HEP scientists seldom read journals, preferring preprints instead!

The analysis of citation data demonstrates that free and immediate online dissemination of preprints creates an immense citation advantage in HEP, whereas publication in Open Access journals presents no discernible advantage. In addition, the
analysis of clickstreams in the leading digital library of the field shows that HEP scientists seldom read journals, preferring preprints instead.

On the p2p research discussion list recently, Ryan Lanham challenged the remaining attachment of even p2p scholars to the system of scholarly exchange based on scientific journals.

In fact, one community, the High Energy Physics scientific community, has already made a full transition to a post-journal world.

Here‘s the recommended case study and essay on the topic:

Citing and Reading Behaviours in High-Energy Physics. How a Community Stopped Worrying about Journals and Learned to Love Repositories. By Anne Gentil-Beccot et al.