Home

Preprints: An important source for emerging scientific research

Over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a lot of discussion and debate about preprints. The onset of COVID-19 created an urgent need for rapid and widespread dissemination of scientific research. Sharing research in the form of preprints facilitates this by allowing researchers to release their completed manuscripts immediately and publicly. In this way, preprints have undoubtedly had a huge impact on the way that scientific research is both shared and critiqued. This blog post will revisit preprints: what they are, where to find them, and considerations for consuming preprint content.

What preprints are and where to find them

Preprints are completed manuscripts that have been made available prior to formal peer review or publishing in a scholarly journal. They are primarily posted to preprint servers, sometimes referred to as preprint archives or preprint repositories. Preprint servers are public websites that can be accessed by anyone for free, as opposed to many scholarly journals which are subscription-based and only available for a fee.

Preprint servers allow readers to make public comments, serving as an informal way for authors to gather feedback before their article is published. Some of the major preprint servers include:

• bioRxiv: The Preprint Server for Biology
• medRxiv: The Preprint Server for Health Sciences
• Research Square
• OSF Preprints: Center for Open Science
• SSRN (Social Science Research Network)

PubMed also includes preprints that report on research funded by the National Institutes of Health.

Exercise caution with preprint content

Remember that preprints have not been formally peer reviewed. For example, medRxiv cautions:

Preprints are preliminary reports of work that have not been certified by peer review. They should not be relied on to guide clinical practice or health-related behavior and should not be reported in news media as established information. (medRxiv)

Advantages of preprint sharing

Although consumers must be cautious with preprints, there are also many advantages to sharing research in this form, for both authors and readers:

• Research results can be shared immediately, as opposed to waiting for an article to be formally published in a scholarly journal.
• Preprints posted to public servers are accessible by anyone for free, which can result in more views and citations.
• Preprints are increasingly being integrated into the formal publication process of scholarly journals, meaning that some publishers allow research to be posted publicly as a preprint while it undergoes formal peer review.
• Preprint servers facilitate informal peer review by allowing subject experts and other researchers to give feedback via public comments.

Preprints are an important source of emerging scientific research, particularly for COVID-19-related topics. For more information about preprints and how to search for them, reach out to us at AskLibrary@nshealth.ca or book an online consultation with a Library Services team member.

Kristy Hancock

Librarian Educator