Authorship gaps persist in global family medicine research

Background and goal: This study examined authorship inequities for research that was conducted in low- and middle-income countries and published in family medicine journals based in high-income countries.

Study approach: Researchers analyzed journals listed on the World Organization of Family Doctors (WONCA) Global family doctor website that focused on low-income countries, lower-middle-income countries, and upper-middle-income countries. They selected journals with editorial offices in high-income-countries. Inclusion criteria included research conducted in low or middle income countries, available in English language, with human study participants. They summarized the proportions of first and senior authors by country income level and other publication characteristics.

Main results: 431 of 1,030 articles met criteria for research conducted in low- or middle-income countries.

• Over time, there was an increase in publication of research articles from low- and middle-income countries in the family medicine journals, with the majority of the studies conducted in upper-middle-income countries (55.9%).

• The proportion of senior authors from high-income countries was highest in articles with research conducted in low-income countries (50%) compared with those reporting research done in lower-middle-income countries (37%) and upper-middle-income countries (21%). 

• There was a trend toward higher average citation rate for articles having high-income countries first and senior authors compared with articles having lower-middle-income countries first and senior authors. 

Why it matters: Quantifying authorship inequities highlights systemic barriers to research leadership in low- and middle-income settings.