School of Medicine and Health Sciences Poster Presentations
Trends in Authorship of The American Journal of Preventive Medicine: 1998 to 2015
Document Type
Poster
Keywords
Preventive medicine; Authorship trends
Publication Date
Spring 2017
Abstract
Introduction
To study authorship trends in preventive medicine, we reviewed articles published since the inception of The American Journal of Preventive Medicine (APJM), specifically analyzing the publications in 1998, 2005, and 2015. We completed this study to determine if (1) there has been an increase in the number of authors on publications; (2) there has been a change in the authors’ professional fields; and (3) how women are represented in authorship positions.
Materials and Methods
Authors were categorized into MD, MD/PhD, MD/MPH, doctoral degrees (PhD, DrPH, ScD), PhD/MPH, MPH or MSPH, other Master’s degrees, Bachelor’s groups, and an “other” group.
Results
A total of 674 articles were reviewed. The number of authors per article increased over time from 3.25 in 1998 to 5.23 in 2015. The number of references cited per article increased from 28.65 in 1998, 33.23 in 2005, to 37.93 in 2015. Overall, female authorship increased. From 1998 to 2015, the average female first and senior authorship increased from 49.56% to 56.40% and from 40.95% to 56.09% respectively. The overall number of physicians in first and senior authorship positions decreased while the number of non-traditional authors with master’s degrees increased. Authors with a doctorate degree comprise the largest number of preventive medicine first and senior author degree authors.
Discussion
In preventive medicine, there is a shortage of physicians. Of the preventive medicine physicians, in 2013, 4,061 were involved in patient care, 144 in teaching, 497 in research, and 1,904 in administrative or “other” roles. The number of preventive medicine physicians in research has decreased, as there were 559 in 2007, 527 in 2010, and 497 in 2013. In the United States, there are only 73 accredited residency programs for preventive medicine while there were 90 in 1999. From 2008 to 2013, preventive medicine saw a 28.6% decrease in the number of first year residents/fellows, the largest decrease of any medical specialty.
There is an increase in the percentage of female authors published as first authors and a significant increase in female senior authors. This is consistent with trends in the number of female preventive medicine physicians, which increased from 27.3% in 2007 to 28.9% in 2010 and 31.3% in 2013. In preventive medicine residency programs in 2013, 54.5% were female.
Conclusion
There was an increase in authorship, an increase in non-traditional authors with master’s degrees in first authorship positions, and an increase in the number of female authors.
Creative Commons License
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Open Access
1
Trends in Authorship of The American Journal of Preventive Medicine: 1998 to 2015
Introduction
To study authorship trends in preventive medicine, we reviewed articles published since the inception of The American Journal of Preventive Medicine (APJM), specifically analyzing the publications in 1998, 2005, and 2015. We completed this study to determine if (1) there has been an increase in the number of authors on publications; (2) there has been a change in the authors’ professional fields; and (3) how women are represented in authorship positions.
Materials and Methods
Authors were categorized into MD, MD/PhD, MD/MPH, doctoral degrees (PhD, DrPH, ScD), PhD/MPH, MPH or MSPH, other Master’s degrees, Bachelor’s groups, and an “other” group.
Results
A total of 674 articles were reviewed. The number of authors per article increased over time from 3.25 in 1998 to 5.23 in 2015. The number of references cited per article increased from 28.65 in 1998, 33.23 in 2005, to 37.93 in 2015. Overall, female authorship increased. From 1998 to 2015, the average female first and senior authorship increased from 49.56% to 56.40% and from 40.95% to 56.09% respectively. The overall number of physicians in first and senior authorship positions decreased while the number of non-traditional authors with master’s degrees increased. Authors with a doctorate degree comprise the largest number of preventive medicine first and senior author degree authors.
Discussion
In preventive medicine, there is a shortage of physicians. Of the preventive medicine physicians, in 2013, 4,061 were involved in patient care, 144 in teaching, 497 in research, and 1,904 in administrative or “other” roles. The number of preventive medicine physicians in research has decreased, as there were 559 in 2007, 527 in 2010, and 497 in 2013. In the United States, there are only 73 accredited residency programs for preventive medicine while there were 90 in 1999. From 2008 to 2013, preventive medicine saw a 28.6% decrease in the number of first year residents/fellows, the largest decrease of any medical specialty.
There is an increase in the percentage of female authors published as first authors and a significant increase in female senior authors. This is consistent with trends in the number of female preventive medicine physicians, which increased from 27.3% in 2007 to 28.9% in 2010 and 31.3% in 2013. In preventive medicine residency programs in 2013, 54.5% were female.
Conclusion
There was an increase in authorship, an increase in non-traditional authors with master’s degrees in first authorship positions, and an increase in the number of female authors.
Comments
Poster to be presented at GW Annual Research Days 2017.