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Article published In: Questionable Research Practices in Applied Linguistics
Edited by Luke Plonsky
[Journal of Second Language Studies 8:2] 2025
► pp. 375–408

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Uncovering motivations behind authors’ questionable research practices

A collaborative autoethnographic investigation of editors’ experiences of academic publishing

ORCiD logo with link | Waseda University, Japan
ORCiD logo with link | University of Niigata Prefecture, Japan
Published online: 6 November 2025
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/jsls.00057.mul
Abstract
Applied linguistics has been showing increased interest in research ethics, including discussion of authors’ questionable research practices (QRPs). However, less attention has been given to how organizations may engender QRPs. To address this, here we discuss how neoliberal systems of academic publishing are implicated in QRPs. Through our collaborative autoethnography as two author-editors, we jointly explore such practices’ influences. Three key findings emerge: 1. journal reviewers’ and editors’ bias towards Anglocentric writing norms; 2. the influence organizations such as publishing houses, Ministries of Education, and universities exert over academic publication; and 3. metrification of research output leading authors to disproportionately focus on journal indexing. We argue that these factors hinder faculty ability to balance publishing, teaching, and administrative responsibilities. By widening the discussion concerning QRPs, we highlight how authors’ publication practices are influenced by external factors, pushing back on the narrative of individual responsibility for QRPs.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Literature review
    • 2.1Center as noun and verb in applied linguistics research
    • 2.2The relational turn in applied linguistics research practice
    • 2.3Examinations of questionable research practices
    • 2.4Scientometric research into questionable research practices
    • 2.5Collaborative autoethnographic research into writing for publication
    • 2.6Other discussions of QRPs
    • 2.7Proposals for change
  • 3.Methodology
  • 4.Findings and discussion
    • 4.1MR 1: How journals exercising and perpetuating power dynamics contribute to QRPs
    • 4.2MR 2: How journal access models and indexing contribute to QRPs
    • 4.3MR 3: How institutional policies contribute to QRPs
  • 5.Conclusions and implications
  • Data availability
  • References
References (99)
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