Predatory journals (also called fraudulent journals) publish articles without the standard quality checks or editorial services of legitimate journals. They charge high publication fees and often falsely claim to be a well-respected, established journal even if they are new or low-quality. Here are some things to consider when deciding whether or not a journal is predatory:

• Is the publisher well-known (like Springer, Wiley, or Informa)?
• Do the articles cover many different disciplines and topics - for example, occupational health, environmental science, computer science, etc.?
• Do you notice typos or other mistakes on the journal webpage or in the articles themselves?
• Do they have an unusually fast turnaround time for reviewing and publishing articles (for example, one week)?
• Does the journal have a consistent publishing history?
• Is the journal indexed in MEDLINE or CINAHL?
• Is the journal upfront about publication fees and their process for peer review?

Take a few minutes to look at the Journal of Environmental and Occupational Health. Do you think this journal is predatory?

When in doubt, check one of the regularly updated resources such as The Predatory Journals List.