Peer-review process

Peer review is a system for assessing and improving the quality of a manuscript before publication.

The pre-screening of manuscripts is carried out in four rounds by the Editorial Secretary, two Editors of the Editorial Office, and one invited International Editorial Board member. We select manuscripts for peer-review on the basis of a Formal, a Professional and a Board Member Pre-screening Checklist.

Following the multi-stage formal and professional editorial pre-screening process, independent researchers in the relevant research area are invited to evaluate submitted manuscripts for originality, validity, and relevance, so that editors can decide whether to publish the manuscript in our Journal.

The Journal operates a double-blind peer review system in which the reviewers do not know the authors’ names and affiliations, and the authors do not know the reviewers’ identity.

In most cases, manuscripts submitted are judged by two, or in the cases of dilemmas up to three reviewers, who must assess according to a Peer-Review Checklist whether the manuscript is scientifically sound and coherent, presents interesting and unique results for the field, is methodologically correct and replicable, and is sufficiently clear and understandable for publication. Reviewers will also provide a detailed and coherent textual assessment and point out the need for minor or major revisions within the manuscript. The editors will decide on the basis of these reports whether to revise and publish the manuscript. Following the revision process, the reviewers receive the manuscripts again and approve publication. Depending on the manuscript’s quality, authors may be asked to submit 1-3 rounds of revisions. One of the editors will be responsible for monitoring the revision process, confirming the reviewers’ requests and/or making formal, methodological, and professional suggestions in addition to those made by the reviewers.

If the reviewers do not consider a manuscript worthy of publication, the editors may still decide to publish a manuscript, and conversely, they may also decide to reject a manuscript while the reviewers have accepted it.

One of the Associate Editors carries out the monitoring of the review process. From 2024, all manuscripts in the peer review process are read and also reviewed by a Specialist Editor who is an expert in statistical methodology.

 

Editorial Workflow

The Journal’s professional supervision is provided by the Editor-in-Chief, a multi-member editorial office headed by a professional coordinator, and an International Editorial Board.

Psychologists, sociologists, and doctors make up the editorial office. The International Editorial Board consists of representatives from different disciplines, professions, and countries.

The pre-screening of manuscripts is carried out in four rounds by the Editorial Secretary, two Editors of the Editorial Office, and one invited International Editorial Board member. One of the Editors carries out the monitoring of the review process. From 2024, all manuscripts in the peer review process are read and reviewed also by a Specialist Editor who is an expert in statistical methodology.