Scientific articles and national medical cultures: A comparison of Russian and American medical journals

Medical journals are products of national medical cultures, which influence the organization of medical research and the readiness to employ different research methodologies. A content analysis was undertaken to ascertain the characteristics of scientific papers in nine Russian and three American medical journals published in 1992. The American medical journals were thriving, both in appearance, and with research contributions coming from a decentralized national system of research institutions and also from European and other international research centers. Much of American medical research is ''big science'' based on collaborative efforts of researchers at a number of institutions. Russian medical journals, in contrast, were more parochial in content, reporting mainly local research, with several primary journals serving as outlets for endeavors of sponsoring institutes. While Russian medical culture did appear to discourage usage of classical random experimental designs, the choice of research methodologies proved to be influenced more by medical specialization than by national culture.