Editor bias and diversifying psychology: Commentary on Sharpe (2024).

Abstract

Sharpe (2024) draws attention to the role that editors may play in perpetuating bias in the published psychological literature. While Sharpe focuses on perspective-related diversity in reducing such bias, I argue that identity-related diversity is paramount. Editors play an important role in diversifying the scholarly conversation by recruiting diverse reviewers and providing clear and encouraging feedback on submissions. Further, enhancing the identities represented in the scholarly conversation is crucial to ensuring that editorial decisions are well-informed, that published science is of high quality, and that published literature is less biased. In addition to bringing scholarly expertise, editors must embrace a compassionate, humble, and courageous stance in their role as gatekeepers for our science. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).