What is the term used when too many qualified authors exist to be listed on an author byline?

The term that is used when there are too many qualified authors to list on an author byline is "author group." This concept is particularly relevant in situations where a research project involves numerous contributors who have made significant intellectual contributions to the work. In such cases, it's common for the authors to be grouped together under a collective term, as including every individual on the author byline may not be feasible due to space, readability, or practical constraints associated with publication standards.

An author group approach emphasizes the collaborative nature of research in various fields, acknowledging the contributions of many while maintaining clarity in authorship attribution. This is especially important in fields such as biomedical research, where large teams often work on comprehensive studies, requiring a more inclusive representation of contributions than what a traditional byline might allow.

Other terms listed, such as co-authorship, typically refer to the concept of having more than one author on a paper, and editorial team pertains to the group responsible for overseeing the publication process rather than the authors of a specific manuscript. Author affiliation relates to the institutional or organizational connection of the authors but does not address the scenario of having too many authors for a single byline.