A Publisher’s Perspective: Why We Don’t Use Guest Editors

Abstract

I recently came across a LinkedIn post from Matt Hodgkinson, DOAJ’s Head of Editorial, about Fengkai Group, a Hong Kong based communications company. Apparently, they are offering paid positions as guest editors for special issues in journals indexed in SCI and Ei Compendex. If you’re familiar with publication ethics, DOAJ, or the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), this raises an immediate concern.