Evolving scholarly objects and metadata instability: Evidence from F1000Research in Scopus and OpenAlex

Abstract Post‐publication peer review (PPPR) differs from conventional pre‐publication peer review because scholarly works can continue to evolve after publication through successive versions, changes in peer‐review status, and metadata updates. A single scholarly contribution may therefore appear in multiple publication states, creating evolving scholarly objects that challenge bibliographic infrastructures traditionally premised on stable records. This study examines how PPPR workflows contribute to metadata instability in the representation of F1000Research within Scopus and OpenAlex. Records were retrieved during the first week of May 2026, and bibliographically related records were identified using a heuristic linkage approach based on title matching, DOI matching, DOI‐stem normalization, and manual screening. OpenAlex indexed substantially more records ( n = 17,651) than Scopus ( n = 7779), with preprints predominating in OpenAlex, whereas Scopus primarily classified records as articles and reviews while retaining multiple version‐related representations. The analysis identified metadata instability at multiple levels, including DOI‐version divergence and publication‐state annotations associated with PPPR, as well as variations related to multi‐venue dissemination and bibliographic representation. These instabilities may lead to publication inflation and citation divergence, with potential impacts on citation‐based indicators. The findings highlight the need for bibliographic infrastructures to identify and link related publication states while preserving coherent bibliographic identities.