Dismantling the Ivory Tower’s Knowledge Boundaries: A Call for Open Access as the New Normal in the Social Sciences Post-COVID

Abstract

In response to the COVID-19 crisis, governments, policymakers, foundations, publishers, and researchers poured significant resources into scientific knowledge production on COVID-19 and its impacts while also expanding access to such research. The emphasis on the “open access” publishing model—a set of principles and practices through which research outputs are distributed online, free of cost and access barriers—was a boon to researchers studying the crisis and society in general, dismantling disciplinary and socio-economic boundaries within academia as well as boundaries between academia and the general public. By embracing the open access publishing model outside times of crisis, we could dismantle those boundaries permanently, leading to immeasurable benefits for society.