Online comments: when anonymity becomes cowardice

[cdnvic]

Anonymity plays an essential role in the scientific review process. But for many online commenters, social disinhibition leads to repulsive and cowardly behaviour

I am a proponent of anonymous scientific peer review, in which scientists evaluate their fellow colleagues' work to assess the scientific merit and worthiness of publication in scientific journals. As an author of numerous manuscripts that have gone through extensive peer review, and as a reviewer and editor on the other side of the peer process, I believe that overall the system works fairly well – although not without occasional glitches.

Keeping the review process anonymous – both by having a reviewer's identity withheld from the authors, and by not allowing individual reviewers to know the identities of their fellow reviewers – maintains an important equilibrium in which no reviewer wants to appear biased and overly positive or negative. This is because each reviewer wants to make a good impression on the journal editor by displaying impartiality and by not missing or glossing over weak data.

Full Story: http://www.theguardian.com/science/occams-corner/2013/oct/08/online-comments-anonymity-cowardice

[Swiss1960]

very true.... and it's what "ensures" that you mods will never be out of work

[krisb]

Perhaps on their scientific forum it's like that. Not on here it's not. I'd rather the boat get rocked occasionally. Keeps it interesting. Keeps the humour and keeps it real. With 160,000 members, this place won't change anytime soon. I hope.