The Offramp to a Better SE Research Community
Channel: Paul Ralph
Date: 25/06/2021

Checklists prototype: https://acmsigsoft.github.io/EmpiricalStandards/tools/
Report issues with standards: https://github.com/acmsigsoft/EmpiricalStandards/issues

This keynote address to the EASE 2021 doctoral symposium lays out presents a comprehensive strategy for overcoming endemic problems in scientific communities: ineffective, prejudiced, capricious peer review; wasting years resubmitting the same paper to half a dozen venues until it’s accepted; pouring hard work into revisions that are unceremoniously discarded over technicalities; paying obscene fees for open-access and wasting grant money on overpriced international conferences; a false dichotomy between one-phase review, which gives authors too much latitude to ignore reasonable requests and two-phase review, which gives reviewers too much power to demand unreasonable or inappropriate changes. But just ahead, a turn-off: an exit to another, better academic future. A reality in which all research that meets transparent, agreed-in-advance, method-specific requirements is published. A reality where we only need one journal, because it accepts all valid research. A reality in which there are no publication fees, no arbitrary length limits, no article processing charges, and every paper is free for anyone to read. A reality where we emancipate our field from the for-profit publishers and corrupt professional organizations that leech our research money. A reality where we elect our leaders and refocus our conferences on collaborating, networking, planning, and sharing. A reality in which 1.5-phase review ensures that manuscripts meet expectations without abusing authors. A reality in which you are empowered to pursue the ambitious, important work you’ve always wanted to do.