Engaging with Open Access Locally and Internationally: A holistic and longitudinal study of the United Arab Emirates academic publishing landscape

Scholarly communication has witnessed many transformative changes throughout history. These changes ere accelerated by the advent of the Internet that enabled complex communication networks between its different stakeholders. These networks are kindled by the noble principle of exchanging research findings. Within this context, no change has been as disruptive as open access (OA). Whether through self-archiving (green) or directly from the publishers (gold), OA’s aim is to free the exchange of research findings from paywalls. Many initiatives in support of OA flourished and scientometric studies started measuring its uptake and impact. However, OA research still faces many challenges.

The aim of this thesis was to analyze the UAE research landscape for empirical data on the national state of OA. The UAE makes for a good study case because of its economic, demographic and research characteristics. The UAE is a very young country that is, nonetheless, being classified among high income countries. Its researcher population is characterised by high transiency, an attribute that may negatively affect research output and OA prioritization. The findings show that UAE lacks incentives to adopt OA, OA related mandates and policies, OA infrastructure, and OA funding. However, the UAE is on par with the rest of the world in terms of number of OA journals; practitioners’ awareness and support of OA practices; and OA articles output. This study also supports the evident correlation between international coauthorship levels and OA uptake. This is in stark contrast to policy lacunae and no evident prioritization of OA.

This thesis also highlights how existing bibliographic sources of data can draw a distorted picture of the state of OA especially in countries such as the UAE since these sources are largely biased. This is in addition to gaps in OA-related metadata. Even with integrative methods, OA-related research is largely restrained.

The UAE could benefit greatly from a nationwide science policy that would not only promote research output but also make it more visible and accessible through OA supportive measures. OA uptake numbers would improve and consolidate the position of the UAE as a forward looking country and a crossroad of global talents.