Testing for reviewer anchoring in peer review: A randomized controlled trial.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

Peer review frequently follows a process where reviewers first provide initial reviews, authors respond to these reviews, then reviewers update their reviews based on the authors' response. There is mixed evidence regarding whether this process is useful, including frequent anecdotal complaints that reviewers insufficiently update their scores. In this study, we aim to investigate whether reviewers anchor to their original scores when updating their reviews, which serves as a potential explanation for the lack of updates in reviewer scores.

Design

We design a novel randomized controlled trial to test if reviewers exhibit anchoring. In the experimental condition, participants initially see a flawed version of a paper that is corrected after they submit their initial

SUBMITTER: Liu R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11573134 | biostudies-literature | 2024

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature