Peer Review Process

Peer Review Process is the process through which a journal assesses the quality of a manuscript before publication, reviewed by experts in the relevant field to review and comment on the submitted manuscript. This process aims to help the editor decide whether the manuscript should be published in International Journal of Social Society and Research Innovation.

Key Points in the Peer Review Process:

- Manuscripts submitted to the journal first undergo initial screening by the editorial team.
- Manuscripts that pass the screening are sent to at least two peer reviewers for review.
- Peer reviewers independently make recommendations to the journal editor on whether the manuscript should be rejected or accepted (with or without revisions).
- The journal editor considers all feedback from peer reviewers and makes the final decision to accept or reject the manuscript.

The Peer Review Process for journal publication is essentially a quality control mechanism, where experts evaluate the manuscript to ensure the quality of the published work. However, peer reviewers do not make the final decision to accept or reject a paper; they provide recommendations. In the journal, the decision-making authority rests solely with the journal editor or editorial board.

How does it work?

When a manuscript is submitted to the journal, it is evaluated to see if it meets the criteria for submission. If it does, the editorial team will select potential peer reviewers in the research field to conduct a peer review and make recommendations. There are four types of peer review used by International Journal of Social Society and Research Innovation:

1. Single-blind: Reviewers know the author's name, but the author does not know who is reviewing their manuscript unless the reviewer chooses to sign their report.
2. Double-blind: Reviewers do not know the author's name, and the author does not know who is reviewing their manuscript.
3. Open peer: The author knows who the reviewers are, and the reviewers know who the author is. If the manuscript is accepted, the named review report is published alongside the article.
4. Transparent: Reviewers know the author's name, but the author does not know who is reviewing their manuscript unless the reviewer chooses to sign their report. If the manuscript is accepted, the anonymous review report is published alongside the article.

Why peer review?

Peer review is an integral part of scientific publishing that ensures the validity of the manuscript. Peer reviewers are experts who volunteer their time to help improve the manuscripts they review.

Peer Review Steps:

1. Manuscript Submission: The author submits the manuscript to International Journal of Social Society and Research Innovation journal, usually through the online system on the journal's website, or the journal may accept submissions via the author's email.

2. Editorial Team Assessment: The editorial team checks the manuscript to ensure it adheres to the journal's template. The quality of the manuscript is not assessed at this stage.
3. Editor-in-Chief Assessment: The Editor-in-Chief checks whether the manuscript is suitable for the journal, sufficiently original, and interesting. If not, the paper may be rejected without further review.
4. Peer Reviewer Invitation: The editor sends an invitation to suitable individuals to act as reviewers.
5. Response to Invitation: Potential reviewers consider the invitation based on their expertise, conflicts of interest, and availability. They then accept or decline. If possible, when declining, they suggest alternative reviewers.
6. Review Conducted: Reviewers allocate time to read the manuscript several times to form an initial impression and make detailed point-by-point notes for review. The review is then submitted to the journal with a recommendation to accept, reject, or request revisions before reconsideration.
7. Journal Evaluates Review: The editor considers all returned reviews before making an overall decision. If the reviews are highly divergent, the editor may invite additional reviewers to obtain further opinions before making a decision.
8. Decision Communicated: The editor sends a decision email to the author, including relevant reviewer comments.
9. Next Steps: If accepted, the manuscript moves to production. If rejected or returned for revision, the author is asked to revise the manuscript with accompanying reviewer comments to help improve it. At this stage, the reviewers are also notified of the outcome of the author's revision. If the manuscript is revised again, the reviewer expects a new version, but if only minor changes are requested, the review is conducted by the editor.