This Dog Sits on Seven Editorial Boards
Meet Dr. Olivia Doll.
An associate editor for the Global Journal of Addiction & Rehabilitation Medicine, Olivia Doll, lists some very unusual research interests, such as “avian propinquity to canines in metropolitan suburbs” and “the benefits of abdominal massage for medium-sized canines.” That’s probably because Olivia Doll is a Staffordshire terrier named Ollie who enjoys chasing birds and getting belly rubs. In all her spare time, Ollie also has sat on the editorial boards of not one, but seven, medical journals.
Ollie’s owner, Mike Daube, is a professor of health policy at Australia’s Curtin University. He initially signed his dog up for the positions as a joke, with credentials such as an affiliation at the Subiaco College of Veterinary Science. But soon, he told Perth Now in a video, he realized it was a chance to show just how predatory some journals can be.
“Every academic gets several of these emails a day, from sham journals,” he said. “They’re trying to take advantage of gullible younger academics, gullible researchers” who want more publications to add to their CVs. These journals may look prestigious, but they charge researchers to publish and don’t check credentials or peer review articles. And this is precisely how a dog could make it onto their editorial boards.
“What makes it even more bizarre is that one of these journals has actually asked Ollie to review an article,” Daube told the Medical Journal of Australia’s InSight Magazine. The article was about nerve sheath tumors and how to treat them. “Some poor soul has actually written an article on this theme in good faith, and the journal has sent it to a dog to review.”
At the time of this writing, the Global Journal of Addiction & Rehabilitation Medicine still lists Ollie as an associate editor, and a journal called Psychiatry and Mental Disorders lists her as a member of its editorial board (complete with a photo of Australian pop singer Kylie Minogue wearing glasses, for some reason). Ollie’s career sniffing out fraud is looking promising.
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