Geographic disparities in prestigious neuroscience research

The researchers who conduct, author and review neuroscience studies inherently shape both the findings and the segments of society that ultimately benefit from the research. Generally, Western high-income nations dominate the production and dissemination of the majority of prestigious scientific research. However, the extent of geographic disparities across the neuroscience research pipeline, including at the level of editors, peer reviewers, authors, and research participants, have not been examined. This article synthesizes meta-research studies examining geographic disparities in neuroscience research, supplemented by an analysis of the properties of 2,013 articles published in the top five most prestigious neuroscience journals between 2014 and 2023. Our review demonstrates that editorial boards and authorship of neuroscience research remains concentrated in high-income Western nations, with some evidence to suggest that authors affiliated with non-high-income nations are increasingly represented. There is currently no direct evidence to suggest that authors affiliated with non-high-income countries experience disparities in peer review delays or public engagement with their research. However, our analysis shows that these authors' works receive fewer citations than their high-income nation-affiliated colleagues'. Further, while very few non-high-income nation-affiliated researchers first-author prestigious neuroscience publications, a relatively greater proportion of these prestigious publications use data from research participants in non-high-income nations. We conclude the review by summarizing current initiatives aimed at reducing geographic disparities in neuroscience research.