Role of Reviewers
Reviewing requires the investment of time and a certain skill set. Before you decide to accept a request to review, you might want to know more about the peer review process and how to conduct a review.
Reviewers evaluate article submissions to journals based on the requirements of that journal, predefined criteria, and the quality, completeness and accuracy of the research presented. They provide feedback on the paper, suggest improvements and make a recommendation to the editor about whether to accept, reject or request changes to the article. The ultimate decision always rests with the journal’s editor but reviewers play a significant role in determining the outcome.
Primary Role
- Ensure the rigorous standards of the scientific process by taking part in the peer-review system.
- Uphold the integrity of the journal by identifying invalid research, and helping to maintain the quality of the journal.
- Fulfil a sense of obligation to the community and their own area of research.
- Establish relationships with reputable colleagues and their affiliated journals, and increase their opportunities to join an Editorial Board.
- Can help prevent ethical breaches by identifying plagiarism, research fraud and other problems by dint of their familiarity with the subject area.
- Reciprocate professional courtesy, as authors and reviewers are often interchangeable roles – as reviewer, researchers "repay" the same consideration they receive as authors.
Responsibilities of Reviewers
JHSSR undertakes a very serious double-blind peer-review process and carefully selects reviewers for submitted manuscripts from among the top scholars in the field. Reviewers must fulfil the following criteria:
- Be a recognized expert in the field;
- Hold a PhD degree;
- Not be a co-author in the manuscript submitted for intended publication in JHSSR;
- Not be affiliated with the same institution as the author(s);
If, for any reason, a reviewer is unable to review the manuscripts after accepting the invitation or suspects a potential conflict of interests, he/she should inform the Chief Executive Editor immediately.
Reviewers will be formally asked to review the assigned manuscripts by the Chief Executive Editor and shall submit their review reports within 3 weeks of the submission deadline.
Reviewers will submit their review reports which will be compiled and sent to the Associate Editor by the Chief Executive Editor.
