Warning Before the Collapse: How the Research Boom is Undermining Scientific Integrity?

Warning Before the Collapse: How the Research Boom is Undermining Scientific Integrity? | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Warning Before the Collapse: How the Research Boom is Undermining Scientific Integrity? Abdelkader Nasreddine Belkacem This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8068394/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract With the rise of open access journals, all major science publishers have faced scrutiny over the large volume of papers being published. This boom in research has gone hand in hand with a surge in retracted papers, most of which due to unethical practice by some authors which has helped fuel serious doubts over scientific integrity nowadays publish or perish mentality. Using data of retracted papers, this paper explains how the pressure to increase research productivity can negatively impact scientific integrity. Trends such as retracted articles, h-index or citation count increases that occur with great speed, dubious collaborations, and sudden ranking advancement of universities have been discussed in order to identify whether these indicators offer beneficial information on the current state of scientific integrity. Based on the cascading effects of retractions, we found that both the ratio of retracted to analyzed papers of 0.11 % and the ratio of high-risk to analyzed papers of 0.37 % can serve as important indicators for institutions to be concerned about their reputation. These findings suggest a need for stricter ethical policies and targeted workshops for faculty to help prevent potential damage to the institution’s credibility and standing. Research issues Scientific integrity Facultydishonesty h-index Citations University ranking manipulation Education Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-8068394","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":556311966,"identity":"54dfeef4-fc4e-4b72-b17e-d250b1682e77","order_by":0,"name":"Abdelkader Nasreddine Belkacem","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA3UlEQVRIiWNgGAWjYBACAwbmZjCDnwQtjBAtkg0kazE4QKwWc/bGZoMfNTbRxjeSHz7mYbCTZ2A/jF+3Zc/B5sSeY2m5226kGRvzMCQbNvCkJeB32I3E5gO8DYeBWhLMpHkYmIHKcwzwa7n/sPng34b/uZtnpH//zcNQn8DA//4DAVsYm5N5Gw7kbpDIMWPmYTicwCCRg1cH0C+JzcYyx5JzZ5x5Uyw5x+C4YZvEM/wOM2c/fFjyTY1dbn97+sYPbyqq5fn5kx/gtwbNnQwMbKSoHwWjYBSMglGAHQAACuhEz3XNxBwAAAAASUVORK5CYII=","orcid":"","institution":"United Arab Emirates University","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Abdelkader","middleName":"Nasreddine","lastName":"Belkacem","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-11-09 10:23:17","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8068394/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-8068394/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":97684047,"identity":"8e922ced-ae2c-4ad4-8434-dc4449b297c2","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:03","extension":"json","order_by":0,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":3553,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"68ee1dd5a52944b2958554ad784feb05.json","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/f4f681e7cb994358fb8d9dc7.json"},{"id":97684137,"identity":"11ee3c7b-e4ec-4599-8fc7-a9f39c1f9718","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:08","extension":"xml","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":55086,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"68ee1dd5a52944b2958554ad784feb051enriched.xml","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/2d6c67058597ffc1d73cc235.xml"},{"id":97684185,"identity":"1e2f67b8-f16f-4381-b6df-bd786b635d15","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:16","extension":"pdf","order_by":2,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":129430,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Coverletter2025.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/0e7e4f4c9d140d97bbed7a67.pdf"},{"id":97684320,"identity":"92f39f04-531a-451e-b4c3-eb0660b08ad8","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:46","extension":"pdf","order_by":3,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":39334,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Pointbypointresponse.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/f0c824c50a06ca98bd0f6f7b.pdf"},{"id":97684182,"identity":"7ccdd13c-5552-4199-baec-484038805fe3","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:16","extension":"pdf","order_by":4,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":1820562,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"SpringerWarningBeforetheCollapse1.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/ae410fc39fdcb92ba2d11016.pdf"},{"id":97684140,"identity":"c901a5d9-775d-4388-9b0f-40a45fb3e808","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:09","extension":"eps","order_by":5,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":2890,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"empty.eps","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/2afd66c28f3668f6839f0325.eps"},{"id":97684141,"identity":"a87f87cc-111d-4f81-a866-71d3d253206a","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:09","extension":"png","order_by":6,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":217671,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"fig1FIE.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/3ab0c65b91a4b0056c1cc87b.png"},{"id":97684045,"identity":"2fecb5ff-5365-4a64-a6cc-28b46e2e8267","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:02","extension":"png","order_by":7,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":52240,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"fig2FIE.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/5a5594cdfb2045ff2cd16e1d.png"},{"id":97684337,"identity":"0155e779-b925-4cad-9845-5d01db1596a3","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:06:01","extension":"png","order_by":8,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":131993,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"fig3FIE.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/420f557cb0afc92456bd6f6c.png"},{"id":97684389,"identity":"7c6d2608-dcb0-44c9-9633-e914da5595a3","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:06:06","extension":"png","order_by":9,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":1151761,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"fig4FIE.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/9312f2cdb41b8bdaea7e5c99.png"},{"id":97684050,"identity":"3b9bcd3a-d898-47f8-8e1f-3a9138dff1db","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:03","extension":"png","order_by":10,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":161432,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"fig5FIE.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/ad002fabba8975a699a020d2.png"},{"id":97684231,"identity":"9a5c2cf0-301e-438a-b78a-6f543050d0ac","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:34","extension":"eps","order_by":11,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":91593,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"figcopy.eps","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/f2a9bba038948f3e480957fb.eps"},{"id":97684138,"identity":"ffd72435-27c6-4f1a-a898-7b20fd845a7d","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:08","extension":"eps","order_by":12,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":91593,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"figcopy.eps","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/39bc6f542cd768653148981b.eps"},{"id":97684336,"identity":"9acfb2f4-a779-46db-b4ad-69702e0c1e27","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:06:00","extension":"bst","order_by":13,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":146013,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"snapacite.bst","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/caf9018f1229bd51799904cf.bst"},{"id":97684143,"identity":"67ecc3db-3880-4c32-afc0-91a622e0b8f4","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:09","extension":"bst","order_by":14,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":29828,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"snaps.bst","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/53eca0e878e8813cb6cd946c.bst"},{"id":97684241,"identity":"97c8bcde-f378-4bb0-a3bc-fbf36ae93a6e","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:36","extension":"pdf","order_by":15,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":421391,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"snarticle.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/5cc8949f605814ccab29a8fa.pdf"},{"id":97684136,"identity":"4c6a7d19-b009-430f-8a8a-8a049ca26933","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:08","extension":"bst","order_by":16,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":35515,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"snbasic.bst","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/53c95629afd31f89f86d506f.bst"},{"id":97684049,"identity":"6c507090-6d00-4b64-87f6-3aa2feba9b5b","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:03","extension":"bst","order_by":17,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":33968,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"snchicago.bst","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/c2b5e175bea0fd12e51e1382.bst"},{"id":97684178,"identity":"79e62274-d668-4796-a47c-4ded40e01649","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:15","extension":"cls","order_by":18,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":55857,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"snjnl.cls","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/f3807e690e93858f201430a1.cls"},{"id":97684242,"identity":"5ba3778c-f4d1-4f3b-a5e1-599e04f0d5bc","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:37","extension":"bst","order_by":19,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":64023,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"snmathphysay.bst","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/4a3caa8441b83c3b9cce4541.bst"},{"id":97684135,"identity":"4d77914f-4d90-4306-a6d1-e76070f6beba","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:08","extension":"bst","order_by":20,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":64166,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"snmathphysnum.bst","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/4c99ea6a4f7817dfc5d3ad4d.bst"},{"id":97684048,"identity":"d277fd7a-21e1-46c3-aa6b-20a9f28d295f","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:03","extension":"bst","order_by":21,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":37333,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"snnature.bst","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/f34ae35929ece20a9d212457.bst"},{"id":97684184,"identity":"21a2d121-367d-43a4-adf9-57605bc7046e","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:16","extension":"bst","order_by":22,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":39951,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"snvancouveray.bst","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/45ee3e5cbe086355cfd06986.bst"},{"id":97684418,"identity":"39e8db19-8e44-4a6c-9e14-b83d4db79d9d","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:06:26","extension":"bst","order_by":23,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":40758,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"snvancouvernum.bst","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/13739b27fe474c0d40b2ca68.bst"},{"id":97684186,"identity":"9b067326-85f0-4ce7-8822-b1a6bc52397e","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:17","extension":"pdf","order_by":24,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":1816599,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"temp.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/42d762ec26f1524e72255634.pdf"},{"id":97684244,"identity":"86dc19fa-8fb2-4f09-88ce-5e6c992e9b6d","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:37","extension":"pdf","order_by":25,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":418495,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"usermanual.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/bbc8c0e235824811b2133290.pdf"},{"id":97684203,"identity":"758a7d77-a284-45dd-8b4d-f8e1a31311a5","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:24","extension":"png","order_by":29,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":1144298,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Onlinefig4FIE.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/0b8ac655aad4a1222c6f774b.png"},{"id":97684181,"identity":"8f24cfb9-aae9-4b42-8358-c13a86a17749","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:16","extension":"xml","order_by":31,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":60334,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"68ee1dd5a52944b2958554ad784feb051structuring.xml","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/3b4b70585575429f62699a93.xml"},{"id":97684142,"identity":"69b0c5a8-4eb3-464e-8231-19ae59f525e7","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:05:09","extension":"html","order_by":32,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":63515,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"earlyproof.html","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1/8eda7033138da316836b79ce.html"},{"id":97684491,"identity":"cb2cb9e5-b437-4062-a3cf-a939f2e4a101","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-08 10:06:55","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":992096,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"SpringerWarningBeforetheCollapse1.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8068394/v1_covered_8b36a917-61af-4ab3-bcd8-2ad660d9bc70.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Warning Before the Collapse: How the Research Boom is Undermining Scientific Integrity?","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"Research issues, Scientific integrity, Facultydishonesty, h-index, Citations, University ranking manipulation, Education","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8068394/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-8068394/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eWith the rise of open access journals, all major science publishers have faced scrutiny over the large volume of papers being published. This boom in research has gone hand in hand with a surge in retracted papers, most of which due to unethical practice by some authors which has helped fuel serious doubts over scientific integrity nowadays publish or perish mentality. Using data of retracted papers, this paper explains how the pressure to increase research productivity can negatively impact scientific integrity. Trends such as retracted articles, h-index or citation count increases that occur with great speed, dubious collaborations, and sudden ranking advancement of universities have been discussed in order to identify whether these indicators offer beneficial information on the current state of scientific integrity. Based on the cascading effects of retractions, we found that both the ratio of retracted to analyzed papers of 0.11 % and the ratio of high-risk to analyzed papers of 0.37 % can serve as important indicators for institutions to be concerned about their reputation. These findings suggest a need for stricter ethical policies and targeted workshops for faculty to help prevent potential damage to the institution\u0026rsquo;s credibility and standing. \u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Warning Before the Collapse: How the Research Boom is Undermining Scientific Integrity?","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-12-08 09:57:56","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8068394/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"c09b1f18-56f7-4744-91d8-28acae26968b","owner":[],"postedDate":"December 8th, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-02-09T16:14:59+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2025-12-08 09:57:56","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-8068394","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-8068394","identity":"rs-8068394","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"8U1c8b4HqxoKbykW_rLl7","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}