Peer Review Process & Policy

Peer Review Process
The entire editorial workflow is performed using the online submission system. Once a manuscript is submitted for publication, the manuscript should go through an initial screening process by the editorial board to weed out papers which are not suitable or have different focus, papers which are marginal and weak papers.
Once a manuscript is deemed suitable by the Editor(s)-in-Chief to enter the double-blind peer review process, it will be anonymized and assigned to at least 3 Editorial Review Board Members (and if needed Ad Hoc Reviewers) via the Global Vision Press Submission System.
The assignment of reviewers is based on the reviewers' areas of expertise. The reviewers’ expertise must align with the substance of the manuscript. The present workload of the reviewer is also considered.
Reviewers are given evaluation criteria and asked to provide anonymous comments to the author and may also provide confidential feedback to the Editor(s)-in-Chief.
Reviewers are asked to evaluate a manuscript for:

• Originality and significance of contribution. Is the manuscript in congruence with the mission of the journal?
• Interest to research community and/or practitioners. How useful is the material to the field?
• International relevance.
• Coverage of existing literature. Does the literature review contain relevant information in support of the article?
• Satisfactoriness of methodology, analysis, and comprehension. Does the article contain a detailed explanation of research methods and procedures?
• Clear, concise, and jargon-free writing. Does the article clearly state the issues being addressed?
• Organizational structure. Is the article clearly organized in a logical fashion? Are the author’s conclusions supported by the research?

On the basis of the submitted reports the Reviewers makes one of the following recommendations:

• Reject
• Major Changes
• Minor Changes
• Accepted

Once all reviews have been received, the Editor(s)-in-Chief will determine whether the manuscript is Accepted , Requires Revision, or is Rejected.
If the manuscript is “Rejected,” the authors are sent any review reports that have been received and are notified that their manuscript will no longer be considered for publication in the journal.
If the manuscript “Requires Revision,” the authors are notified to prepare and submit an updated version of their manuscript with the necessary changes suggested by the reviewers. This might require new data to be collected or substantial revision of the text. The manuscript is then reassessed by one or more of the original reviewers before the Academic Editor makes a new recommendation.
If the manuscript is “Accepted,” the manuscript will undergo a final check by the journal’s editorial office in order to ensure that the manuscript and its review process adhere to the journal’s guidelines and policies. Once done, the authors will be notified of the manuscript’s acceptance and provided with the formatting guidelines for final submission.
The entire review process can typically take anywhere within 12 weeks. Should the reviewers' comments contradict one another or a report is delayed, an additional expert review will be sought. If necessary, revised manuscripts may be returned to the initial reviewers for re-evaluation. The Editor(s)-in-Chief may require more than one revision of a manuscript, and additional reviewers may also be invited to review the manuscript at any time.

Editor(s)-in-Chief Responsibilities

• Organizing and maintaining an Editorial Board (minimum of 10+ Associate Editors and 30+ Editorial Review Board Members representing researchers from international institutions).
• Recruiting quality research manuscript submissions for the journal.
• Utilizing a minimum of three Editorial Review Board Members (and Ad Hoc Reviewers as necessary) and one Associate Editor in conducting a double-blind peer review of each manuscript through the Global Vision Press Submission System.
• Collecting and organizing final materials for each issue, ensuring that every manuscript submission adheres to IGI Global’s formatting and submission guidelines.

Reviewer Responsibilities

• If a reviewer feels that they are familiar with the identity of the author of the submitted work, they are expected to notify the Editor(s)-in-Chief as soon as possible to make sure that the integrity of the blind review process is not compromised.
• Upon receipt of a manuscript for review, reviewers are requested to carefully read each manuscript, supporting their evaluation with relevant citations with the goal of helping the author(s) construct a more rigorous research work by providing constructive feedback, as well as an honest assessment of the value of the manuscript. Reviewers are requested to provide their overall assessment of the work, followed by a specific list of comments. While grammatical corrections are valuable, the review must stretch beyond the use of punctuation, spelling, and language usage.
• If a reviewer believes it is not possible for him/her to review the research reported in a manuscript within the designated guidelines, or within stipulated time, he/she should notify the editor, so that the accurate and timely review can be ensured.
• An appropriate evaluation includes an analysis of the manuscript’s strengths and weaknesses, suggestions on how to make it more complete, relevant, and readable, as well as specific questions for the authors to address.

Journal Review Policy

• Authors should not concurrently submit papers describing essentially the same research. Submitting the same paper to more than one journal constitutes unethical publishing behavior and is unacceptable.
• All submitted and invited papers should go through an initial screening process by the editorial board to weed out papers which are not suitable or have different focus, papers which are marginal and weak papers. The papers which pass the initial screening process will be sent to three experts (referee) for review.
• Papers will be refereed by at least 3 experts as suggested by the editorial board.
• Editors will have the option of seeking additional reviews when needed. Authors will be informed when Editors decide further review is required.
• All publication decisions are made by the journal's Editor(s)-in-Chief on the basis of the referees' reports. Authors of papers that are not accepted are notified promptly.
• The editor and any editorial staff must not disclose any information about a submitted manuscript to anyone other than the corresponding author, reviewers, potential reviewers, other editorial advisers, and the publisher, as appropriate. The editor must ensure that information regarding manuscripts submitted by the authors is kept confidential.
• Editors should require reviewers to disclose any potential competing interests before agreeing to review a submission.
• Editors should provide guidance to reviewers on everything that is expected of them including the need to handle submitted material in confidence.
• If a reviewer believes it is not possible for him/her to review the research reported in a manuscript within the designated guidelines, or within stipulated time, he/she should notify the editor, so that the accurate and timely review can be ensured.
• Our peer review process is confidential and identities of reviewers cannot be revealed.

Note:
If redundant or duplicate publication is attempted or occurs Authors should expect immediate editorial action to be taken including prompt rejection of the submitted manuscript. Submission of any manuscript that contains redundant or duplicate publication of the same or very similar research work violates the policies of each journal.

Open Access Policy
This journal provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge. Upon publication, the article shall be openly licensed using the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

Digital Preservation Policy
The Global Vision Press undertakes to ensure the long-term preservation and accessibility of the online resources for research papers which were managed by our publishing company. Its role is to provide access, preserve and keep our digital collections available, while maintaining the essential functionality of the original digital object.