Title: Who Should Provide Dissemination Platforms? The Scopus Trap and the Unfunded Mandate in Ugandan Universities
Authors: Dr. Arinaitwe Julius, Akampulira Sarah, Nabaasa Desire
Volume: 10
Issue: 5
Pages: 211-218
Publication Date: 2026/05/28
Abstract:
The imperative for African academics to publish in Scopus-indexed journals has emerged as one of the most consequential and contested mandates in contemporary higher education policy. This study examined the structural and institutional dimensions of what is termed the 'Scopus Trap'--the systemic compulsion placed upon academics in Ugandan universities to disseminate research through expensive, internationally indexed platforms without commensurate institutional support. Drawing on a mixed-methods approach grounded in survey data from 312 academics across eight public and private universities in Uganda, the study employed univariate descriptive statistics, bivariate correlation analyses, multiple linear regression, and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) to investigate the relationships among institutional financial support, Scopus-indexing awareness, access to Article Processing Charges (APCs), perceived unfunded mandate burden, policy advocacy engagement, and academic publication output. Findings revealed profoundly low levels of institutional financial backing (M = 2.18/5) and APC access (M = 1.76/5), contrasted with high levels of perceived unfunded mandate burden (M = 4.01/5). The SEM model demonstrated excellent fit (CFI = .96; RMSEA = .048) and confirmed that unfunded mandate burden exerted a significant direct negative effect on publication output (B = -.37, p < .001) and operated indirectly through reduced APC access (indirect B = -.16, p < .001). Institutional financial support (B = .42, p < .001) and Scopus awareness (B = .35, p < .001) emerged as the strongest positive predictors of publication productivity. The study concludes that the burden of academic dissemination has been inequitably transferred from global publishing corporations and national governments to individual academics, constituting a structural injustice that undermines Uganda's research ambitions. The study recommends the establishment of a National Research Dissemination Fund, compulsory open-access mandates in public universities, and a fundamental policy reorientation that locates responsibility for knowledge dissemination at the institutional and governmental level rather than on the individual scholar.