A 21st Century Alternative to 20th-Century Peer Review

The paper starts with a brief review of some criticisms of the Peer Review system – labelled ex-ante top-down PR system – for the evaluation of academic works. The critiques are grouped into efficiency and effectiveness criteria. It then goes on to analyse the roles of Peer Review and how good the system is at fulfilling those roles. The paper then proposes an alternative system for evaluation of academic works: an Open Access system – labelled ex-post bottom-up Peer Comments system - that takes full advantage of the technologies of information and communication to secure a speedy and efficient dissemination and evaluation process; moreover, one that enhances the research interaction within the academic community. [real-world economics review, issue no. 45] The editor would welcome comments on this paper.