From Pickup Soccer to Honor-Based Publishing: Building Trust Through Transparency and Discipline
When new systems emerge, people often approach them with skepticism — and for good reason. Scientists, in particular, are trained to question everything. So when an honor-based publication system or reward-based model appears, the first reaction is often doubt: Who is responsible? Who ensures fairness? What if someone violates the rules? This reaction reminded me of something simple but profound — our pickup soccer games. At first, we didn’t like the idea of paying for a casual game. It wasn’t a league, there was no formal organization, and we didn’t know who was accountable. What if the organizer failed to book the field? What if players didn’t show up? It seemed uncertain and risky. But over time, as we continued playing, something important happened. We realized the group was organized. The person managing the field bookings was reliable. Players respected the schedule, showed up on time, and played safely. And when issues arose — as they always do — we had a point of contac...