Information For Reviewers

Peer reviews are essential for ensuring the quality of scholarly research. Reviewer evaluation plays a considerable role in the decision to accept or decline a manuscript for publication.

The process is designated to prevent diffusion of improper arguments, unjustified claims, prejudices, under-qualified research papers. It secures that published research is sound and properly verified.

In reviewing please take into consideration the following requirements:

  • The review should be submitted as a confidential PAPER REVIEW FORM to the editorial team recommending whether the manuscript is “accepted“, “revised and resubmitted (with revisions)”, or “rejected”. This letter will not be shared with the author(s).
  • Any personal prejudice about research topics or researchers to influence the objective judgment is not allowed. Comments should be professional and courteous and should help the author to improve their paper and present their research as clearly and concisely as possible. General comments, positive or negative, must be supported with specific evidence. Those reviews are highly appreciated which are well-reasoned and rich in content.
  • The reviewer should also note corrections, comments and suggestions regarding the manuscript. Review report may highlight the strengths and weaknesses of the manuscript, and the ways to overcome the weaknesses.
  • Upon having solid reasons to believe that the material is not original or has been plagiarized, the editorial team must be alerted.
  • It is important to check the manuscript’s scientific soundness, originality, quality, and confirm that the information provided in the article is current, accurate, and consistent.
  • The paper is of the sufficient interest for publication in the journal, its appropriateness for the targeted journal and its specific section; and if it contributes significantly to the current state of the research field.
  • Its engagement with previous researches and results.
  • The reviewers are recommended to cite quotations, give page numbers, and make direct reference to the specific areas of the paper on which they are commenting.
  • The reviewers are recommended to offer comments on tables, figures, and diagrams. To comment on if the article is too lengthy, if it contains too many figures, are the figures relevant to the discussion in the text or not.
  • Reviewers do not need to correct the language of the manuscript (English), however, if a paper is difficult to understand due to grammatical errors, the reviewers are encouraged to mention this in their report.
  • Confidentiality. Reviewers should treat the contents of the manuscript under review as strictly confidential, not to be disclosed to others prior to publication. A reviewer should not use or share with others material from a manuscript he/she has reviewed. Nor should a reviewer distribute copies of a manuscript under review, unless it has been made public.
  •  Reviewers are requested to inform the editor of any conflicts of interest in reviewing a manuscript. Such conflicts of interest can occur if the reviewer is asked to referee a paper written by a colleague of the same organization, former or current student, former advisor, or closely-related person.

Please note:

Reviewers’ identity is anonymized for authors.

The data confidentiality of the reviewer will be strictly preserved.

If you do not have time to review the article, please let the editorial team know. Suggestions for alternative reviewers are always welcome.

Download Paper Review Form HERE

The Paper Review Form should be sent via e-mail to: kjhss@khazar.org