Publish or Perish in the Generative AI Era: A Narrative Review of Research Integrity Threats.

Abstract

The swift digitisation of academic papers and the rise of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) has revolutionised the scholarly world. These developments have brought extraordinary efficiency and accessibility, but they have also heightened the ‘publish or perish' mentality and contributed to a crucial issue in academic credibility. In this review paper we will examine some of the changing trends that impact researchers, how AI can be used to produce content in bulk, and predatory journals and paper mills. Fraud, false authorship and hijacked journals are documented and analysed with reference to the impact it has on the emerging economy in South Africa. Moreover, we analyse the aspects which will create this crisis: monetization systems or quantity based incentives. Finally, an overall navigation plan is proposed to researchers, editors and institutions, asking them to consider the call for good governance, digital literacy and change of paradigms in the measurement of research excellence.