Abstract:Academic conferences offers an important way for scientists to exchange intelligence and information. Whereas, in the face of the greed for commercial benifits, predatory conferences, known as the depravity of acamedic value in conferences, plague nationwide. Recent years have seen rampant growth in predatory conferences. With the rapid increase of online meetings, the number of such conferences even outweighs normal ones, thereby posing a serious threat to scientific innovation. However, predatory conferences are an issue related to scientific research integrity that has only attracted the attention of international scholars in the past 10 years, and relevant research is still quite insufficient. Utilizing Web of Science Core Collection, CNKI, WANFANG and WEIPU as data sources, 46 research articles in Chinese and English on predatory conferences are identified, selected, meticulously read, and analyzed. The aim is to review the existing domestic and international research on predatory conferences, and to identify future research priorities. It is found that existing research mainly focuses on six aspects of conception definition, characteristics identification, driving factors, distribution patterns, harmful impacts, and prevention and control. It remains divided over the definition of predatory conferences. Most of the research is qualitative, without sufficient quantitative and mixed-methods research. Only two relevant papers can be found in China, indicating greater potential for further study. Therefore, future research could be adopted by quantitative method from the aspects of defining principles and criteria for predatory conferences, and resolving contradictions in current research findings.