The essential role of peer review

An essential aspect of the scientific process in the life sciences is the thorough examination of manuscripts by other scientists. They read the article critically and then either suggest that it is accepted, rejected, or—most frequently—revised and improved before it is published. In fact, most scientists will not consider a scientific pronouncement as valid unless it has been approved by this anonymous process, known as peer review. Without such an external seal of approval, they would consider any results presented as preliminary, potentially flawed and generally of the same self‐serving status as a press release. But the need for peer review has recently been questioned. With the advent and growth of electronic media came a new philosophy, which asserts that everybody should be free to publish as they wish and that the ‘readers’ can decide for themselves if the article has scientific value. In fact, there are some aspects to the peer review process that have always drawn criticism. Many view the powerful role that reviewers play in scientific publishing with suspicion, and feel that the anonymity of …