What's a preprint article?
A preprint article, otherwise referred to as preprint publication, pre-publication, or prepub, is an article published online prior to its official publication in a journal issue. Such articles are listed in APA PsycInfo as "first posting" articles.
Why do publishers publish preprint articles?
Researchers usually need very recently published studies when they conduct their own research. Unfortunately, since the editorial and peer-review processes are very thorough, many months can go by from the time an article is submitted for publication until it is ready to be published in a journal.
To shorten the time between article submission and publication, what publishers usually do is publish the articles online until they are ready to be officially published in the print journals. Some publishers do this as soon as they receive the submitted articles, while others do it upon completion of the editorial process.
How can I search for preprint articles in APA PsycInfo?
Searching for preprint articles in APA PsycInfo is very simple:
- Go to the "Advanced Search".
- Enter your search terms in the search box(es).
- Scroll down until you find the "Publication Status" filter.
- Select "first posting" from the menu.
- Click "Search".