REVIEW POLICY

Peer-review Process and Review Policy

Once a manuscript is submitted, it is assigned to an Editor most appropriate to handle it, based on the subject of the manuscript and the availability of the Editors. If the Editor determines that the manuscript is not of sufficient quality to go through the standard review process or if the manuscript's subject is not appropriate to the journal scope, the Editor rejects the manuscript with no further processing (desk rejection). This decision is made within 1-3 days.

If the Editor determines that the submitted manuscript is of sufficient quality and falls within the scope of the Journal, he/she assigns the manuscript to a minimum of 2 and a maximum of 3 external reviewers for peer review. The reviewers submit their reports on the manuscripts along with their recommendation of one of the following actions to the Editor:

  • Accept submission (Publish with regular check)
  • Revisions required (Consider after Minor Changes)
  • Resubmit for review (Consider after Major Changes)
  • Decline submission (Reject: Manuscript is flawed or not sufficiently novel)

When all reviewers have submitted their reports, the Editor can make one of the following decisions: Publish in the forthcoming issue, Consider after Minor Changes, Consider after Major Changes, and Reject. This decision is usually made within 4-6 weeks from the submission date.

If the Editor recommends "Publish in regular issue," the manuscript is accepted for publication. The manuscript is then assigned a DOI number and is published in the forthcoming issue.

If the Editor recommends "Consider after Minor Changes," the authors are notified to prepare and submit a final copy of their manuscript with the required minor changes suggested by the reviewers. The Editor reviews the revised manuscript after the authors have made the minor changes. Once the Editor is satisfied with the final manuscript, the manuscript can be accepted. The revised manuscript has to be submitted within two weeks. If you think you are unable to meet the deadline, please notify the Editorial Office.

If the Editor recommends "Consider after Major Changes," the recommendation is communicated to the authors. The authors are expected to revise their manuscripts according to the changes recommended by the reviewers and submit their revised manuscript within two months. Submission later than that will be regarded as a new submission that will go through the complete review process from the beginning. If you think you are unable to meet the deadline, please notify the Editorial Office.

If the Editor recommends rejecting the manuscript, the rejection is immediate. Also, if two of the reviewers recommend rejecting the manuscript, the rejection is immediate. The editorial workflow gives the Editors the authority to reject any manuscript because of the inappropriateness of its subject, lack of quality, or incorrectness of its results. The Editor cannot assign himself/herself as an external reviewer of the manuscript. This is to ensure a high-quality, fair, and unbiased peer-review process of every manuscript submitted to the Journal, since any manuscript must be recommended by one or more (usually two or more) external reviewers along with the Editor in charge of the manuscript in order for it to be accepted for publication in the Journal.

The peer-review process is double-blinded, i.e., the reviewers do not know who the authors of the manuscript are, and the authors do not have access to the information of who the peer-reviewers are. Without the significant contributions made by peer reviewers, the publication of the Journal would not be possible.

The Journal is committed to upholding the highest standards of publication ethics and takes all possible measures against any publication malpractices. Submitting research by all authors means that they assured their manuscripts are original and attest that the submitted papers represent their contributions and have not been copied or plagiarized in whole or in part from other works. All submissions will be checked by iThenticate before being sent to reviewers according to the Journal’s Zero Tolerance on the Plagiarism Policy.