the AMI has made significant breakthroughs compared to traditional evaluation systems, such as a fairer and more transparent process, he acknowledged that challenges remain—particularly with the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) and the difficulty in distinguishing between human and machine-generated content.
AMI and innovation: Striving for balance
A common concern raised by many participants was the tension between rigorous evaluation processes and the need to foster innovation in academic publishing.
Ms. Sun Wenbin, Director of Editorial at the Hong Kong Chronicles Institute, said that overly stringent peer review criteria can stifle creative and unconventional ideas, particularly those of younger scholars. She proposed that journals should create dedicated sections for publishing bold, innovative ideas to encourage intellectual diversity and inspire new generations of researchers.
This sentiment was echoed by Prof. Constantin Iordachi, Co-Editor-in-Chief of East Central Europe and a professor at Central European University, who highlighted the ongoing debate between open-access advocates and commercial publishers. He pointed out that the current funding structure often disadvantages authors from less privileged institutions, limiting their ability to publish in top-tier journals. Prof. Iordachi also stressed the importance of discipline-specific metrics to help young scholars publish quality, innovative research without sacrificing rigor.
Prof. Charlotte Chun Yang, Chair Professor and Associate Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at Hong Kong Baptist University and Co-Editor of Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society, pointed out that attention to how the evaluation interacts with international assessment system is significant, especially for young scholars returning from abroad.
Quality vs. quantity: Rethinking academic evaluation and impact
The pressure to publish frequently, often referred to as "publish or perish," was a recurring theme.
Prof. Ben-Joseph R. Derudder, Deputy Editor-in-Chief of Regional Studies and a professor at KU Leuven, voiced concerns about the emphasis on quantity over quality in academic publishing, noting that the focus on producing large quantities of research can detract from the pursuit of impactful, high-quality work. He also pointed to the growing resistance among some universities in the Low Countries to university rankings, which often prioritize metrics over meaningful scholarly contributions.
Prof. Victoria Honeyman, Editor of The British Journal of Politics and International Relations and a professor at the University of Leeds, expanded on this by discussing how the pressure to publish in high-ranking journals poses significant challenges for early-career academics, particularly in the UK. She noted that the competition for academic positions at elite institutions often requires scholars to publish multiple times in top journals, which can suppress innovative ideas in favor of conforming to established expectations.
The roundtable also explored how journals can foster global collaboration in an increasingly interconnected yet divided world. The second session, chaired by Mr. Shen Wei, Qiushi Chair Professor at Zhejiang University and Chief Editor of Asia Europe Journal, shifted the focus to the development of high-quality academic journals, the challenges and opportunities these journals face, and how these journals can be a vehicle for collaborating for the global scientific community.
Social media has become a force to be reckoned with in expanding academic impact
Some participants touched on the inefficiencies of current academic evaluation systems, where many papers are published without significant impact or visibility outside niche academic circles. They emphasized that social media offers a powerful tool for increasing research's visibility and societal relevance, yet it remains undervalued in formal academic evaluations.
Prof. Thomas Christiansen, Executive Editor of the Journal of European Integration and a professor at Luiss Università Guido Carli, emphasized the importance of maintaining dialogue between Chinese and European scholars amidst political and cultural divides. Social media has become both a tool and a challenge, offering younger scholars more visibility but also creating new pressures for instant recognition, he added.
Prof. Cai Zongqi, Chief Editor of the Lingnan Journal of Chinese Studies and Chair Professor at Lingnan University, discussed the specific challenges humanities journals face, which often struggle to match the metrics-driven success of social sciences and natural sciences. He emphasized the importance of using new platforms, such as social media, to increase visibility and boost impact factors, particularly for journals in niche academic fields.
While media appearances, such as on the BBC World Service or ABC Australia, may have a broader impact than academic articles, these are not recognized as impact in the British system, which is tightly defined and changes with each cycle, Prof. Honeyman added.
Prof. Alfred Tat-kei Ho, Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences at the City University of Hong Kong also advocated for a more balanced evaluation framework that considers both scholarly impact and public accountability and emphasized the importance of social impact measurement.
Navigating the challenges of journal development and academic publishing
During this roundtable discussion, several scholars and journal editors explored the numerous challenges currently faced by academic publishing, particularly in the context of globalization, interdisciplinary collaboration, diversification of publishing strategies, and the balance between local and global issues.
Prof. Derudder began by discussing the challenges faced by the journal in maintaining a global perspective while handling the growing number of submissions. He noted that obtaining high-quality peer reviews has become increasingly difficult, as many reviews are too brief or unclear to provide constructive feedback to authors. The journal also struggles to balance the specificity of regional studies with its goal of fostering global dialogue. He also highlighted the challenge of ensuring that papers from different regions contribute to global academic debates while retaining their unique cultural and historical contexts. Additionally, with the increase in submissions from developing countries, managing this diversity of sources and the role of AI technology in the review process became central points of discussion.
Prof. Iordachi further explored the challenges faced by interdisciplinary research. He pointed out that academic ranking systems are often too compartmentalized, hindering interdisciplinary collaboration. Interdisciplinary research struggles to gain recognition in high-ranking journals, leading scholars to prioritize publishing in high-impact journals within a single discipline, thereby overlooking the potential value of interdisciplinary work.
Prof. Honeyman discussed the multiple challenges her journal faces in the globalized context, including misperceptions about its focus on British politics, geographical biases, and issues with academic rigor, particularly from authors in countries with less freedom. She also mentioned that the politicization of academic publishing and the polarization of viewpoints have impacted editorial decisions, making it difficult for journals to maintain academic neutrality. There is also a concern about the balance of female authors and the need to diversify the editorial team and submissions, she said.
Interdisciplinary collaboration and diversification of publishing strategies
Other pressing issues in academic publishing include interdisciplinary collaboration and diversification of publishing avenues.
Mr. Tsou Jin-yeu, Raymond Hu Professor in the Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering at the City University of Hong Kong, emphasized the importance of interdisciplinary approaches in addressing complex global issues, such as climate change. He noted that interdisciplinary collaboration generates impactful research outcomes and influences policymaking and industry standards through cooperation with professional bodies.
Prof. Charlotte further discussed the impact of research across different disciplines. She pointed out that social sciences and humanities research often take longer to generate practical impact, with social media and policy document citations becoming important influence measures in these fields.
Prof. Iordachi offered suggestions for enhancing a journal's impact through comprehensive strategies. He emphasized that journals should adopt broader tools and resources to expand their reach, especially in regional studies. He gave the example of the journal, which created an academic association to support its development. This practice has played a positive role in fostering academic engagement and promoting cross-regional scholarly dialogue. He also encouraged scholars to conduct comparative research from a global perspective to facilitate broader dialogue and understanding.
The Editors Roundtable has provided a valuable platform for scholars and journal editors from China and Europe to explore the shared future of academic publishing. As technological advancements and geopolitical divisions continue to reshape the academic landscape, fostering collaboration will enhance academic innovation and ensure the global scholarly community remains resilient and thrives.
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