Globally, concerns are rising about the profit-driven scientific publishing model, which, under the guise of (commercial) Open Access, continually increases the Article Processing Charges (APCs) required to publish in an ever-growing number of scientific journals. In Argentina, the scientific community faces intense pressure from ongoing government attacks and substantial budget cuts. In this challenging context, how are researchers’ practices and perceptions evolving?

In the first part of this presentation, I share the results of a research project examining the impact and practices of researchers in peripheral countries who regularly face the challenge of paying APCs. Based on a survey conducted between 2023 and 2024 in Argentina, South Africa, Mexico, and Brazil, I briefly highlight the differences across countries, disciplines, and between junior and senior researchers.

In the second part, I present preliminary results from a more focused analysis. From a Bourdieu-inspired perspective, the distinctive aspects of the Argentine case offer a rich opportunity to reflect on how local and global conditions influence the position and disposition of researchers under political and academic pressures. To do this, I examine three analytical dimensions: 1) whether Argentine-based researchers’ publication practices have changed (or not) in recent years, using open bibliometric sources; 2) the waivers policy of the main profit-oriented publishing companies for these authors; and 3) the researchers' perspective on the APC-based publishing model in 2023, on the eve of the far-right government’s start, and the evolving (or unchanged) practices and viewpoints after two years of threats and budget cuts.

Olsvaldo Gallardo is also part of the project "Open Science in the Scial Sciences and Humanities in Argentina and Germany: Opprtunities, Challenges, and Contestations (OSSGAH)."

ZOOM-Link

https://hu-berlin.zoom-x.de/j/66137712462?pwd=bTF4VG9Ca1BxMkFqOE9xTFZxYldWQT09
Meeting-ID: 661 3771 2462