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What is the peer review process for books?
Author: Penny Freedman
It’s important to remember that peer review is not only a vital part of the publishing process for journals, but for books as well. Our Palgrave Macmillan titles go through a rigorous review process. We asked Shaun Vigil, Editor of Film, Cultural, and Media Studies in Palgrave Macmillan’s New York office to shine light on what the peer review process looks like for books.
By: Shaun Vigil
Peer review is the foundation upon which all quality academic book publishing is built. However, many aspects of the peer review process remain opaque to authors. Using Palgrave Macmillan’s editorial standards as an example, let’s address a few frequently asked questions.
Will I have a say in who evaluates my materials?
At Palgrave, editors always request that authors include a list of potential peer reviewers with their materials. This is essential, as it affords authors the chance to identify a core group of scholars that they view as most qualified to comment on their work. It is paramount to provide authors a voice in determining fair readership in their process. That said, editors may or may not select readers from the suggestion list. Often, the list may serve as a frame of reference to assist the editor in determining which school of scholars the project broadly engages with, what sorts of existing works the proposed work might be evaluated against, and what primary research questions the author seeks to answer.
How do editors determine who to contact for peer review?
Editors assess the suitability of different potential readers from a combination of the suggested reviewer list, their own networks, and independent research on specialists in the field. After weighing the strengths of each potential reviewer, editors contact academics with a hope of finding a balance between efficiency, quality of report, and mixture of approaches. In particular, interdisciplinary texts will often require readers from across the methodological and topical spectrum. More than anything, editors seek to place the materials with readers that will be able to offer honest critical assessments in hopes of seeing that even the best proposal or manuscript reaches its full potential.
What do editors do while my materials are out for review?
Once placed with readers, editors work to ensure that peer reviewers have all of the necessary materials needed to draft a fulsome evaluation. Editors also see that the process remains on schedule, sending reminders to peer reviewers and checking in their progress Where issues may arise, editors keep the author informed of the process and work to see that alternative arrangements are made in good order.
Will I have an opportunity to respond to the reader reports?
Once the reader reports arrive, editors anyonymize the evaluations and send them on to the author. The author then drafts a response to the criticisms included in the reports. While the author need not agree with all points raised by readers, the author is encouraged to detail how positions and arguments will be shored up in the revision process.
What comes after the peer review process, and how does it play a role in the next steps?
Once the reader reports and the author’s response are in hand, the editor and author discuss whether the best course of action will be to encourage a revise and resubmit process or to proceed to the Press Board for contract consideration. If the former, the editor details what sort of revisions might be needed after considering the reports and coordinates with the author on a resubmission timeline. When the new materials arrive, the editor may contact some number of the original readers or might work to place the materials with new readers or a combination thereof. If the latter, the editor will compile the materials for consideration and will present them before the Board. Once the decision is in, the author will be contacted and contract terms will be discussed.
What is a clearance review?
Depending on the first stages of review, some books may undergo a clearance review once the final manuscript arrives. The clearance review is typically performed by one of the original reviewers of the work. This is standard practice for books accepted for contract based on proposals with sample material, but may also occur for some books accepted for contract based on full manuscripts.
Interested in peer reviewing for books? Check-out this advice on best practices in the Mid-Career’s Scholars’ Hub.
Featured image: Desktop Sketching by Eric Heupel . CC 2.0 via Flickr.
Penny Freedman is a Marketing Manager on the Author Experience & Services team based in the New York office. She works closely on sharing insight and guidance on the benefits and services available to our editors, reviewers, and authors.
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Peer-review of Books and Journal Articles
Transnational Press London follows a rigorous peer review policy for all publications (books, journal articles, book chapters, reports) and other publishing projects.
Transnational Press London follows a blind peer review policy in selecting the books for publication. The book proposals are reviewed by two external reviewers and the manuscript is reviewed by the editors. Book Series editors both screen the initial proposals and the final manuscripts.
The journals published by Transnational Press London are subject to double-blind peer review , except The Commentaries and The Agonist , which follow the editorial review and blind review. Submitted manuscripts are reviewed by the Journal editor or associate editors or area editors. Papers may be desk-rejected at this stage. If the manuscript is considered to be of standard quality, it is then sent to at least two external reviewers. Once all reviews are received, the editors make a decision whether to publish, request revisions, or reject the manuscript.
Projects undertaken within and/or with the support of Transnational Press London are reviewed by members of the Advisory Board assigned by cognate areas and the outcomes including the publications and reports are approved by the chair of the board.
We require all our authors, reviewers and editors to be familiar with our Publishing Ethics policies .
We value peer review which is a process where peer experts evaluate the quality of others’ work. The purpose is to ensure the work is rigorous, coherent, uses past research and there is a clear added value to the knowledge in a particular field.
It also helps the editors to select higher quality articles for publication. Peer review also ensures the integrity of the publishing process. Perhaps one of the greatest added value of the peer review process is that it gives authors access to expert opinions in the field as well as useful critical insight into the methods and models used (or can be used) in the study.
- Editorial review – means the work is reviewed by one or more editors who are experts in the field and the identity of the reviewing editor(s) is not disclosed to the author(s).
- Blind peer review – means the identity of the reviewer is not disclosed to the author(s).
- Double-blind peer review – means neither the author(s) nor the reviewers know the identity of each other.
- Open peer review – both reviewer’s and author(s) names are disclosed. In this type of review practice, often journals are expected to publish the reviewers’ names alongside the article.
Full Review Guideline
Transnational Press London aim to provide platforms for research, scholarship, and debates in the respective fields the journals or books or conferences cover. Our journals and books cover a great range of social sciences and humanities subjects. They target both specialist audiences and the wider public interested in these debates and research. Articles are directed to scholars, researchers, students, policymakers, practitioners and professionals who work and/or are interested in cognate fields.
Our reviewers elected to serve because of their knowledge and expertise in respective subject areas. Reviewers can be selected from the editorial boards, author databases, and external databases depending on needs for expertise.
Every submitted article in our journals is reviewed by at least two experts in the subject area. Unfortunately, some articles are desk rejected prior to peer review for various reasons. This could be the case if the submission falls outside the scope of a journal; or poor quality of presentation; or major issues identified by editorial teams.
About 100,000 individuals and institutions in more than 150 countries are current and potential subscribers to Transnational Press London journals.
Reviewer Credits and Reviewer Certificates
Transnational Press London is a member of ReviewerCredits. Completing the peer-review you are invited to by any of our journals, will qualify you to the third-party certification provided by this organization and assign you credits that may be used on the Reviewer Credits online store. Register now for a free Reviewer Credits account and get ready to start. Find out more here .
What does a reviewer/referee for Transnational Press London journals do?
As a member of the Editorial Review Board or as an ad hoc reviewer invited to review, you will be asked to anonymously review manuscripts submitted to our journals . Editorial Board members typically review five to ten manuscripts per year, and ad hoc reviewers are invited to review as needed. Each year our journals receive over 1000 manuscripts. Depending on the journal, these submitted works range between 2,000 words and 10,000 words.
Reviews are completed electronically using our manuscript management system. When there are difficulties faced in the system, reviews can also be e-mailed to us in the body of the e-mail or as an attached file to the e-mail. Please try and use the online review system links in the email request for review you have received from us. Unfortunately, sometimes, these emails go into spam folders. We therefore kindly ask our reviewers to check their spam folders and add our email addresses to their safe sender/contact lists.
Our journals allow ONE week to respond to the review request and THREE to FOUR weeks to read and review the manuscript. Please note that your adherence to the return deadline is very important in our review process. (If you are on the Editorial Board of the relevant journal, we would appreciate your letting us know when you will be away for an extended period of time so that we do not direct manuscripts to you during that interval. We would appreciate your keeping us informed of your current address by keeping your profiles up to date on the manuscript management system.)
How can a reviewer make an optimum contribution to a writer’s work?
There are several features of a manuscript that should be addressed in an effective review. As editors and contributors to journals, we appreciate a reviewer’s beginning a review with a brief summary of the article. Following that, we would suggest structuring the commentary to reflect the four categories used in rating manuscript quality: content, rationale or reasoning, style, and audience appropriateness. Several questions related to each of these categories are provided below to help reviewers develop their commentaries:
Freshness and Scope of Content
- Is the content fresh? Are readers likely to perceive the piece as a contribution to their concerns about the subject area? Will readers view the work as current?
- Does the paper articulate an innovative strategy, program, or perspective? Or does the paper provide a fresh view or synthesis of existing knowledge?
Rationale and/or Reasoning
- Is the purpose of the article manifest? Does the content of the manuscript clearly align with the purpose? Does the paper contain material not essential to its purpose?
- Has the author, as appropriate, provided a sufficient review of the literature to provide a base for the work undertaken?
- Are stated conclusions, results, or findings well-documented and sustainable with credible evidence?
- Do conclusions clearly rest on data presented and analyzed?
- Does the article contain any unresolved ambiguities or conflicting information?
- Are conclusions generalizable to other contexts?
- Is the manuscript’s organization effective?
- Is the writing lucid, coherent, and well focused?
- Where appropriate, are the procedures, data, method of analysis, and findings clearly presented?
- Would a reader find the material accessible?
- Do a sense of the author’s standpoint and perspective emerge?
Audience Appropriateness
- Would an audience of specialists respond with enthusiasm to the content of the manuscript?
- Are readers likely to view information gained from the manuscript as information that would add significantly to their knowledge and effectiveness?
Answers to these or similar questions are likely to provide authors with the detailed commentary they may need to revise productively. They will also provide us with important information about your transactions with the text so that we can draft supportive letters to our authors when we recommend revision and resubmission.
Ranking Manuscripts
- Reviewers are asked to indicate their judgment of a paper’s content in terms of its being fresh and current.
- We ask them to determine the degree to which major points are evident, supported, and substantiated.
- We ask that they evaluate the clarity of the author’s writing and the degree to which it is unpretentious.
- We ask that reviewers indicate how appropriate the content of an article is for our readership, which consists primarily of specialists, researchers, service providers and government professionals.
After you have read, reflected upon, and written about the manuscript, we ask you to provide us with an overall recommendation practically reflecting one of the four following options:
- Accept, with minor editorial changes
- Accept with revisions (if promising)
- Revise and resubmit (subject to peer review again)
- Reject, not publishable
- Unsuitable, resubmit elsewhere
Your detailed comments will be forwarded to the author of the article and will be the only communication between a reviewer and an author.
Peer reviews are crucial in our editorial processes ensuring rigour and upholding ethical principles. Therefore we thank all our reviewers for their continuous support. Your contributions of time and thoughtfulness are very much appreciated, as well as your detailed feedback.
On behalf of the Editorial Teams at Transnational Press London
Email: [email protected]
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Peer Review: An Introduction: Where to Find Peer Reviewed Sources
- Why not just use Google or Wikipedia?
- Where to Find Peer Reviewed Sources
- Where to Get More Help
Need More Help?
Have more questions? Contact Scholarly Communication and Publishing at [email protected] for more information and guidance.
Ask a Librarian
The Ask a Librarian service for general reference is available during all of the hours when the Main Library is open. Visit the Ask a Librarian page to chat with a librarian.
Why is it so hard to find Peer-Reviewed Sources?
It isn't hard to find peer-reviewed sources: you just need to know where to look! If you start in the right place, you can usually find a relevant, peer-reviewed source for your research in as few clicks as a Google search, and you can even use many of the search techniques you use in Google and Wikipedia.
The easiest way to find a peer-reviewed article is by using one of the Library's numerous databases. All of the Library's databases are listed in the Online Journals and Databases index. The databases are divided by name and discipline.
Departmental libraries and library subject guides have created subject-focused lists of electronic and print research resources that are useful for their disciplines. You can search the library directory for links to the departmental libraries at the University of Illinois Library, or search library websites by college if you're not sure which departmental library serves your subject.
Peer-Reviewed Resources for Disciplinary Topics
There are numerous print and digital resources for specific disciplines, areas of study, and specialist fields. To find research resources and databases for your area, consult the comprehensive directory of LibGuides , the websites of specialist libraries, and above all, contact a librarian for help !
Here are a few major databases for finding peer-reviewed research sources in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences:

- Web of Science (Core Collection) This link opens in a new window Web of Science indexes core journal articles, conference proceedings, data sets, and other resources in the sciences, social sciences, arts, and humanities.
- Academic Search Ultimate This link opens in a new window A scholarly, multidisciplinary database providing indexing and abstracts for over 10,000 publications, including monographs, reports, conference proceedings, and others. Also includes full-text access to over 5,000 journals. Offers coverage of many areas of academic study including: archaeology, area studies, astronomy, biology, chemistry, civil engineering, electrical engineering, ethnic & multicultural studies, food science & technology, general science, geography, geology, law, mathematics, mechanical engineering, music, physics, psychology, religion & theology, women's studies, and other fields.
- IEEE Xplore This link opens in a new window Provides full-text access to IEEE transactions, IEEE and IEE journals, magazines, and conference proceedings published since 1988, and all current IEEE standards; brings additional search and access features to IEEE/IEE digital library users. Browsable by books & e-books, conference publications, education and learning, journals and magazines, standards and by topic. Also provides links to IEEE standards, IEEE spectrum and other sites.
- Scopus This link opens in a new window Scopus is the largest abstract and citation database including peer-reviewed titles from international publishers, Open Access journals, conference proceedings, trade publications and quality web sources. Subject coverage includes: Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics and Engineering; Life and Health Sciences; Social Sciences, Psychology and Economics; Biological, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.
- Business Source Ultimate This link opens in a new window Provides bibliographic and full text content, including indexing and abstracts for scholarly business journals back as far as 1886 and full text journal articles in all disciplines of business, including marketing, management, MIS, POM, accounting, finance and economics. The database full text content includes financial data, books, monographs, major reference works, book digests, conference proceedings, case studies, investment research reports, industry reports, market research reports, country reports, company profiles, SWOT analyses and more.
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- Last Updated: Jan 18, 2023 4:28 PM
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Q. Are books peer-reviewed? My professor said I could include books in my references and I need 20 peer-reviewed references.
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Answered By: Rich Gause Last Updated: Nov 10, 2020 Views: 30023
Peer reviewed refers to a process through which most scholarly academic articles are vetted prior to publication. Although many books go through some type of review process, most books are not clearly identified as peer-reviewed or non-peer-reviewed; determining what type of review process a particular book went through is more than most professors intend for you to do. Your professor probably wants you to have 20 references using a combination of books and peer-reviewed articles.
When choosing books to cite, look for books that include footnotes or bibliographies citing the sources for their information. Books without sources cited might be considered to be equivalent to general magazine articles. If a book contains entries by multiple authors there may be a list of expert reviewers who were responsible for assessing particular sections of the entries. You might also look for reviews of the book in scholarly journals, which might provide a descriptive evaluation regarding the quality of scholarship in the book.
See also Peer Reviewed or Refereed Scholarly Journals
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The Peer Review Process: What Sets University Presses Apart

Today’s post is excerpted from THE BOOK PROPOSAL BOOK: A Guide for Scholarly Authors by Laura Portwood-Stacer ( @lportwoodstacer ). Copyright © 2021 by Laura Portwood-Stacer. Reprinted by permission of Princeton University Press.
When an author submits a book proposal to a university press, in a best-case scenario the acquiring editor will think the project is promising and want to go ahead with peer review of the proposal and some or all of the book manuscript. At some publishers, acquisitions editors present projects they are excited about to other press staff and are then approved by an internal committee to proceed with peer review. At other presses, editors can proceed with peer review at their own discretion. Peer review is a practice that distinguishes scholarly presses from other types of publishers, so it’s key for authors to understand how it works and what expectations will fall to them as a result.
If you make it to the peer review stage, your editor will ask you to provide the materials they need for review. Many presses will move forward to peer review with just a proposal and sample chapter or two; some presses prefer to wait on peer review until the author provides a full or nearly complete manuscript, especially for first-time authors.
When your materials go out for review, particularly if you’ve submitted a full manuscript, your editor may stipulate exclusive submission, meaning that they will require you to (temporarily) pull the project from consideration elsewhere if you have submitted the proposal to multiple publishers. The exclusivity usually goes away once you get the reviews back, meaning that if you don’t like what the reviewers or editor want you to do with the manuscript, you can then try your luck with a different press to give yourself some options. Note that up until the moment of peer review or contract, you are free to be in talks with editors at multiple presses in order to identify the best home for your book. As long as you are transparent with everyone that that’s what you’re doing, there is no problem with this at all. If an editor thinks your project is particularly appealing and recognizes that they will have to compete with other publishers for it, you’re in a strong negotiating position and they may agree to waive exclusivity during the peer review process.
During peer review, your editor will ask expert scholars to evaluate your submitted materials and return their thoughts in the form of written reports. Unlike peer review conventions for scholarly journals, peer review for books is not anonymous in both directions. While you won’t know the identities of your reviewers (unless they reveal themselves in their reports), your reviewers will have access to your name and CV, because in addition to assessing the content of your submission materials, they will also be commenting on your scholarly profile and perceived authority to write the book you’re proposing. Reviewers will also be asked to comment on their perceptions of the market for your proposed book.
The return of the reader reports will likely be a big moment of decision for the acquiring editor. These are some possible scenarios:
- The reviews come back largely positive and the editor decides to seek approval from their publisher’s internal committee and editorial board to offer you a contract.
- The editor thinks the criticisms in the reader reports are minimal enough that they can be addressed through a response letter from you. The editor has faith that you will assure the editorial board that you can fix any significant problems in revision and gain their approval for a contract before another round of review.
- The editor doesn’t think the reader reports are strong enough to get approval for a contract, but they still believe in the project. They may seek additional reports or ask you to revise the manuscript or proposal and resubmit for a second round of review.
- The editor finds the reader reports negative enough that they don’t feel comfortable moving forward. In this case, the project will be rejected and you’ll move on to any other presses you may be considering. (You might first decide to revise your proposal based on the reports before submitting to additional publishers, but that’s up to you.)
This is a moment for you to make a decision as well. Do you like the direction the editor and reviewers want you to take the manuscript? Are you confident you can address the requested revisions? Have you felt respected and informed throughout the acquisitions process so far? If you have hesitation about any of these questions, you may want to communicate it to the editor. You should know that peer reviewers don’t have the final say on publication; that will lie with your editor and the press’s editorial board. A brief phone call can be extraordinarily useful for getting clarity on what your editor honestly thinks of the peer reviews and how the editor envisions the project moving forward. If you aren’t feeling reassured after talking to your editor about the reports, you might decide to pull the project from this press or temporarily put it on hold while you seek responses from other editors and presses.
If the acquisitions editor feels confident in your project and your ability to turn in a satisfactory finished manuscript, they will present the project to an internal staff committee—made up of editors, marketers, and salespeople—for approval. If the editor’s presentation goes well, the editor will either be approved to offer you an agreement to publish your book or to take your project to the press’s faculty editorial board for their approval. (Some presses don’t need editorial board approval to issue contracts; at those presses your project won’t go before the editorial board until you submit your full manuscript.)
At a university press, the editorial board is made up of faculty from across the institution, most of whom won’t be experts in your area, let alone your subject matter. Your editor will be providing the editorial board with sample materials from your book along with the peer reviewers’ reports and your response to the reports, and then making a presentation where they defend your book’s intellectual soundness, contribution, and fit with the press’s publishing program. Your editor’s enthusiastic support for the project and capacity to defend it using the information you’ve provided in your submission will count for a lot. Understanding that your editor will be making these presentations about your book is key, because your proposal is your chance to give them all the information they’ll need to pitch your book successfully when it gets to this stage. Also keep in mind: If you haven’t submitted a full manuscript yet, your full manuscript will likely also go through a peer review process before your book is given the final green light for publication.
While peer review is a significant aspect of the scholarly publishing process—it’s what sets university presses and other academic publishers apart from the rest of the publishing world—remember that individual peer reviewers don’t decide your book’s fate with the publisher. The input of experts in your field does matter to the decision of whether or not a press wants to take on the publication of your manuscript, yet the word of any given peer reviewer is not the end of the story. Your editor will have gathered reviews from at least two different scholars, and if their assessments contradict each other or are otherwise ambiguous, the editor may have sought at least one additional reviewer to come on board, maybe more. The negative opinion of one reviewer is not necessarily a death knell for your project. Even if all the reviewers agree in their criticism of the submitted materials, that doesn’t mean your project is doomed, as long as your editor still believes in it. If your own response helps your editor demonstrate convincingly that you can satisfactorily address the concerns voiced by the reviewers, your project may still be in play.

I advise approaching your “response to the reader reports” as something more along the lines of a “revision plan in light of the reader reports.” Your peer reviewers’ suggestions can genuinely improve your book if you synthesize them thoughtfully. Your job in presenting your revision plan isn’t to rebut the points the reviewers made, or to prove that your submission materials were perfect all along; your job is to show that you will use the reports to strengthen your project into something that represents a smart investment for the publisher. Providing a concrete, reasonable plan for revision—without coming off as defensive or ego-driven—is the way to convince the decision-makers that you’re a good bet.
Note from Jane: If you enjoyed this post, be sure to check out The Book Proposal Book: A Guide for Scholarly Authors by Laura Portwood-Stacer.
Laura Portwood-Stacer is the founder of Manuscript Works , which helps scholars achieve clarity and confidence in their published work. She’s also the author of The Book Proposal Book: A Guide for Scholarly Authors (Princeton University Press). She holds a PhD in communication from the Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism at the University of Southern California, and her scholarly articles have appeared in publications such as New Media & Society , Journal of Consumer Culture , Feminist Theory , Sexualities , and Flow . In March of 2021, she became a two-time Jeopardy champion.
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10 Examples of Peer Reviews
Peer reviews are among the most important activities that are done in every work and academic environment. In the workplace, they are conducted to ensure that quality standards are met or exceeded by employees who perform certain duties.
What is a Peer Review?
A peer review is a process of evaluation where other knowledgeable people about the subject matter provide feedback on someone else’s work. The review is typically done anonymously, and it is intended to provide constructive criticism.
The main goal of the peer review process is to examine several problem-solving approaches or different ways of performing tasks to pick the best one.
Reviewers can be experts who know a lot about the subject and have years of experience in the area. They can be peers of the person being reviewed.
Examples of Peer Reviews
The following are 10 examples of reviews that demonstrate the quality and depth of a peer review.
“The manuscript presents a well-written, comprehensive overview of the topic. The literature review is thorough, and the authors have succeeded in covering most of the relevant material. The manuscript is easy to follow and provides a valuable state-of-the-art picture of the area.
I believe that this manuscript will be of genuine interest to all members of the broad community, including researchers, practitioners, and policymakers. I strongly recommend it for publication in the journal.
The only thing I would like to see changed in the final version is the citation. You may consider including an explicit citation of at least two recent English-language books. The said books should be directly relevant to the topics discussed. Otherwise, I found the manuscript very well organized and clearly written.”
“The writing is clear and straightforward. The author presents the material in an organized fashion, and the figures are well-chosen. However, several parts of the manuscript lack sufficient detail and clarity.
One example is in the section on ‘The sensory and motor functions of the stomach.’ I could not understand how some of the mechanisms discussed are related to motor function. Also, I found it difficult to follow most of the physiology section without a notation system for transport processes across membranes.
In general, the author does not provide enough information for the reader to understand the research data. The manuscript needs a thorough revision before it is considered for publication.”
“Your department has my highest praise for its support of economics research. I enjoyed very much working with you on this project. As the head of an important department, you are clearly hard-working, intelligent, and creative.
You are also an excellent manager–attentive to details yet willing to take the initiative when necessary. And you are a good person, an important consideration for this small department. There is only one issue that I would like to bring up before you are granted tenure.
You have not had much interaction with the department. I think this is primarily due to your being rather introverted. My recommendation is that you build personal relationships with the faculty. Attend social functions, have lunch in the department lounge regularly, and attend faculty meetings more often.”
“The writing is clear, the figures are helpful, and the discussion includes some interesting ideas. However, I have a couple of suggestions for improving the paper:
1) Please rewrite the last parts of the introduction and eliminate the current history section. I do not think that either is very helpful
2) Add a section on how your method might be used for clustering.
Apart from those two issues, the rest of the paper is reasonably straightforward. I believe if you address the two points, the paper will be acceptable for publication in this journal.”
“Even though you joined us recently, your performance as the chief accountant has been commendable. You have managed to clean our books smoothly, sometimes under challenging circumstances.
You have served as a prime example of how to handle problems with tact and discretion. The only issue that you need to focus on going forward is that you must devote time to supervising your staff. They are not in complete agreement with how some of our books are being made up.
Try talking to them and ask them to cooperate. This way, you’ll work harmoniously and make even greater progress. If you are successful, I am confident that you will be a valuable asset for this company.”
“Your book is an outstanding contribution to the field. I enjoyed reading it and found it informative. Although I have some suggestions for improving your book, nothing would keep me from strongly recommending that the University Press publish it.
The book might be improved if there were more examples provided in some sections. For example: When you discuss ‘how to use the Scott-Martin technique in a counseling session,’ it would be helpful to explore some specific case vignettes.
Also, I think the discussion of post-partum depression is interesting but underdeveloped. It would be good to have another chapter or two on this topic. In general, as a reader, I would enjoy seeing some of your personal experiences woven into the book.”
“It is a pleasure for me to write this letter in support of your promotion. I have known you for the past year and have been impressed by your performance as a physicist. You have done excellent work on the accelerator project. I am delighted with how quickly you were able to master the new aspects of this assignment. There is one issue, however, that I would like to address.
Your ability to get along with people and work as a team is not what it should be. I have heard instances of your being critical of others’ work, especially in public forums. While you are free to have your own opinions, it’s prudent to refrain from making critical remarks in front of your colleagues. If you sort out this issue, I am confident that your career will grow exponentially.”
“I found the entire manuscript to be exceptionally well-written and the statistical analysis to be very sound. I have only a few recommendations that might lead to the publication of this paper in our journal:
1)Kindly present the results more straightforwardly, either with tables or graphs of means and standard deviations. I have some difficulties understanding what is happening at the individual level.
2) You might want to include a discussion of possible alternative explanations for your findings using path analysis.
My overall assessment is that this is a potentially publishable manuscript. You should be able to address the issues raised above, and I believe it would be a valuable addition to the literature.”
“I found this to be an interesting paper. It addresses a topic that has been neglected in the literature thus far and should contribute to a better understanding of obesity.
Its only weakness is that the author did not cite some important publications in this area of research. For example, he did not reference our work on obesity, obesity and social networks, or obesity and health. Also, he did not cite a recent article on the media’s role in the etiology of obesity.
If the author addresses these issues, I believe you will have a paper that is ready for submission.”
Example 10:
“First of all, I would like to thank you for offering me the opportunity to review your dissertation. I am familiar with your work since we have been colleagues for several years, and I find it interesting and technically sound. You have done a great job in the English language.
I have only a few comments for you to consider at this stage of your writing process:
1) The research objectives seem a bit unclear to me. In the first chapter, you state that you aim to investigate “why employees behave ethically.” In the next chapter, you say that your objective is to examine “how employees behave ethically.” It seemed a bit confusing to me.
2) The introduction is very well written, but I am left wondering why ethical behavior is of interest to managers. Please make sure that you address this issue.
Apart from those issues, I believe your dissertation is very original and well-written. Congratulations on a job well done!”
Types of Peer Reviews
There are various types of performance reviews. Below are some of the common peer reviews
Workplace peer reviews

These are carried out on individual employees by co-workers at different levels. A workplace review can be done by one person who has many years of professional experience and knows the employee. Also, another person can do it on the same level as the person being reviewed.
Workplace reviews are further categorized into two groups, namely peer-peer and management peer review.
Peer-peer review

Peer-peer reviews are conducted by employees on the same level. Managers typically do not participate in peer-peer reviews because these are meant for employees who have to work side by side.
Management peer review

Supervisors carry these out on their employees. They may be written or verbal, depending on the organizational culture. A management peer review can be written or spoken.
What are the advantages of workplace reviews?
- The reviewers provide positive feedback to applaud the reviewee’s performance and encourage them to do better.
- Negative feedback or positive criticism helps the reviewer to improve their performance.
- Workplace reviews cultivate a cooperative spirit among team members and nurture a supportive and healthy work environment.
- These reviews also identify areas where the employee’s supervisors and managers can assist.
- The reviewer receives new ideas on how to perform better and achieve career growth
- The performance review process provides a great bonding opportunity for teammates.
- Workplace reviews are great opportunities for team building and solidifying the organization’s culture.
- Peer reviews play a key role in the performance appraisal process at work. Employee advancement is dependent on feedback from bosses, subordinates, and peers.
Disadvantages of workplace peer reviews
- There is a risk of becoming too familiar with colleagues and being biased.
- Workplace reviews can lead to office politics and getting entangled in gossip.
- Workplace reviews determine the advancement of employees in the workplace. This can make employees feel more anxious and increase the pressure to perform.
- Peer reviews can easily be influenced by personal feelings, which can taint the outcome of the review. If a team member has a score to settle, the annual performance reviews present a golden opportunity.
Academic peer reviews

These are carried out to evaluate student progress and performance. A team of teachers usually conducts the reviews, and the participants provide feedback on each other’s papers.
Academic peer reviews are divided into two categories, namely internal and external.
Internal academic peer review
These are done by members of the same course or program within the university or college. There is a high degree of confidentiality with this type of review.
External academic peer review
These reviews are carried out by members of the same profession or industry. External reviews are anonymous because the reviewers are not personally acquainted with the person writing the article or paper.
The main objective of this review is to provide constructive criticism and identify possible areas of improvement.
Reviewers analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the work and then provide feedback on how to improve it.
Advantages of academic reviews
- Academic peer reviews add validity and authenticity to a student’s work.
- These reviews help in identifying the strengths and weaknesses of the paper. This helps in improving the writing style and content of future documents.
- Academic peer reviews help students familiarize themselves with the norms, standards, and formats of writing.
- The reviewee learns how to improve their writing skills by incorporating the suggestions of reviewers.
Disadvantages of academic peer reviews
- Confidentiality cannot be guaranteed.
- Academic papers are usually subjective. The reviewers may criticize an essay for reasons which have nothing to do with the work.
- Even though academic reviews are meant to be objective, the reviewer may slip their personal feelings into the review since they are not obliged to remain anonymous.
- Academic peer reviews may encourage students to take shortcuts on their assignments and submit the same paper for different courses without revising it.
Tips for Conducting an Effective Peer Review
- Remain professional and objective: personal feelings, biases, and opinions must be kept at bay. Peer reviews are not personal attacks; they are meant to help authors improve their writing skills.
- Give constructive feedback: focus on giving suggestions on how to improve the quality of writing rather than taking the manuscript down.
- Take your time: rushing through a peer review can negatively impact its quality.
- Be critical yet tactful: try to avoid direct, blunt comments; focus on pointing out the strengths and weaknesses of the paper. Also, give specific examples on how to improve the work.
- Remain respectful: avoid using offensive language and reflecting your biases in feedback.
- Include your name, affiliation, and contact information: this helps establish a professional relationship between authors and reviewers.
- Acknowledge the work done by the author: mention all the hard work that went into writing the manuscript.
- Avoid closed-ended questions as they limit the depth of the discussion. Allow the reviewer to express themselves freely.
- Follow the guidelines provided by the journal or publisher: they have a unique set of requirements for peer reviews that you must follow.
Bottom Line
A peer review is meant to provide constructive criticism and helpful remarks on how to improve an article or an employee’s performance. Academic peer reviews should focus on both the strengths and weaknesses of the paper and not either.

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Best Practices for Peer Review
AUPresses Handbook for Scholarly Books
- AUPresses Statement
- Acknowledgements
- Introduction: Why Peer Review Is Important
- Section 1: The AE’s Choices about Why, When, and How to Conduct Peer Review
- Section 2: Selecting Peer Reviewers
- Section 3: Working with Peer Reviewers
- Section 4: Sharing Peer Reviews with Authors
- Section 5: Peer Reviews as Documents of Record
PUBLISHING NOTES
The second edition of the Best Practices for Peer Review of Scholarly Books handbook was published online in September 2022. The original edition was released in 2016.
A downloadable PDF version will be made available by the end of 2022; as will a print-ready file for presses and other organizations that may wish to distribute the handbook at in-person conferences and events. For now, the green “Print Friendly” button shown at the bottom of each page enables users to print, download, or email sections and pages of the handbook.
(c) 2022 by the Association of University Presses. Best Practices for Peer Review of Scholarly Books is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/.

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- What Is Peer Review? | Types & Examples
What Is Peer Review? | Types & Examples
Published on December 17, 2021 by Tegan George . Revised on November 25, 2022.
Peer review, sometimes referred to as refereeing , is the process of evaluating submissions to an academic journal. Using strict criteria, a panel of reviewers in the same subject area decides whether to accept each submission for publication.
Peer-reviewed articles are considered a highly credible source due to the stringent process they go through before publication.
There are various types of peer review. The main difference between them is to what extent the authors, reviewers, and editors know each other’s identities. The most common types are:
- Single-blind review
- Double-blind review
- Triple-blind review
Collaborative review
Open review.
Relatedly, peer assessment is a process where your peers provide you with feedback on something you’ve written, based on a set of criteria or benchmarks from an instructor. They then give constructive feedback, compliments, or guidance to help you improve your draft.
Table of contents
What is the purpose of peer review, types of peer review, the peer review process, providing feedback to your peers, peer review example, advantages of peer review, criticisms of peer review, frequently asked questions about peer reviews.
Many academic fields use peer review, largely to determine whether a manuscript is suitable for publication. Peer review enhances the credibility of the manuscript. For this reason, academic journals are among the most credible sources you can refer to.
However, peer review is also common in non-academic settings. The United Nations, the European Union, and many individual nations use peer review to evaluate grant applications. It is also widely used in medical and health-related fields as a teaching or quality-of-care measure.
Peer assessment is often used in the classroom as a pedagogical tool. Both receiving feedback and providing it are thought to enhance the learning process, helping students think critically and collaboratively.
Depending on the journal, there are several types of peer review.
Single-blind peer review
The most common type of peer review is single-blind (or single anonymized) review . Here, the names of the reviewers are not known by the author.
While this gives the reviewers the ability to give feedback without the possibility of interference from the author, there has been substantial criticism of this method in the last few years. Many argue that single-blind reviewing can lead to poaching or intellectual theft or that anonymized comments cause reviewers to be too harsh.
Double-blind peer review
In double-blind (or double anonymized) review , both the author and the reviewers are anonymous.
Arguments for double-blind review highlight that this mitigates any risk of prejudice on the side of the reviewer, while protecting the nature of the process. In theory, it also leads to manuscripts being published on merit rather than on the reputation of the author.
Triple-blind peer review
While triple-blind (or triple anonymized) review —where the identities of the author, reviewers, and editors are all anonymized—does exist, it is difficult to carry out in practice.
Proponents of adopting triple-blind review for journal submissions argue that it minimizes potential conflicts of interest and biases. However, ensuring anonymity is logistically challenging, and current editing software is not always able to fully anonymize everyone involved in the process.
In collaborative review , authors and reviewers interact with each other directly throughout the process. However, the identity of the reviewer is not known to the author. This gives all parties the opportunity to resolve any inconsistencies or contradictions in real time, and provides them a rich forum for discussion. It can mitigate the need for multiple rounds of editing and minimize back-and-forth.
Collaborative review can be time- and resource-intensive for the journal, however. For these collaborations to occur, there has to be a set system in place, often a technological platform, with staff monitoring and fixing any bugs or glitches.
Lastly, in open review , all parties know each other’s identities throughout the process. Often, open review can also include feedback from a larger audience, such as an online forum, or reviewer feedback included as part of the final published product.
While many argue that greater transparency prevents plagiarism or unnecessary harshness, there is also concern about the quality of future scholarship if reviewers feel they have to censor their comments.
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In general, the peer review process includes the following steps:
- First, the author submits the manuscript to the editor.
- Reject the manuscript and send it back to the author, or
- Send it onward to the selected peer reviewer(s)
- Next, the peer review process occurs. The reviewer provides feedback, addressing any major or minor issues with the manuscript, and gives their advice regarding what edits should be made.
- Lastly, the edited manuscript is sent back to the author. They input the edits and resubmit it to the editor for publication.

In an effort to be transparent, many journals are now disclosing who reviewed each article in the published product. There are also increasing opportunities for collaboration and feedback, with some journals allowing open communication between reviewers and authors.
It can seem daunting at first to conduct a peer review or peer assessment. If you’re not sure where to start, there are several best practices you can use.
Summarize the argument in your own words
Summarizing the main argument helps the author see how their argument is interpreted by readers, and gives you a jumping-off point for providing feedback. If you’re having trouble doing this, it’s a sign that the argument needs to be clearer, more concise, or worded differently.
If the author sees that you’ve interpreted their argument differently than they intended, they have an opportunity to address any misunderstandings when they get the manuscript back.
Separate your feedback into major and minor issues
It can be challenging to keep feedback organized. One strategy is to start out with any major issues and then flow into the more minor points. It’s often helpful to keep your feedback in a numbered list, so the author has concrete points to refer back to.
Major issues typically consist of any problems with the style, flow, or key points of the manuscript. Minor issues include spelling errors, citation errors, or other smaller, easy-to-apply feedback.
Tip: Try not to focus too much on the minor issues. If the manuscript has a lot of typos, consider making a note that the author should address spelling and grammar issues, rather than going through and fixing each one.
The best feedback you can provide is anything that helps them strengthen their argument or resolve major stylistic issues.
Give the type of feedback that you would like to receive
No one likes being criticized, and it can be difficult to give honest feedback without sounding overly harsh or critical. One strategy you can use here is the “compliment sandwich,” where you “sandwich” your constructive criticism between two compliments.
Be sure you are giving concrete, actionable feedback that will help the author submit a successful final draft. While you shouldn’t tell them exactly what they should do, your feedback should help them resolve any issues they may have overlooked.
As a rule of thumb, your feedback should be:
- Easy to understand
- Constructive
Below is a brief annotated research example. You can view examples of peer feedback by hovering over the highlighted sections.
Influence of phone use on sleep
Studies show that teens from the US are getting less sleep than they were a decade ago (Johnson, 2019) . On average, teens only slept for 6 hours a night in 2021, compared to 8 hours a night in 2011. Johnson mentions several potential causes, such as increased anxiety, changed diets, and increased phone use.
The current study focuses on the effect phone use before bedtime has on the number of hours of sleep teens are getting.
For this study, a sample of 300 teens was recruited using social media, such as Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat. The first week, all teens were allowed to use their phone the way they normally would, in order to obtain a baseline.
The sample was then divided into 3 groups:
- Group 1 was not allowed to use their phone before bedtime.
- Group 2 used their phone for 1 hour before bedtime.
- Group 3 used their phone for 3 hours before bedtime.
All participants were asked to go to sleep around 10 p.m. to control for variation in bedtime . In the morning, their Fitbit showed the number of hours they’d slept. They kept track of these numbers themselves for 1 week.
Two independent t tests were used in order to compare Group 1 and Group 2, and Group 1 and Group 3. The first t test showed no significant difference ( p > .05) between the number of hours for Group 1 ( M = 7.8, SD = 0.6) and Group 2 ( M = 7.0, SD = 0.8). The second t test showed a significant difference ( p < .01) between the average difference for Group 1 ( M = 7.8, SD = 0.6) and Group 3 ( M = 6.1, SD = 1.5).
This shows that teens sleep fewer hours a night if they use their phone for over an hour before bedtime, compared to teens who use their phone for 0 to 1 hours.
Peer review is an established and hallowed process in academia, dating back hundreds of years. It provides various fields of study with metrics, expectations, and guidance to ensure published work is consistent with predetermined standards.
- Protects the quality of published research
Peer review can stop obviously problematic, falsified, or otherwise untrustworthy research from being published. Any content that raises red flags for reviewers can be closely examined in the review stage, preventing plagiarized or duplicated research from being published.
- Gives you access to feedback from experts in your field
Peer review represents an excellent opportunity to get feedback from renowned experts in your field and to improve your writing through their feedback and guidance. Experts with knowledge about your subject matter can give you feedback on both style and content, and they may also suggest avenues for further research that you hadn’t yet considered.
- Helps you identify any weaknesses in your argument
Peer review acts as a first defense, helping you ensure your argument is clear and that there are no gaps, vague terms, or unanswered questions for readers who weren’t involved in the research process. This way, you’ll end up with a more robust, more cohesive article.
While peer review is a widely accepted metric for credibility, it’s not without its drawbacks.
- Reviewer bias
The more transparent double-blind system is not yet very common, which can lead to bias in reviewing. A common criticism is that an excellent paper by a new researcher may be declined, while an objectively lower-quality submission by an established researcher would be accepted.
- Delays in publication
The thoroughness of the peer review process can lead to significant delays in publishing time. Research that was current at the time of submission may not be as current by the time it’s published. There is also high risk of publication bias , where journals are more likely to publish studies with positive findings than studies with negative findings.
- Risk of human error
By its very nature, peer review carries a risk of human error. In particular, falsification often cannot be detected, given that reviewers would have to replicate entire experiments to ensure the validity of results.
Peer review is a process of evaluating submissions to an academic journal. Utilizing rigorous criteria, a panel of reviewers in the same subject area decide whether to accept each submission for publication. For this reason, academic journals are often considered among the most credible sources you can use in a research project– provided that the journal itself is trustworthy and well-regarded.
In general, the peer review process follows the following steps:
- Reject the manuscript and send it back to author, or
- Send it onward to the selected peer reviewer(s)
- Next, the peer review process occurs. The reviewer provides feedback, addressing any major or minor issues with the manuscript, and gives their advice regarding what edits should be made.
- Lastly, the edited manuscript is sent back to the author. They input the edits, and resubmit it to the editor for publication.
Peer review can stop obviously problematic, falsified, or otherwise untrustworthy research from being published. It also represents an excellent opportunity to get feedback from renowned experts in your field. It acts as a first defense, helping you ensure your argument is clear and that there are no gaps, vague terms, or unanswered questions for readers who weren’t involved in the research process.
Peer-reviewed articles are considered a highly credible source due to this stringent process they go through before publication.
Many academic fields use peer review , largely to determine whether a manuscript is suitable for publication. Peer review enhances the credibility of the published manuscript.
However, peer review is also common in non-academic settings. The United Nations, the European Union, and many individual nations use peer review to evaluate grant applications. It is also widely used in medical and health-related fields as a teaching or quality-of-care measure.
A credible source should pass the CRAAP test and follow these guidelines:
- The information should be up to date and current.
- The author and publication should be a trusted authority on the subject you are researching.
- The sources the author cited should be easy to find, clear, and unbiased.
- For a web source, the URL and layout should signify that it is trustworthy.
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Peer Review
This week we are working asynchronously to share rough drafts for Project 1: Materialities of the Book .
Before midnight on Sunday, March 5 post your rough draft as a blog post, using the Materialities Drafts category. You can select an image at random from our media library as your featured image.
By midnight on Wednesday, March 8 , return to our course site to read and review 3 drafts (see assignments below). If you’re familiar with Hypothesis , I encourage you to leave line-level comments/edits and help your peers think about places that need closer attention, such as sentence fragments, clarity issues, or word choice. In addition to this, please answer the following questions with as much detail as possible, citing examples from the paper where possible.
- Does this paper have a clear, argumentative thesis? Can you identify what kinds of textual evidence will be used to support it?
- After you’ve read the whole paper, how does the paper sustain the thesis statement? In other words: does each paragraph support and expand the argument laid out in the thesis?
- Which paragraph reads the strongest with regards to the central argument, and why?
- Which paragraph needs more attention to argumentation and analysis? Provide specific suggestions.
- Does the paper make appropriate use of direct quotes and paraphrasing from the novel to support its argument? Discuss one place where this is done well and one place where you think evidence needs to be added (or different examples need to be selected)
- Are the articles referenced in the paper appropriate for the argument? Explain.
- Are the sources well integrated into the student’s own ideas, or do they seem disconnected from the argument of the paper? Give at least one example.
- Are the sources sufficiently summarized so that outside readers can understand what the article is arguing? If not, offer suggestions for where more summary or synthesis needs to happen.
- Provide 2 specific suggestions for revision — these can be about organization, style, clarity, or argument.
Peer Review Assignments:
- Sharwane : read the drafts from Diamond, Dan, and Kehinde
- Kehinde : read the drafts from Allison, Elvis, and Lisbel
- Dan : read the drafts from Sharwane, Lisbel, and Allison
- Diamond : read the drafts from Allison, Dan, and Sharwane
- Lisbel : read the drafts from Elvis, Sharwane, and Dan
- Allison : read the drafts from Kehinde, Diamond, and Elvis
- Elvis : read the drafts from Lisbel, Kehinde, and Diamond

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How to Write a Peer Review

When you write a peer review for a manuscript, what should you include in your comments? What should you leave out? And how should the review be formatted?
This guide provides quick tips for writing and organizing your reviewer report.
Review Outline
Use an outline for your reviewer report so it’s easy for the editors and author to follow. This will also help you keep your comments organized.
Think about structuring your review like an inverted pyramid. Put the most important information at the top, followed by details and examples in the center, and any additional points at the very bottom.

Here’s how your outline might look:
1. Summary of the research and your overall impression
In your own words, summarize what the manuscript claims to report. This shows the editor how you interpreted the manuscript and will highlight any major differences in perspective between you and the other reviewers. Give an overview of the manuscript’s strengths and weaknesses. Think about this as your “take-home” message for the editors. End this section with your recommended course of action.
2. Discussion of specific areas for improvement
It’s helpful to divide this section into two parts: one for major issues and one for minor issues. Within each section, you can talk about the biggest issues first or go systematically figure-by-figure or claim-by-claim. Number each item so that your points are easy to follow (this will also make it easier for the authors to respond to each point). Refer to specific lines, pages, sections, or figure and table numbers so the authors (and editors) know exactly what you’re talking about.
Major vs. minor issues
What’s the difference between a major and minor issue? Major issues should consist of the essential points the authors need to address before the manuscript can proceed. Make sure you focus on what is fundamental for the current study . In other words, it’s not helpful to recommend additional work that would be considered the “next step” in the study. Minor issues are still important but typically will not affect the overall conclusions of the manuscript. Here are some examples of what would might go in the “minor” category:
- Missing references (but depending on what is missing, this could also be a major issue)
- Technical clarifications (e.g., the authors should clarify how a reagent works)
- Data presentation (e.g., the authors should present p-values differently)
- Typos, spelling, grammar, and phrasing issues
3. Any other points
Confidential comments for the editors.
Some journals have a space for reviewers to enter confidential comments about the manuscript. Use this space to mention concerns about the submission that you’d want the editors to consider before sharing your feedback with the authors, such as concerns about ethical guidelines or language quality. Any serious issues should be raised directly and immediately with the journal as well.
This section is also where you will disclose any potentially competing interests, and mention whether you’re willing to look at a revised version of the manuscript.
Do not use this space to critique the manuscript, since comments entered here will not be passed along to the authors. If you’re not sure what should go in the confidential comments, read the reviewer instructions or check with the journal first before submitting your review. If you are reviewing for a journal that does not offer a space for confidential comments, consider writing to the editorial office directly with your concerns.
Get this outline in a template
Giving Feedback
Giving feedback is hard. Giving effective feedback can be even more challenging. Remember that your ultimate goal is to discuss what the authors would need to do in order to qualify for publication. The point is not to nitpick every piece of the manuscript. Your focus should be on providing constructive and critical feedback that the authors can use to improve their study.
If you’ve ever had your own work reviewed, you already know that it’s not always easy to receive feedback. Follow the golden rule: Write the type of review you’d want to receive if you were the author. Even if you decide not to identify yourself in the review, you should write comments that you would be comfortable signing your name to.
In your comments, use phrases like “ the authors’ discussion of X” instead of “ your discussion of X .” This will depersonalize the feedback and keep the focus on the manuscript instead of the authors.
General guidelines for effective feedback

- Justify your recommendation with concrete evidence and specific examples.
- Be specific so the authors know what they need to do to improve.
- Be thorough. This might be the only time you read the manuscript.
- Be professional and respectful. The authors will be reading these comments too.
- Remember to say what you liked about the manuscript!

Don’t
- Recommend additional experiments or unnecessary elements that are out of scope for the study or for the journal criteria.
- Tell the authors exactly how to revise their manuscript—you don’t need to do their work for them.
- Use the review to promote your own research or hypotheses.
- Focus on typos and grammar. If the manuscript needs significant editing for language and writing quality, just mention this in your comments.
- Submit your review without proofreading it and checking everything one more time.
Before and After: Sample Reviewer Comments
Keeping in mind the guidelines above, how do you put your thoughts into words? Here are some sample “before” and “after” reviewer comments
✗ Before
“The authors appear to have no idea what they are talking about. I don’t think they have read any of the literature on this topic.”
✓ After
“The study fails to address how the findings relate to previous research in this area. The authors should rewrite their Introduction and Discussion to reference the related literature, especially recently published work such as Darwin et al.”
“The writing is so bad, it is practically unreadable. I could barely bring myself to finish it.”
“While the study appears to be sound, the language is unclear, making it difficult to follow. I advise the authors work with a writing coach or copyeditor to improve the flow and readability of the text.”
“It’s obvious that this type of experiment should have been included. I have no idea why the authors didn’t use it. This is a big mistake.”
“The authors are off to a good start, however, this study requires additional experiments, particularly [type of experiment]. Alternatively, the authors should include more information that clarifies and justifies their choice of methods.”
Suggested Language for Tricky Situations
You might find yourself in a situation where you’re not sure how to explain the problem or provide feedback in a constructive and respectful way. Here is some suggested language for common issues you might experience.
What you think : The manuscript is fatally flawed. What you could say: “The study does not appear to be sound” or “the authors have missed something crucial”.
What you think : You don’t completely understand the manuscript. What you could say : “The authors should clarify the following sections to avoid confusion…”
What you think : The technical details don’t make sense. What you could say : “The technical details should be expanded and clarified to ensure that readers understand exactly what the researchers studied.”
What you think: The writing is terrible. What you could say : “The authors should revise the language to improve readability.”
What you think : The authors have over-interpreted the findings. What you could say : “The authors aim to demonstrate [XYZ], however, the data does not fully support this conclusion. Specifically…”
What does a good review look like?
Check out the peer review examples at F1000 Research to see how other reviewers write up their reports and give constructive feedback to authors.
Time to Submit the Review!
Be sure you turn in your report on time. Need an extension? Tell the journal so that they know what to expect. If you need a lot of extra time, the journal might need to contact other reviewers or notify the author about the delay.
Tip: Building a relationship with an editor
You’ll be more likely to be asked to review again if you provide high-quality feedback and if you turn in the review on time. Especially if it’s your first review for a journal, it’s important to show that you are reliable. Prove yourself once and you’ll get asked to review again!
- Getting started as a reviewer
- Responding to an invitation
- Reading a manuscript
- Writing a peer review
There’s a lot to consider when deciding where to submit your work. Learn how to choose a journal that will help your study reach its audience, while reflecting your values as a researcher…
The discussion section contains the results and outcomes of a study. An effective discussion informs readers what can be learned from your…
Ensure appropriateness and rigor, avoid flexibility and above all never manipulate results In many fields, a statistical analysis forms the heart of…
Open Access is an initiative that aims to make scientific research freely available to all. To date our community has made over 100 million downloads. It’s based on principles of collaboration, unobstructed discovery, and, most importantly, scientific progression. As PhD students, we found it difficult to access the research we needed, so we decided to create a new Open Access publisher that levels the playing field for scientists across the world. How? By making research easy to access, and puts the academic needs of the researchers before the business interests of publishers.
We are a community of more than 103,000 authors and editors from 3,291 institutions spanning 160 countries, including Nobel Prize winners and some of the world’s most-cited researchers. Publishing on IntechOpen allows authors to earn citations and find new collaborators, meaning more people see your work not only from your own field of study, but from other related fields too.
Brief introduction to this section that descibes Open Access especially from an IntechOpen perspective
Want to get in touch? Contact our London head office or media team here
Our team is growing all the time, so we’re always on the lookout for smart people who want to help us reshape the world of scientific publishing.
Peer Reviewing
Peer Review Process at IntechOpen Explained
Peer Review
Peer review (also known as refereeing) is the process of subjecting an author's scholarly work, research, or ideas to the scrutiny of others who are experts in the same field, before a paper describing this work is published. Peer review helps the publisher decide whether the submitted work should be accepted, considered acceptable with revisions, or is rejected. For a flowchart description of the peer review process at IntechOpen please see below.
IntechOpen is dedicated to publishing high-quality content and we are a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics ( COPE ), all referees and Editors are instructed to review submissions in line with the COPE Ethical Guidelines for Peer reviewers .
There is a wealth of further information regarding peer review available and we would encourage our editors, authors, and reviewers to educate themselves further regarding this process. A clearer understanding of the peer review process can only lead to greater transparency in the benefits that peer review affords, maintain high standards of peer review, and also allows reviewers and authors to participate in the peer review process. For more information on the peer review process we recommend the following:
Peer-Review: The Nuts and Bolts by Sense About Science (SAS)
Peer-Review: An Introduction and Guide , PRC
Alan Meier's Guidelines for Peer-Review of Technical Papers
Publons Peer Reviewer Academy
The Peer Review Process at IntechOpen
Edited volumes.
At IntechOpen, the book catalog (topics) was first developed by IntechOpen's Senior Content Specialists - STM (Internal staff). Afterward, Commissioning Editors (Internal staff) contact recognized experts in their respective fields and invite them to become Academic Editors (External Editors) for each planned book. Once the Academic Editor (External Editor) has been appointed after being carefully selected by the Commissioning Editor (Internal staff) and the concept for the book is finalized (scope, topics, TOC), the book is open for submissions. Book chapter manuscripts are submitted as contributions to edited volumes. At this stage the manuscript submission and processing is supported by a Manuscript tracking system and the publishing process is managed by Author Service Managers (Internal Handling Editor), whose responsibilities include monitoring and facilitating all publishing activities for Authors, Academic Editors, co-editors, reviewers, production specialists. From submission to peer review, production, copyediting, and until final publication, Author Service Managers (Internal Handling Editors) ensure a simple and efficient publishing process. Author Service Managers (Internal Handling Editors) do not interfere with Academic Editors' (External Editors') decision-making processes. Book chapter manuscripts go through a two-step review process: chapter proposal review and full chapter review. Prior to submitting a full chapter, Prospective Authors are first asked to submit a chapter proposal in the form of an abstract which is then assessed by the Academic Editor (External Editor) for its suitability in terms of the overall scope and direction of the book. Chapter proposals should contain a tentative title, keywords, a short topic description of the proposed chapter (100 - 150 words), and the names of all contributing authors and their corresponding affiliations. At this point, the submitted chapter proposal will be either rejected (not scientifically sound or out of scope) or deemed suitable for inclusion by the Academic Editor (External Editor). If a chapter proposal is deemed suitable by the Academic Editor (External Editor), the Authors are informed by the Author Service Managers (Internal Handling Editor) to submit a fully drafted manuscript. The full chapter manuscript is then automatically subject to a plagiarism check via Ithenticate prior to being passed to the Academic Editor (External Editor) who performs the peer review. Once the peer review has been completed, the Academic Editor (External Editor) communicates (via Manuscript Tracking System) their decision to the Author Service Manager (Internal Handling Editor), who then informs the Authors of their decision. Should the Academic Editor (External Editor) wish to contribute a chapter, the peer review process for their chapter is arranged by the Author Service Manager (Internal Handling Editor). Academic Editors' chapters undergo external double-blind peer-review – the result is a fully peer-reviewed book.
Review outcomes are typically accepted, revision required (major or minor), or rejected. During the review process, the Academic Editor(s) (External Editor) suggest rounds of revision and authors work on improving their chapters. Resubmitted manuscripts are automatically subject to a plagiarism check via Ithenticate prior to being passed to the Academic Editor (External Editor). Chapters that do not fall within the Scope and Topics of the book are scientifically not sound, are incomplete, or of marginal interest to the field are rejected. Authors typically receive their peer review results within 30 days of the submission date.
Once a chapter is accepted for publication, the work is published individually via Online First, after review, and before the entire book is ready for publication. Once all chapters selected for inclusion in the book have been approved for publication, the book is ready for production, and then publication. Please note that the Open Access Publication fee is payable only after the full chapter manuscript has been accepted following peer review.

The independently appointed Academic Editor (External Editor) manages the peer review and decision-making process. The Author Service Manager (Internal Handling Editor) has a more hands-on role in the workflow and is responsible for the coordination of the publishing process. IntechOpen's Author Acquisition Managers, supported by Senior Content Specialists - STM (Internal staff), following the concept development of the book carried on by the Academic Editor (External Editor), are in charge of author acquisition. As a result, author acquisition and manuscript review are completely independent and unassociated. This distinction between Internal staff/Internal Handling Editor and External Editor roles (summarised below) ensures a fully robust and objective peer review process.
Monographs (long form and short form Compacts) are subject to blind peer review to ensure that they comply with accepted scientific and ethical requirements. There is a two-steps process: each proposal, and if accepted, each monograph is submitted to a plagiarism check by the Author Service Manager (Internal Handling Editor), prior to peer review. The Author Service Manager (Internal Handling Editor) selects independent external reviewers for monographs who volunteer their time and expertise to review the proposal and the final manuscript under a blind peer review. Please note that the Open Access Publication Fee is payable only after the manuscript has been accepted by the Internal Handling Editor following peer review.
Conference proceedings
To ensure that Conference proceedings published with IntechOpen contain the highest caliber of work possible, editors are required to adopt a thorough peer review process. Conference organizers and editors are to choose reviewers who are qualified experts within their fields and conduct all reviews according to standard requirements of an ethical review process. All submitted conference proceedings papers will be checked in iThenticate for plagiarism. The publisher also reviews all the submitted review reports. Only after this is completed does the manuscript enter the production phase.
Review for Journals
- AI, Computer Science and Robotics Technology
- Digital Medicine and Healthcare Technology
- Green Energy and Environmental Technology
Authors may file an appeal if they suspect that their manuscript was improperly reviewed. Appeals should be addressed to your dedicated Author Service Manager or to [email protected] .

Are books peer reviewed?
" Peer review " is the editorial process that scholarly articles go through before they are published in a journal. Since not all books go through the same editorial process before publication, most aren't peer reviewed. They can be still be good scholarly sources , though.
Can't find what you're looking for? Contact us.

Are books peer reviewed? If so, how can I tell or how can I find them?
The process of peer review generally applies to journal articles, but it is possible for a book to be peer reviewed as well. Although many books go through some sort of editorial or review process, there is not an easy method for determining whether a book is peer reviewed. One method for locating peer-reviewed books is to take a look at book publications from university presses . Books published by university presses almost always go through a process of peer review. Books from university presses are typically written by faculty members are who are under immense pressure to produce authoritative scholarly literature. The process of peer review for university presses typically involves two or three independent referees who will initially review the manuscript. If the manuscript receives positive review, the university press will send it to their editorial board, who are all faculty members, for final review. This review process is required in order to obtain membership into the Association of American University Presses. You may view the member directory of the Association of American University Presses here . Another method for determining whether a book is peer reviewed is to locate book reviews within scholarly journals on that particular book. These book reviews may provide a deep evaluation regarding the quality of scholarship and authority in the book. You may use the Library’s Roadrunner Search to locate book reviews. To locate book reviews: Type the book title into the Roadrunner Search box. Then select Title from the drop-down box. Click Go! to execute the search.

From your results list, look to the Refine Results area on the left hand side of the screen. Scroll down to Source Types and select “Reviews”. Lastly, check mark the box next to “Scholarly/Peer Reviewed Journals” to ensure these book reviews are coming from academic journals as opposed to magazines. Your search results will now only contain books reviews from scholarly/peer reviewed journals.

IGI Global Books - The Library subscribes to several collections of Info-Sci books from IGI Global. They are peer-reviewed. To learn more about their peer-review process and view their video, see this page .
Lastly, you may want to explore titles available from the Directory of Open Access Books (DOAB). One of the requirements for taking part in DOAB is the books must be subjected to independent and external peer review prior to publication. Additionally, the policies and procedures regarding peer review and licensing have to be clearly outlined on the publisher web site. More information about these requirements can be found in the Statement on Open Access (Appendix II of the OASPA bylaws). If you are still unsure whether the book you would like to use is considered academic, please refer to our Academic and Popular Resources page which provides a list of common characteristics for determining scholarly resources including academic books.
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Peer Review
The majority of manuscripts that journal editors receive are unsolicited. Some journals, however, only accept papers that they have invited. Some manuscripts will be of extremely high quality, but others papers will be borderline in terms of the scope of the journal and quality of work. With any paper submitted you will have to decide whether this is what the readers want or need and this is where peer reviewers come in.
The quality of peer reviewers is extremely important to the quality of a journal. Peer review helps to uphold the academic credibility of a journal—peer reviewers are almost like intellectual gatekeepers to the journal as they provide an objective assessment of a paper and determine if it is useful enough to be published.
The importance of peer review
Peer reviewers do several things:
- They safeguard the relevance of the work to the journal
- They advise about important earlier work that may need to be taken into account
- They check methods, statistics, sometimes correct English and verify whether the conclusions are supported by the research.
However, the final decision as to whether an article is accepted or rejected is always down to the editor.
For more introductory information on peer review, see the peer reviewer academy here .
How to find reviewers
Similar to being a member of a journal’s editorial board, being a reviewer is considered to be a prestigious position and can therefore attract unsolicited requests. Ideally, you should source your own and have a pool of referees in a database with details of their specialist areas as well as some notes (e.g. number of times they have peer reviewed articles, quality and timekeeping).
Sourcing referees is one of the most difficult tasks as an editor. Sometimes you can use editorial board members, but they might not be the most suitable and there is arguably a perceived conflict of interest in having them review for the journal they are on the editorial board for.
To find potential peer reviewers you can check the reference list of the manuscript, which is always a good starting point. You can also run searches in SpringerLink to identify who is publishing regularly and recently in that field. On Web of Science, you can rank authors by number of publications in a particular subject, so you can determine who the most prominent researchers are.
It is also equally important to try and obtain a global perspective on a paper, so when narrowing down your list of potential peer reviewers try not to have them all from the same country; the same principle that applies to forming an editorial board . This is particularly important for medical journals as burden of disease and treatment patterns vary from country to country so it often adds value having an article reviewed by international peers.
Once you have found potential referees, it is important to check for any potential conflicts of interest, which include having published with the author recently, working with the author, or being sponsored by a pharmaceutical company that is developing a competitor drug. For rare and new areas this can sometimes be problematic because it may just be one research group who is working on that particular area. However, you can try and delegate to the editorial board for suggestions if there is any potential difficulty; double-blind refereeing, where an author’s identity and that of the referee is concealed, can work well in these circumstances to avoid any potential bias. Some journals ask authors to provide a list of potential peer reviewers; however they must not be from the same institution/research group as the author and they must not have published together—this must be made clear in the instructions to authors information . Again when considering potential referees that have been suggested by an author you should always run a check on PubMed or SpringerLink to attempt to eliminate any potential conflicts of interest.
Finally, once you have the names of your potential reviewers you need to find their contact details. Most of the time, if they have published recently, their latest article might have an email address or contact telephone number in the correspondence section. However, most of the time you will need to be quite proactive at using internet searches to obtain up-to-date contact details.
How to target and invite reviewers
It is common to use 2–3 peer reviewers per manuscript. Because it is always possible that some people may not be available or able to review, it is wise to target more than is required on each occasion (e.g. have five reviewers in mind and recruit three, then if one says no you have another two potentials). It is not unheard of for editors to have to invite seven or more reviewers in order to obtain two peer reviews, especially around holiday seasons. On the other hand, editors must also be mindful that local/regional holidays should not be used as a reason to keep authors waiting. For a potential author, every day is important. It is professional practice to notify authors and reviewers in advance of upcoming holidays/office closures etc., providing them with alternative means of contact during this time wherever practically possible.
Always use reviewers appropriate to the field, perhaps doing similar research; they are more likely to find the paper relevant and interesting, and to be qualified to provide feedback on its strengths and weaknesses. You should avoid asking reviewers who are reviewing other articles for the journal and/or currently writing an article; or those that have reviewed within the last month—the more they are overloaded the less likely they will be to say yes.
When approaching referees it is good practice to invite them prior to sending the full manuscript. The communication should contain the following elements:
- Title of paper and journal
- Abstract (if applicable)
- Manuscript number
- That their opinion would be very helpful
- Are they able to referee the manuscript within the timeframe
- Is it in their area of expertise
- Do they have any conflicts of interest?
- If they can’t review then can they recommend someone else?
- Deadline for response.
If they accept, then you should send the paper with clear instructions and a referee report form.
How to develop a useful reviewer database
Ideally you should aim to have a pool of referees in a database with details of their specialist areas and up-to-date contact details, as well as some notes on quality (i.e. number of times they have peer reviewed, how reliable they are, whether they peer review within the timescale, quality of their previous review(s)).
Some reviewers will write several pages of notes and even annotate and mark up manuscripts, others will produce one line reports that don’t help the editors make a decision. It is important to have this information available when selecting appropriate reviewers.
What programs and software are available
For smaller journals with relatively few submissions, a simple system (i.e. a spreadsheet) may be adequate, but for larger journals, electronic manuscript tracking systems can help to keep track of submissions and help to develop a reviewer database. Editorial Manager , is a web-based manuscript submission and review system that lets authors submit articles directly online. Editorial Manager makes it possible for authors to submit manuscripts via the Internet, provides online peer review services and tracks manuscripts through the entire review process. It also allows editors to communicate directly with authors and reviewers. Key features include automatic conversion of authors’ submissions into PDF format as well as supporting submissions in various file formats and special characters.
Clear instructions for reviewers
After a reviewer accepts your invitation to review a manuscript, the reply should include the article or a link to Editorial Manager and a template report form. They should be encouraged to make constructive comments and the template report form should have the following components:
- Deadline by which the review is wanted by (with the option of them proposing an alternative within a reasonable timeframe)
- Whether you want the review sent by email or uploaded to Editorial Manager
- Instructions on evaluation of quality
- Is it original work
- Is it well researched? Are the methods appropriate? Are the conclusions a fair representation of the results?
- Is all relevant previous research referenced?
- Recommendations
- Accept without changes (rare)
- Accept if revised, but doesn’t need re-review
- Revisions that need re-review by reviewer
If a submitted paper’s English is considered to not be up to the standards to be sent to a busy reviewer, then it is the editor’s responsibility to communicate this to the author and suggest that the article undergoes copyediting prior to resubmission.
Setting deadlines and sending reminders
The invitation correspondence needs to clearly state the deadline by which the review should be returned by. Two to three weeks is fairly standard and, given the difficulty in sometimes finding good reviewers, they should always be given the option of negotiating an alternative return by date. Reviewers can be busy people and gentle reminders are often required to chase them up for reviews. You may wish to develop template chaser emails containing the following elements:
- Title for paper
- That they had agreed to send a review on (manuscript number and title) by (date)
- Date they had agreed
- Date it was due by
- That their opinion is important
- Are they still able to review the manuscript
- Method by which it should be sent (email, electronic submission)
- Deadline response with a reminder that if you hear nothing you will have to approach alternative reviewers.
If you still get no reply, then consider approaching alternative reviewers from your list of back up reviewers.
Decision types: What they mean and communicating them to authors
Reviewer decisions are really just recommendations and they tend to fall into the following categories:
- Accept without any revisions
- Accept but on the condition that minor revisions will be done by the author (paper doesn’t need re-review)
- Revisions required that need re-review by reviewer
The decision should not be based on a poll of how many accepts and rejects and maybes the peer-reviewers gave. As an editor, you must verify what the reviewers have suggested and make the final decision. Sometimes reviewer comments may be very superficial and occasionally inappropriate. If there are situations where there are clear differences in opinions between reviewers then options include inviting another reviewer to make a final decision, or approaching an editorial board member.
Before sending the reviewer comments to an author it is good practice to edit and/or select the most constructive and relevant comments to make it clear to the author what the decision is and what might need to be done if their article needs revising.
Decisions tend to either be that the author needs to revise the manuscript or that the manuscript is rejected. Template emails are again useful here.
Request for revision should include statements as follows:
- Your paper has now been peer reviewed and attached (or below) please find the reviewer comments
- Please consider the comments and prepare a revised version of the manuscript plus a separate file with a point-by-point response to show how the comments have been addressed
- Deadline revisions are required by.
Rejection letters are hard to write, especially in situations when an author has revised the manuscript, sometimes several times, and it is always important to show respect for the time the author has spent writing and/or revising the manuscript. The elements of a rejection letter should include:
"Your paper has now been peer reviewed and the manuscript was considered to be unsuitable for publication in (journal name) for several reasons, such as:"
- The paper requires further experimentation to be complete
- The paper is a duplication of what others have already published and adds nothing substantial to what is already known
- The results don’t support the conclusions
- References are too old.
It is important that the rejection letter contains honest and constructive feedback. Equally, it is important that authors are not given false hope that if they make some revisions to the article then they can resubmit it to your journal if this is definitely not the case.
In cases of rejection due to plagiarism, the rejection letter should follow a different format and you should refer to COPE for flowcharts and template letters.
Working with reviewers
Similar to editorial board members, the role of a reviewer is a voluntary position and it is more about the prestige and honor of being a reviewer rather than other benefits.
Reviewers can be very busy people and so it is important to not overload them with work. If you know that the same person is also writing an article for the journal or reviewing another article, or has very recently reviewed an article within the last month, it would be sensible to avoid asking them again too soon—the more they are overloaded the less likely they will be to say yes. But, much of this depends on your working relationship with them.
In terms of setting deadlines for reviews, this depends on your internal deadlines; a month may be adequate or too long. It is important to be flexible and plan well in advance, especially for holiday periods, the end of the year is usually a difficult time to recruit reviewers and you always need to have at least one or two back-up reviewers on standby to contact if you have any problems in recruiting and/or hearing back from reviewers when you are working to a tight deadline.
If you have no response from a reviewer, despite one or two chaser emails, you should go ahead and invite an alternative reviewer and let the person who was originally invited know that they are no longer required on this occasion. There are many reasons why a reviewer may not respond to your emails and it is important to be polite and sensitive in your correspondence. The email should state that you understand that they are busy; however, due to time restrictions in meeting publication deadlines, on this occasion another reviewer has been recruited.
Sometimes reviewer comments can be quite scathing, or the quality of the review might be very superficial. Occasionally reviewers might be in direct competition with the author, want more of their own publications cited or have another agenda. Furthermore, peer reviewers might feel restricted and intimidated in what they say about a manuscript as they are worried about the potential repercussions of making negative comments.
Different refereeing systems have been developed, such as double-blind refereeing, where the author and the referee identities are masked as far as possible, which contrasts with open refereeing where the referee and the author know each others identity.
Conflicts of interest can exist with reviewers and you should aim to screen much of this out before you invite a reviewer. Reviewers must therefore also be asked to state explicitly whether conflicts do or do not exist. Reviewers must not use knowledge of the work, before its publication, to further their own interests.
It is always polite to thank reviewers when they have spent the time reviewing an article. A personal email is often best and reviewers tend to be interested in what the overall decision was.
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Finding and Using Health Statistics
- Glossary
- Introduction
- Confidence Intervals
- Dependent and Independent Variables
- Age Adjustment
- Normal Distribution
- Standard Deviation
- Significance Level
- Incorporation into health subjects
- Medical Records
- Claims Data
- Vital Records
- Surveillance
- Peer-Reviewed Literature
- National Center for Health Statistics
- World Health Organization
- Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- Robert Wood Johnson Foundation County Health Rankings & Roadmaps
- Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
- Kaiser Family Foundation
- United States Census Bureau
- HealthData.gov
- Dartmouth Atlas of Health Care
- Academic Databases
- Search Engines
Peer-reviewed literature
Peer-reviewed journal articles have gone through an evaluation process in which journal editors and other expert scholars critically assess the quality and scientific merit of the article and its research. Articles that pass this process are published in the peer-reviewed literature. Peer-reviewed journals may include the research of scholars who have collected their own data using an experimental study design, survey, or various other study methodologies. They also present the work of researchers who have performed novel analyses of existing data sources, such as the ones described in this section.
Peer-reviewed literature is accessible via academic databases that enable users to execute searches across multiple journals.
Academic Databases for the Health and Biomedical Sciences
- MEDLINE (PubMed)
- CINAHL (Cumulative Index to Nursing & Allied Health Literature) (EBSCOHost)
- ScienceDirect
- Health Business Fulltext Elite (EBSCOHost )
- PSYCInfo , American Psychological Association
Leading Health- and Health Care-related Journals
- The New England Journal of Medicine
- Health Affairs
- Epidemiologic Reviews
- American Journal of Public Health
- The Milbank Quarterly
- Medical Care
Benefits of Peer-Reviewed Literature
- Peer-review process ensures that the quality of the research and validity of the findings are high
- Information on highly-detailed subject matter and complex analyses
- Easy to search through millions of articles with online databases
Limitations of Peer-Reviewed Literature
- Highly-detailed and complex analyses may be irrelevant for users who are simply searching for descriptive statistics and basic measures of public health
- May require a subscription to journals or databases to access articles (can be costly for individuals, although many universities and other organizations provide access to students and faculty)
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Peer review is the foundation upon which all quality academic book publishing is built. However, many aspects of the peer review process remain opaque to authors. Using Palgrave Macmillan's editorial standards as an example, let's address a few frequently asked questions. Will I have a say in who evaluates my materials?
Peer review is the foundation of quality in research for both books and journals, ensuring that published research is rigorous, ethical and significant to the discipline in question. On these pages you'll find information about how to review both books and journal articles, as well as some frequently asked questions, notes on ethics in review ...
Peer review also ensures the integrity of the publishing process. Perhaps one of the greatest added value of the peer review process is that it gives authors access to expert opinions in the field as well as useful critical insight into the methods and models used (or can be used) in the study.
Peer review methods are used to maintain quality standards, improve performance, and provide credibility. In academia, scholarly peer review is often used to determine an academic paper's suitability for publication.
Peer review is an integral component of publishing the best quality research. Its purpose is to: 1. Aid in the vetting and selection of research for publication, ensuring that the best work is taken forward. 2. Provide suggestions for improving books that go through review, raising the general quality of the final product. 3.
Scopus is the largest abstract and citation database including peer-reviewed titles from international publishers, Open Access journals, conference proceedings, trade publications and quality web sources.
Peer reviewed refers to a process through which most scholarly academic articles are vetted prior to publication. Although many books go through some type of review process, most books are not clearly identified as peer-reviewed or non-peer-reviewed; determining what type of review process a particular book went through is more than most professors intend for you to do.
While peer review is a significant aspect of the scholarly publishing process—it's what sets university presses and other academic publishers apart from the rest of the publishing world—remember that individual peer reviewers don't decide your book's fate with the publisher. The input of experts in your field does matter to the ...
A peer review is a process of evaluation where other knowledgeable people, on the subject matter, provide feedback on someone else's work. We have 10 examples! ... The book might be improved if there were more examples provided in some sections. For example: When you discuss 'how to use the Scott-Martin technique in a counseling session ...
Section 1: The AE's Choices about Why, When, and How to Conduct Peer Review Section 2: Selecting Peer Reviewers Section 3: Working with Peer Reviewers Section 4: Sharing Peer Reviews with Authors Section 5: Peer Reviews as Documents of Record PUBLISHING NOTES
Peer review, sometimes referred to as refereeing, is the process of evaluating submissions to an academic journal. Using strict criteria, a panel of reviewers in the same subject area decides whether to accept each submission for publication.
Peer Review. This week we are working asynchronously to share rough drafts for Project 1: Materialities of the Book. Before midnight on Sunday, March 5 post your rough draft as a blog post, using the Materialities Drafts category. You can select an image at random from our media library as your featured image.
Taylor & Francis is committed to the highest standards of peer-review in order to maintain our reputation for scholarly rigour and quality control and this is equally true for any Open Access book titles. All Taylor & Francis Books Open Access titles will be sent out to multiple referees before there is any agreement to proceed with them.
e-Books Peer-Review Process. Peertechz e-Books undergo rigorous peer-review process to authenticate research works in science, health and medicine before final publication. Peer-review process also helps in analyse whether the submitted e-Book maintains ethical standards and safeguards the truthful honest research works.
General guidelines for effective feedback Do Justify your recommendation with concrete evidence and specific examples. Be specific so the authors know what they need to do to improve. Be thorough. This might be the only time you read the manuscript. Be professional and respectful. The authors will be reading these comments too.
Academic Editors' chapters undergo external double-blind peer-review - the result is a fully peer-reviewed book. Review outcomes are typically accepted, revision required (major or minor), or rejected. During the review process, the Academic Editor(s) (External Editor) suggest rounds of revision and authors work on improving their chapters.
"Peer review" is the editorial process that scholarly articles go through before they are published in a journal. Since not all books go through the same editorial process before publication, most aren't peer reviewed. They can be still be good scholarly sources, though.
One method for locating peer-reviewed books is to take a look at book publications from university presses. Books published by university presses almost always go through a process of peer review. Books from university presses are typically written by faculty members are who are under immense pressure to produce authoritative scholarly literature.
Peer Review The majority of manuscripts that journal editors receive are unsolicited. Some journals, however, only accept papers that they have invited. Some manuscripts will be of extremely high quality, but others papers will be borderline in terms of the scope of the journal and quality of work.
A Book Review provides an opportunity for students to write an opinion piece about a book they read. This book review assignment gives students an opportunity to. ... Students can use this peer editing checklist to review their own opinion writing piece and then have a friend check their work! Great for building student accountability and ...
Peer-reviewed journals may include the research of scholars who have collected their own data using an experimental study design, survey, or various other study methodologies. They also present the work of researchers who have performed novel analyses of existing data sources, such as the ones described in this section.
Refreshed Guide - cambridge.org