If the research is conducted in the form of analytic, simulation or numerical, and experimental in a laboratory, the normal number of authors are 2 to 5 people. The case with the number of authors reaching 70 people, I think may be due to involvement in providing field data that are so much needed

Thanks Muhammad Irsyad

So, the normal number of authors are 2 to 5 people. What about 7 ?

I think there is any limitation (or normal number) in the number of authors, as long as each of them contribute to the paper i.e. "Authorship: Every person named as the author of a paper must have contributed substantially both to the work described in the paper and to the writing of the paper. Every listed author must take responsibility for the entire content of a paper. Persons who do not meet these requirements may be acknowledged, but should not be listed as authors. Post-submission changes to the author list are not allowed."

I agree with you Diego Collarana

The publisher should have and state the rule for the number of authors.

Thank you for your reply.

The normal number of authors are 2 to 5 people

Thanks Simeon Iliev

Could you tell us why 2 to 5, please?

the number of the authors in paper in very dependent on the last topic and term of the reference year so there are no limits on number of author in a paper

Dear Simeon Iliev

Could you give a reason to Mr. Aji digdoyo Soeprapto , please?

Thank you very much.

Thank you Mr. Aji digdoyo Soeprapto

The number of authors in a paper is very dependent on how many people have contributed significantly in the paper. Besides the size of the number of researchers also depends on the nature of the size of the study. For example, multi-year research will certainly involve many researchers.

Thank you very much Mr. R Bagus SURYASA Majanasastra

I think the number of authors on the article and the number of people involved in some research should be distinguished. A large number of people can be involved in the research: some directly some indirectly, some as support of the research. Certainly not all of these people are involved in creating the article. More than five people are never involved in the design and writing of an article. The question is, should everyone who participated in the research be listed as authors? If yes, whom to list in the Aknowledgment. Sometimes it's not easy. To omit someone who has been supportive means to lose support for future research.

As many as the number of people who contributed to the paper. Except for the proofreading and grammar checks, but of course, that's my take on it. Some people consider proofreading a legitimate contribution. Some people also consider skim milk as real milk, so what do I know ;)

Thank you very much dear Mr. R Bagus SURYASA Majanasastra

Could you tell us some examples, please?

Thank you.

Dear Mladen Bošnjaković ,

Thank you for your comment. Yes, I agree with you that the author number is depended on the research. But, sometimes we see the number of authors in a paper is so many. I've ever found that it was more than 70 people. What do you think about it?

Thank you

Thank you dear Harsh Thakkar ,

Your comment is very valuable. But I think it would be better if we make a limitation in the contribution values of each author. For example, the minimum contribution contribution is 10% for each author. What do you think about it?

Thank you.

I haven't seen any limits on number of authors but yes 70 is too high. Actually, it depends on the contribution made by the individuals. I have seen maximum 6 authors in a paper where most of them were students. However, there is a thin line difference between author and contributor.

I think the number of authors is not limit, all names of really contributed people in the study have to be written.

How to calculate contribution of each author?

There are several criteria by which each author's contribution can be considered (eg time spent, relevance, etc.). But I don't know that there is a model for that?

Many renowned journals limit the number of authors to 10. If there are more authors than 10, they often ask for a detailed justification. Of course, when a publication is the result of an (international) collaboration, the number of authors can easily be more than 10. We normally name all people as co-authors who made a significant contribution to the work (i.e. measuring crystal structures, spectra etc.).

10% is very subjective, I'd rather have something more concrete.

Dear all scholars,

Thank you very much for your comments. I partly agree with you, but I think it is better if we can state definitely the contribution of each authors in more quantitatively.

Dear Harsh Thakkar , could you suggest us something, please?

Have a nice weekend....

I agree with Harsh Thakkar in that a contribution of 10% is very subjective. We always include everyone as co-author who makes a significant contribution to the research we want to publish. Of course, significant is also subjective but it means every experiment and / or measurement which makes the publication more complete and substantial. This is especially important in research involving collaboration between different research groups where colleagues help us out with methods we don't have available (e.g. ESR and Raman spectroscopy, electrochemical measurements, thermogravimetric analysis). For typical examples see the two paper shown below.

Article Catenated and Spirocyclic Polychalcogenides from Potassium C...

Article Electronic and Geometric Structures of Paramagnetic Diazadie...

Dear Prof. Frank T. Edelmann ,

Thank you very much for your kind reply. If we can not say the percentage of contribution, could you suggest us the maximum numbers of authors in an article, please?

Best regards.

You're welcome! As far as I know ther is no "official" limit to the maximum number of authors in a research paper. However, if the number exceeds 10 authors, many journals ask for a justification and an outline of the individual contribution of each author. I have already seen paper with 50 or 70 authors (although very rarely). It just depends on how elaborate the research was, i.e. if several institutions collaborate on a year-long clinic study or the development of a new technology.

Thank you very Prof. Frank T. Edelmann ,

Yes, I think 10 authors is the limit. However, in my country, when we apply for a professor, the peers do not like the papers which are written by more than 5 authors. Sometimes they reject them....

If that's the regular policy in your country, there is not much you can do. Try to mention at least those people who made minor contribution in the Acknowledgments section.

Dear respected colleagues and scholars. Please participate in the discussion and give your comments.

Thank you very much.

Dear Frank T. Edelmann ,

Thank you for your comments. There is no regulation for this in my country. However, some peers oftenly not satisfy if the number of authors more than six.