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Local "academic" Dr Olivia Doll — also known as Staffordshire terrier Ollie — sits on the editorial boards of seven international medical journals and has just been asked to review a research paper on the management of tumours.
Her impressive curriculum vitae lists her current role as senior lecturer at the Subiaco College of Veterinary Science and past associate of the Shenton Park Institute for Canine Refuge Studies — which is code for her earlier life in the dog refuge.
Ollie's owner, veteran public health expert Mike Daube, decided to test how carefully some journals scrutinised their editorial reviewers, by inventing Dr Doll and making up her credentials.
The five-year-old pooch has managed to dupe a range of publications specialising in drug abuse, psychiatry and respiratory medicine into appointing her to their editorial boards.
Dr Doll has even been fast-tracked to the position of associate editor of the Global Journal of Addiction and Rehabilitation Medicine.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday May 27 2017, @10:54AM
I RTFA and didn't see which journals - given there is an explosion in more-or-less blog quality journals over recent years, this would be kind of useful information. Are there any reputable journals in the list?
We should also apply the same scrutiny to the boards of companies, organizations, universities, religious entities, govt. departments where actual money is involved. Inexperienced, unqualified family members on the board? Directorships in 12 different places + a full time (at least fully paid at %xxx,xxx level) job? Hmm...
Bear in mind journals don't pay squat for anything. No-one is making any money out of it and barely anyone is reading. Move up the chain to high end journals and I would bet these are the cleanest, least corrupt entities that humanity has produced. Blinded peer review by 3 parties with very little editorial power to overrule the reviews, this has been my experience even at mid-level journals.