Peer Review, sometimes called peer review or peer review, is an essential stage in academic publishing and is an essential quality control mechanism. Peer reviewers evaluate and arbitrate research papers and aim to ensure quality Content published in scientific journals; however, peer reviewers make no decision to accept or reject any research paper!
Their opinion is probably a recommendation either to publish or not to publish; in Peer Reviewed Journals, the decision to accept or reject the paper is the responsibility of the editors of the Editorial Board or Editorial Board.
How did you start a peer review?!
Earlier, research papers submitted to magazines were scanned by editors. With the increase in scientific disciplines and people in addition to the increase in the number of papers, there was an urgent need to involve experts in the subject area for review before making a final decision. Authors should know that peer reviewers only evaluate the quality of the research critically and recommend the changes and corrections required based on their understanding. Therefore , the final decision to accept or reject the manuscript rests with the editor of the journal.
Note: The research paper is usually called the "pre-publication" or "research paper" or "research article" at any stage in general.
How is the publishing decision taken?
Usually, after a search is submitted to a magazine, the editorial team examines the research and decides whether to send it for full review by peers. After the initial examination, it is sent to one or more peer reviewers. After the peer review phase is completed, the editors of the magazine or the editorial board - after taking reviewers' reports into account - begin to make a final final decision on the research either by accepting or rejecting it!
What is Initial Screening?
Nearly 3 million research papers are sent to journals each year. Due to the large volume of submissions, more and more journals are following the policy of examining the messages before sending them for full peer review. During the initial examination, the editors of the journals will mainly check the following:
Is the paper consistent with the objectives and scope of the journal? Will it be of interest to readers?
Is the content well written, well-orchestrated and worthy of review?
Is the paper consistent with the publication standards?
Academic journals usually look at hundreds of scientific messages annually! One of the key elements examined by the editor is the Cover Letter. It is essential for the author of the thesis to write the presentation letter in a way that highlights the severity of the research and its strength. This provides a good reason to make the message suitable for the journal.
The editor then reviews the summary of the abstract paper , then examines the introduction, images, and tables quickly to determine whether the manuscript meets the minimum required quality.
What is the importance of the initial examination?
If the paper is outside the journal, it will be rejected by the editorial team, allowing the author to submit the manuscript to other journals so that it can be published as soon as possible!
Preserve the time of peer reviewers and not waste it in the evaluation of research papers that do not meet the minimum quality
What types of peer reviews?
Once the initial examination has been completed, it is then sent to the evaluation and review phase. There are three types of peer reviews:
Single blind: The names of the reviewers are not disclosed to the authors ( identity concealment allows the author to be honest and honest without fear of criticism by the author )
Double blind: The names of reviewers and authors are not disclosed to each other
Open Peer: The names of authors and reviewers are disclosed to each other
In general, 2 to 6 peerreviewers are selected as research experts; magazines usually build a group or list of peer reviewers who have a good record of writing high-quality reviews. The journal may scan the list of sources and literature of a number of reviewers to identify potential persons or communicate with researchers who have been met in scientific seminars or conferences. Many magazines will first ask potential reviewers whether they want to review the manuscript before they are nominated as reviewers.
Some magazines give authors the option of recommending preferred and non-preferred reviewers. This may be relatively good if it is available because it can expedite the review process, as it saves the journal time in the search for reviewers. In addition, some studies have suggested that peer reviewers recommended by the author may tend to recommend that research is often accepted by recommended reviewers before the editors of the magazine!
How long is the peer review process?
The peer review process ends once all reviewers have been sent a detailed report to the journal; their comments on the manuscript and their recommendations. Typically, journals ask reviewers to complete their reviews within 3-4 weeks. However, a few magazines put a mechanism to set a deadline, which is why it is difficult to predict how long the peer review process takes!
What are the reviewers' recommendations for the research paper?!
(1) Accept without any changes
The magazine will publish the research as it is without making any significant changes!
(2) Accept with minor revisions
The journal will publish the paper and ask the author to make some minor corrections
(3) Accept after major revisions
The journal will publish the paper provided that the authors make the proposed changes by reviewers and / or editors
(4) Revise and resubmit (conditional rejection)
The magazine is ready to reconsider the paper again in the decision to publish it or not after making major and fundamental amendments from the authors and resubmission
(5) Reject the paper (outright rejection)
Final rejection of the research paper; the journal will not publish or revise it even if the authors make major revisions!
The first option (accept without any changes) is rare! The second decision (acceptance after minor revisions) is usually the best result that authors should hope for. Once the magazine has rejected a paper directly (option 5), the authors should not resubmit it to the same magazine. If the magazine wants to reconsider the search (the fourth option), it will issue a conditional rejection. Full rejection means that the journal believes that the paper will not meet its criteria or concerns even after any amendments by the author.
One of the editors stated:
In general, I classify research into three sections: (1) an excellent work that adds value and contribution; (2) an acceptable work may add new; (3) a work that is not good at all and does not add anything! For classifications I and III are dealt with quickly, most manuscripts are in the second category! This classification needs more time and effort before a decision is made.
Do reviewers and editors always agree on what is worth publishing?
The decision-making policies of the magazine's editors vary: some reject the paper when one of the peer reviewers recommends rejection, some when the majority recommends rejection, and others only when it recommends that all reviewers reject it!
It is common for peer reviewers to have conflicting opinions about research; consensus among them is rare! In the case of conflicting comments (such as recommending an author to accept the search; another recommends that it be rejected!), The magazine editor may choose to send the search to a third reviewer before making a publishing decision. The author may have to wait longer to complete the peer review process.
In fact, peer reviewers tend to recommend acceptance rather than rejection. Consequently, editors often end up rejecting many of the papers actively recommended by editors, based on their own decisions and opinions on the merit of publishing articles. The role of peer review is to help authors improve their research and not to decide whether to publish it or not, which is the responsibility of the editor of the journal.
Because there are a large number of submissions and submission of research papers to refereed journals, high-quality journals and periodicals often have to reject even high-quality manuscripts for various reasons, such as the existence of a large number of submissions or lack of relevance to editors. While reviewers and editors readily agree with research that is not suitable for publication , a report worthy of publication is a tougher challenge! Where editors make decisions to accept or reject papers based on their opinion on the merit of publishing articles and reviewers' comments.
What are the problems facing the peer review process?
Delay in reply
Bias of some reviewers
Plagiarism
Conflicts of interest
In addition, although peer review does not involve any material costs or financial transactions, there are many invisible costs involved, mainly related to time spent by reviewers and magazine editors. Many academics also have different views on conducting peer reviews free of charge!
What do you do if you are invited to arbitrate a research paper?!
(1) Respond to the magazine as soon as possible: When you receive an invitation to review, you should examine the research summary carefully to determine if it is in your specialty and experience! Then reply immediately to the message either by acceptance or step aside!
(2) Be honest: Do not disclose the contents of the search you review to anyone and keep it secret! Because this may happen with you when you publish a research paper in a magazine
(3) Do not go beyond the scope of the subject: When commenting on any part of the research should not go beyond the subject of research! If you encounter any problems, please review the journal policies, submission requirements, publisher guidelines or contact the magazine editor immediately.
