nonpeerreviewed

Nonpeerreviewed refers to content that has not undergone formal evaluation by independent experts in the relevant field before publication or dissemination. This category includes manuscripts posted to preprint servers, conference abstracts, blog posts, news articles, data releases, and other informal communications. Nonpeerreviewed materials may be shared to accelerate dissemination, solicit feedback, or communicate timely findings, but they have not yet undergone the scrutiny typically provided by peer review, which evaluates study design, methods, data integrity, and interpretation.

Preprints are the most common example in scientific fields; servers like arXiv, bioRxiv, and medRxiv host nonpeer-reviewed manuscripts. Some journals may publish non-peer-reviewed items in special sections or as editorials, but the key distinction remains the absence of independent formal review at the time of posting. Manuscripts may later undergo peer review and be published in journals, replacing or supplementing the earlier preprint.

Benefits include rapid sharing, transparency, and opportunities for community feedback; drawbacks include potential quality issues, insufficient methodological detail, unvalidated conclusions, and the risk of misinterpretation by media or policymakers.

Users should critically evaluate nonpeerreviewed content by checking author credentials, data availability, methodological clarity, potential conflicts of interest, and whether subsequent peer-reviewed versions exist. Citing such material generally requires clear labeling as nonpeer-reviewed and acknowledgment that conclusions may change after formal review.

Overall, nonpeerreviewed materials play a role in modern scholarship and public discourse but require careful handling to avoid causing harm or misinformation.