This framework will help the author determine a small number of journals that will be interested in publishing the manuscript. The Directory can assist the author in determining these journals, yet a set of unwritten and written laws prevent simultaneous submission of a manuscript to more than one journal. However, a manuscript can be sent to another journal in the event of a rejection by any one publication.
Furthermore, copyright laws and editorial policies of a given publication often require the author to choose only one journal. Consequently, some journals will require the author to sign a statement indicating the manuscript is not presently under review by another publication.
Publication of the manuscript in the proceedings of a professional association does not prevent the author from sending it to a journal. However, there usually are some restrictions attached. Most professional associations require that the author acknowledge the presentation of the manuscript at the association meeting.
Because the author is limited to submitting of a manuscript to only one journal and the review process for each journal requires a long period of time, contacting the editors of the journals may help the author determine which journal is most likely to publish the manuscript.
To interest the editor, the author should provide the following information:
Topic, major idea or conclusion of the manuscript
The subject sample, research setting conceptual framework, methodology type of organization or location
The reasons why the author thinks the journal’s readers would be interested in the proposed article
Requests for comments or suggestions on the usefulness of this type of article to the journal
While contacting the editor is helpful in selecting a journal that will be likely to publish the manuscript,
the author could use the Directory and the framework presented to develop a number of journals which would be
likely to publish the manuscript. With this number of possible journals, contacting the editor is more feasible
and tends to achieve the objective of finding the journal most likely to publish the manuscript.
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Relating the Theme of the Manuscript to the Topics of Articles Published by Each Journal
To begin the process of choosing editors to contact and/or submitting a manuscript, the author needs to examine the similarity
between the theme of the manuscript and the editor's needs. The Directory describes these needs by listing the topics
each publication considers important and the manuscript guidelines. To find those journals that publish manuscripts
in any particular area, refer to the topic index.
In attempting to classify the theme, the author should limit his choice to a single discipline. With the increasing specialization
in the academic world, it is unlikely that reviewers, editors or readers will understand an article that requires knowledge of two
different disciplines. If these groups do not understand a manuscript, the journal will reject it.
If a manuscript emphasizes an interdisciplinary approach, it is important to decide who will be reading the article.
The approach should be to explain the theoretical concepts of one discipline to the specialist in another discipline.
The author should not attempt to resolve theoretical issues present in his/her discipline and explain their implications
for specialists in another discipline.
Although the discipline classifications indicate the number of journals interested in your manuscript topic, the manuscript
guidelines help the author determine the journals that will most likely have the greatest interest in the manuscript.
The manuscript guidelines provide a detailed statement of the criteria for judging manuscripts, the editorial objectives,
the readership and the journal's content and approach. This information makes it possible to determine more precisely the
congruence between the manuscript and the type of articles the journal publishes. The Directory contains the manuscript
guidelines for a large number of journals.
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The Relationship of the Manuscript's Style and Methodology to the Journal's Readership
In addition to determining the similarity between the topic of the manuscript and the topic of articles published by the journal, an examination of the significance of the theme to the discipline is also an important criterion in selecting a journal. The journals with the lowest acceptance rate will tend to publish those manuscripts that make the most significant contributions to the advancement of the discipline. Since these journals receive a large number of manuscripts, the editors distinguish those manuscripts likely to make a significant contribution to the reader's knowledge.
Defining newness or the contribution of any one study to the understanding of a discipline is difficult. However, it is possible to gain some insight into this definition by asking the following questions:
Is the author stating the existence of a variable, trend or problem not previously recognized by the literature?
Is the author testing the interactions of a different set of variables or events?
Is the author presenting a new technique to cope with a problem or test an idea not previously presented in the literature?
Is the author using a subject sample with different characteristics than previously presented in the literature?
If the manuscript does not satisfy one of the first two categories, it is unlikely that a journal with a low acceptance rate will accept it for publication. Thus, the author should send the manuscript to those journals where the acceptance rate is higher.
Although the Directory provides the acceptance rates of manuscripts for many different journals, it is important to examine the data on percentage of invited articles for each journal. A high acceptance rate may result because the editor has asked leaders in the discipline to write articles on a particular subject. These invited articles are usually accepted. Since the author of an unsolicited manuscript competes with the leaders in the discipline, the manuscript will have to make a significant contribution to receive the editor's approval.
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The Relationship of the Manuscript's Style and Methodology to the Journal's Readership
Another factor in selecting the journal to receive the manuscript is the journal's readership. The readers of each journal include
academics (professors and researchers), practitioners, business persons, or administrators or a combination of these groups.
Since the most important goal for an author is to publish the manuscript, the author should consider the prestige of the journal
only after the manuscript has a relatively high probability of being published by more than one journal. This probability is determined
by the responses the author received to his query letter and the similarity between the finished manuscript and the needs of the journal.
The method of determining the prestige of a journal varies depending on its readership, review process and acceptance rate.
If the readership is primarily administrators or practicing professionals and the goal of the author is to improve the author's image
and that of the institution, the journal's circulation would probably be the best indicator of prestige.
In contrast, the author whose goal is to become known among the author's colleagues might consider the type of review process the
journal uses as well as its circulation. With a few exceptions, the most prestigious journals with academic readership use a refereed
review process.
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The Possible Results of the Review Process and the Selection of a Journal to Receive the Manuscript
Despite the fact that a journal with lower prestige would most likely publish the article, the author might be willing to take a chance on a
journal with a greater amount of prestige. Since this will decrease the chances of manuscript acceptance, the author should also consider
the consequences of rejection. The consequences include the knowledge the author will gain from having his manuscript rejected.
To determine the amount of knowledge the author is likely to gain requires consideration of the number of reviewers the journal uses in
the review process, the availability of the reviewer's comments and the time required for the review process. If the journal makes the
reviewer's comments available to the author, this provides a great learning opportunity. Also, the more people that review the manuscript,
the greater the author's knowledge will be concerning how to improve the present manuscript. Hopefully, the author will transfer the knowledge
gained from writing this manuscript to future manuscripts.
Should the review process take a small amount of time relative to a long period of time, the author is provided with a greater opportunity
to use this knowledge to revise the manuscript. To assist the author in determining those journals that provide a suitable learning opportunity,
each journal in the Directory includes information on the number of reviewers, availability of reviewer's comments to the author and time
required for review.
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Sending the Manuscript
Before sending the manuscript to an editor, the author should write a cover letter, make sure the manuscript is correctly typed,
the format conforms to the journal's guidelines and the necessary copies have been included. It is imperative to follow the correct
submission process. The author should always keep a copy of the manuscript.
The cover letter sent with the manuscript makes it easy for the editor to select reviewers and monitor the manuscript while it is in the
review process. This letter should include the title of the manuscript, the author name(s), mailing address(es) phone and fax number(s)
and e-mail addresses. In addition, this letter should provide a brief description of the manuscript theme, its applicability and
significance to the journal's readership. Finally, it should request a copy of the reviewer's comments regardless of whether the
manuscript is accepted or rejected.
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Receipt of the Reviewer's Comments
The reviewers may still reject the article although the author may have followed this procedure and taken every precaution to avoid rejection.
When this occurs, the author should focus on making those changes that would make the manuscript more understandable to the next editor
and/or reviewer. These changes may include providing additional information and/or presenting the topic in a more concise manner.
Also, the author needs to determine whether some error occurred in selecting the journal to receive the manuscript.
Regardless of the source of the errors, the author needs to make those changes that will improve the manuscript's chances of being
accepted by the next journal to receive it.
Unless the journal specifically requests the author to revise the manuscript for publication, the author should not send the manuscript
to the journal that first rejected it. In rejecting the manuscript, the reviewers implied that it could not be revised to meet their
standards for publication. Thus, sending it back to them would not improve the likelihood that the manuscript will be accepted.
If your manuscript is accepted, go out and celebrate, but write another one very quickly. When you find you're doing something right,
keep doing it so you won't forget.
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WHAT IS A REFEREED JOURNAL?
With some exceptions, a refereed article is one that is blind reviewed and has two external reviewers. The blind review requirement and
the use of external reviewers are consistent with the research criteria of objectivity and of knowledge.
The use of a blind review process means that the author of the manuscript is not made known to the reviewer. With the large number of
reviewers and journals, it is also likely that the name of the reviewers for a particular manuscript is not made known to the author.
Thus, creating a double blind review process. Since the author and reviewers are frequently unknown, the manuscript is judged on its merits
rather than on the reputation of the author and/or the author's influence on the reviewers.
The use of two (2) reviewers permits specialists familiar with research similar to that presented in the paper to judge whether the paper
makes a contribution to the advancement of knowledge. When two reviewers are used it provides a broader perspective for evaluating the research.
This perspective is further widened by the discussion between the editor and reviewers in seeking to reconcile these perspectives.
In contrast to these criteria, some journals that have attained a reputation for quality do not use either a blind review process or external
reviewers. The most notable is Harvard Business Review that uses an editorial review process. Its reputation for quality results from its
readership whose continual subscription attests to its quality.
In addition to these criteria, some researchers include the journal's acceptance rate in their definition of a refereed journal.
However, the method of calculating acceptance rates varies among journals. Some journals use all manuscripts received as a base for
computing this rate. Other journals allow the editor to choose which papers are sent to reviewers and calculate the acceptance
rate on those that are reviewed. Also, many editors do not maintain accurate records on this data and provide only a rough estimate.
Furthermore, the number of people associated with a particular area of specialization influences the acceptance rate. If only a few people
can write papers in an area, it tends to increase the journal's acceptance rate.
Although the type of review process and use of external reviewers is one possible definition of a refereed article, it is not the only criteria.
Judging the usefulness of a journal to the advancement of knowledge requires the reader to be familiar with many journals in their
specialization and make their own evaluations.
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