Studies suggest that works published open access receive more citations than works published only in subscription-based journals. Please see Alma Swan (2010). “Open Access Citation Advantage” for more information. The following graphic summarizes the open access citation advantage by discipline as described in Swan's literature review.
By publishing open access, you can help mitigate the problem of rapidly rising journal prices. Between 1986 and 2007, academic journal expenditures rose by 340%. By comparison, over the same time period, the consumer price index rose only 89%.
As a result of these increasing costs, academic libraries have been forced to cut journal subscriptions and therefore access to content. Open access publishing can make your work available in a difficult economic climate. ("Harvard University Says It Can't Afford Journal Publishers' Prices.")
Please contact the Scholarly Communications Librarian at scholarworks@cwu.edu if you would like to learn more about publishing in open access journals---or about publishing your own journal via ScholarWorks @ CWU.
ScholarWorks allows you to showcase your work for a global audience. Because the URLs in the repository are permanent once created, ScholarWorks can provide you with more stability and longevity than a personal website. It also leverages the collective impact of the university's creative and scholarly output in one place.
The map below shows live usage of ScholarWorks @ CWU.
Ask CWU Libraries