Open access and the Caribbean academic

Abstract

The potential which open access offers to Caribbean scholarly communication in general, and science and technology specifically, is an opportunity to shift the focus from one which has been publisher driven to one which is research driven. However, for this to become a reality, both the university and faculty will need to break free of the practices surrounding traditional publishing, tenure and promotion. In an attempt to assess readiness among science faculty at The University of the West Indies to make this transition, this exploratory study analyses their perceptions, knowledge and use of open access. The results revealed significant gaps in knowledge about, and minimal engagement with open access as a publication modality among this cohort.