Punctuation mistakes of non-Anglophone researchers often remain unnoticed and unaddressed by researchers themselves, peer reviewers, journal editors, and English language instructors. There are a number of factors complicating the current situation with often overlooked punctuation mistakes. Firstly, punctuation is often viewed as a less important subject when compared to other areas of writing difficulties,1 such as organization of scientific ideas, choice of persuasion strategies, text structure, sentence grammar, and appropriate style.2 Furthermore, there is a wide variation in the use of punctuation even by native English speakers due to insufficient attention to its main rules in language classes.3 Finally, with the unprecedented growth of the number of nonnative English speakers, certain deviations from language style and punctuation standards seem to become more accepted. In fact, some top journals have switched to flexible instructions, displaying greater tolerance of minor language inconsistencies in the writing of non-Anglophone researchers.4
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