Guide for Authors
Authors
thinking of submitting an article or a research note to Research Policy should first consider carefully whether the paper falls within
the 'Aims and Scope' of RP as described on the journal homepage
http://www.elsevier.com/locate/respol, i.e. that it falls
broadly within the field of innovation studies or science policy. In particular, the paper should focus on innovation (in its various
forms), technology, research and development (R&D) or science (see 'Editorial Strategy' below). The RP homepage also includes a list
of 'Main subjects covered' which may provide further guidance as to whether the paper is likely to be of interest to RP.
In addition,
authors need to bear in mind that RP readers include not only academics but also a range of consultants, industrialists, government officials,
scientific administrators and others interested in these issues. Moreover, its academic readers come not only from the field of innovation
studies, but also from a number of neighbouring disciplines. Therefore, authors need to approach the topic in a manner that is likely
to be of interest to a large proportion of RP readers (i.e. the paper should be neither too narrow nor too technical). Amongst other
things, this includes engaging substantially with the body of literature familiar to the journal's readership as well as focusing on
research that yields potential policy or management implications (see 'Editorial Strategy' below).
First-time authors and authors
who are new to Elsevier may be interested in additional information about the process for submitting a manuscript or the process for
publishing in scholarly journals, in general, please visit
http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/authorsview.authors/authorpacks
Editorial Strategy
Research Policy (RP) publishes original research contributions in the field of 'innovation
studies'. RP Editors look for papers that deal with core RP issues such as innovation, technological change, R&D, science, and the
management of research and knowledge, issues that are likely to be of interest to the broad RP readership that includes 'practitioners'
(e.g. managers, consultants, policy-makers) as well as academic scholars. (See the list of 'Main subjects covered' for a more comprehensive
list of the main issues
http://www.elsevier.com/locate/respol).
Innovation studies spans a number of subfields including
the economics of innovation (with particular attention to evolutionary and neo-Schumpeterian analysis); technology and innovation management;
and innovation policy and science (or S&T) policy. In addition to innovation studies, RP also draws upon mainstream disciplines such
as economics, management, organizational studies, sociology, economic geography, political science and certain specialized branches of
history (history of technology, economic/business history) (see list of 'Main subjects covered'). The term 'innovation studies' has evolved
from (and incorporates) the earlier fields of 'science policy,' 'research policy' (hence the name of the journal), 'science and technology
(S&T) policy' and 'science, technology and innovation (STI) policy.'
Authors considering whether to submit a paper to RP need
to ensure not only that the main focus of the paper relates to one or more of the core subjects listed in 'Main subjects covered' but
also that they approach the topic in a manner that is likely to be of interest to a large proportion of RP's wide-ranging readership
(i.e. the paper should be neither too narrow nor too technical). Amongst other things, this includes engaging substantially with the
body of literature familiar to the journal's readership as well as focusing on research with potentially significant policy or management
implications.
Submitted papers that have little direct relationship to the core RP issues, even if such papers are good, are likely
to be rejected as 'out of scope'. In addition, some submitted papers, while they address an RP issue, may do so in a manner that is more
appropriate to publication in a mainstream economics, management or other disciplinary journal, and they too are likely to be desk-rejected.
Types of Paper
RP publishes:
• Research Articles - full-length papers of up to 8-10,000 words
• Special Issues and Special Sections (see below)
• Research Notes - typically of 3-5,000 words, this category is a vehicle
for specific types of material that merit publication, but do not require all the 'normal' components of a full research article. This
might cover, for example, specific aspects of methodology that have broad relevance for RP readers, or short reports about specific sets
or types of data (and their access and use) that merit publication without the full set of requirements for a normal article. It might
also be relevant, for example, for updating an earlier RP paper, where it is not necessary to repeat the literature review, methodology
etc.
• Discussion Papers - occasionally published on important topical issues where views differ; where such a paper has been
accepted in principle, an RP Editor will commission perhaps two responses from those holding different views to appear alongside the
discussion paper.
• Book Reviews - commissioned by RP Book Review Editor. (However, RP does not attempt to cover all new books
in the field, only a selected few that are felt likely to be of wide-ranging importance for the field of innovation studies.)
Special Issues and Special Sections
Approximately twice a year, RP may publish a Special Issue (or a somewhat
shorter Special Section) on a particular theme, where an integrated collection of articles has been put together and edited by two or
three Guest Editors. Special Issues/Sections can fulfil a number of important functions:
• bringing together and integrating
work on a specific theme (for instance, bringing together theoretical and empirical work, or work based on different methodological approaches);
• opening up a previously under-researched area (or one that has perhaps struggled with a rather conservative peer review process
in its efforts to achieve recognition);
• constructing a bridge between formerly rather separate research communities, who have
been focusing on similar or related topics.
Those thinking of proposing a Special Issue/Section should first consult or download
the 'Notes for Proposers and Guest Editors'which can be found at
http://www.elsevier.com/inca/publications/misc/researchsi.pdf.
These notes provide guidance on the nature and content of the 2-4 page proposal required. Proposals should be submitted to
respol@sussex.ac.uk
at or before the start of January or July each year. These proposals are then reviewed by the RP Editors on the basis of certain criteria
that include: the novelty, importance and topicality of the theme; whether the papers will form an integrated whole; the standing of
the authors; the experience of the Guest Editors in handling a task of this magnitude; and the overall 'added value' of a Special Issue
or Section (as compared with publishing these papers separately in 'normal' issues). Those thinking of submitting a proposal, however,
should bear in mind that, out of the half a dozen or so proposals considered every six months, only one on average will be allocated
a Special Issue 'slot', so the competition is intense. A group of loosely connected papers from a conference on a fairly standard subject
is unlikely to be accepted.
Review Process
All RP papers are reviewed using a 'double-blind'
process in which reviewers are not informed who are the authors of the paper, as well as the authors not knowing who are the reviewers.
To make this possible, authors need to submit two versions of their papers, a 'full' one which will be seen only by the handling Editor,
and a 'blinded' version in which the names and addresses of authors have been removed and any identifying references have been suitably
anonymised (the version sent to referees).
Submitted papers are first considered by the RP Editor to whom they were submitted. Papers
that do not fall within the scope of RP are 'desk-rejected'. (Those that are borderline may be sent to an RP Advisory Editor who is a
specialist on that topic for advice.) Papers that, while they address an RP issue, do so in a manner that is more appropriate to publication
in a mainstream economics, management or other disciplinary journal, may also be desk-rejected (again perhaps following specialist advice
from an RP Advisory Editor). In addition, papers that fail to meet a minimum threshold for quality and originality will be rejected without
being sent out to reviewers.
Papers passing through this initial editorial scrutiny are then typically sent out to three referees.
If one or more of these turns down the invitation to provide a review, other referees will subsequently be appointed. Normally, at least
two authoritative reviews are needed before the handling Editor can make a decision as to whether to accept, reject, or ask for a 'revise
and resubmit' of the submitted paper.
Currently, approximately one third of the papers submitted to RP are desk-rejected, about one
third are rejected after peer review, and one third are eventually accepted (most after being revised once if not twice).
Contact details for submission
Submission to Research Policy now proceeds totally online via the EES system
http://ees.elsevier.com/respol/ (see below). EES provides detailed guidance to authors submitting papers as well as to referees
invited to submit a review.
Authors in need of assistance should contact: The Editorial Assistant, Research Policy Editorial Office
at SPRU, SPRU-Science & Technology Policy Research, The Freeman Centre, University of Sussex, Brighton, BN1 9QE. Tel: +44 (0) 1273
678173. E-mail:
respol@sussex.ac.uk
Ethics
in Publishing
Research Policy and Elsevier adhere to the highest standards with regard to research integrity and in particular
the avoidance of plagiarism, including self-plagiarism. It is therefore essential that authors, before they submit a paper, carefully
read the Ethics Ethical guidelines for journal publication - see
http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/intro.cws_home/ethical_guidelines#Duties
of Authors. Particular attention should be paid to the sections under 'Duties of Authors' on 'Originality and Plagiarism' and 'Multiple,
Redundant or Concurrent Publication'.
When submitting a paper on EES, authors will be prompted as to whether they have read and agree
to these guidelines before proceeding further with their submission. They will be asked specifically for an assurance that the paper
contains no element of data fabrication, data falsification or plagiarism (including unacknowledged self-plagiarism). Authors are reminded
that, where they draw upon material from another source, they must EITHER put that material in the form of a quote, OR write it entirely
in their own words (i.e. there is no 'middle way'). In both cases, they must explicitly cite the source, including the specific page
number in the case of a quote or a particular point.
Conflict of interest
When submitting
a paper to RP, authors need to select a specific Editor. They should choose the Editor who is best suited in the light of the content
of the paper, please see list of relevant keywords for each editor
here
However, authors should not submit to an Editor working in same institution (or one who has worked in the same institution over the previous
five years). Nor should they submit to an Editor with whom they have co-authored, collaborated or had some professional or personal relationship
over the last five years. If in any doubt, authors should explicitly mention the nature of their relationship and any possible conflict
of interest in a covering letter to the Editor when they submit the paper so that the Editor can take a view and, if necessary, allocate
the paper to be handled by another RP Editor.
Submission declaration
Please also note that
that the paper should not be submitted for publication elsewhere until a decision has been made by Research Policy.
If in the slightest
doubt, for example, about what constitutes 'previous publication' (e.g. an electronic working paper or a conference paper), authors should
explicitly raise this with the RP Editor when submitting, so that he/she can make a ruling.
Submission
declaration and verification
Submission of an article implies that the work described has not been published previously
(except in the form of an abstract or as part of a published lecture or academic thesis), that it is not under consideration for publication
elsewhere, that its publication is approved by all authors and tacitly or explicitly by the responsible authorities where the work was
carried out, and that, if accepted, it will not be published elsewhere in the same form, in English or in any other language, including
electronically without the written consent of the copyright-holder. To verify originality, your article may be checked by the originality
detection software iThenticate. See also
http://www.elsevier.com/editors/plagdetect.
Changes
to authorship
This policy concerns the addition, deletion, or rearrangement of author names in the authorship of accepted
manuscripts:
Before the accepted manuscript is published in an online issue: Requests to add or remove an author, or to rearrange
the author names, must be sent to the Journal Manager from the corresponding author of the accepted manuscript and must include: (a)
the reason the name should be added or removed, or the author names rearranged and (b) written confirmation (e-mail, fax, letter) from
all authors that they agree with the addition, removal or rearrangement. In the case of addition or removal of authors, this includes
confirmation from the author being added or removed. Requests that are not sent by the corresponding author will be forwarded by the
Journal Manager to the corresponding author, who must follow the procedure as described above. Note that: (1) Journal Managers will inform
the Journal Editors of any such requests and (2) publication of the accepted manuscript in an online issue is suspended until authorship
has been agreed.
After the accepted manuscript is published in an online issue: Any requests to add, delete, or rearrange
author names in an article published in an online issue will follow the same policies as noted above and result in a corrigendum.
Copyright
Upon acceptance of an article, authors will be asked to complete a 'Journal Publishing Agreement'
(for more information on this and copyright see
http://www.elsevier.com/copyright). Acceptance of the agreement will ensure
the widest possible dissemination of information. An e-mail will be sent to the corresponding author confirming receipt of the manuscript
together with a 'Journal Publishing Agreement' form or a link to the online version of this agreement.
Subscribers may reproduce
tables of contents or prepare lists of articles including abstracts for internal circulation within their institutions. Permission of
the Publisher is required for resale or distribution outside the institution and for all other derivative works, including compilations
and translations (please consult
http://www.elsevier.com/permissions). If excerpts from other copyrighted works are included,
the author(s) must obtain written permission from the copyright owners and credit the source(s) in the article. Elsevier has preprinted
forms for use by authors in these cases: please consult
http://www.elsevier.com/permissions.
Retained
author rights
As an author you (or your employer or institution) retain certain rights; for details you are referred to:
http://www.elsevier.com/authorsrights.
Role of the funding source
You are requested
to identify who provided financial support for the conduct of the research and/or preparation of the article and to briefly describe
the role of the sponsor(s), if any, in study design; in the collection, analysis and interpretation of data; in the writing of the report;
and in the decision to submit the article for publication. If the funding source(s) had no such involvement then this should be stated.
Please see
http://www.elsevier.com/funding.
Please note that such information should appear
in the 'Acknowledgements' section.
Funding body agreements and policies
Elsevier has established
agreements and developed policies to allow authors whose articles appear in journals published by Elsevier, to comply with potential
manuscript archiving requirements as specified as conditions of their grant awards. To learn more about existing agreements and policies
please visit
http://www.elsevier.com/fundingbodies.
Open access
This journal
offers you the option of making your article freely available to all via the ScienceDirect platform. To prevent any conflict of interest,
you can only make this choice after receiving notification that your article has been accepted for publication. The fee of $3,000 excludes
taxes and other potential author fees such as color charges. In some cases, institutions and funding bodies have entered into agreement
with Elsevier to meet these fees on behalf of their authors. Details of these agreements are available at
http://www.elsevier.com/fundingbodies.
Authors of accepted articles, who wish to take advantage of this option, should complete and submit the order form (available at
http://www.elsevier.com/locate/openaccessform.pdf).
Whatever access option you choose, you retain many rights as an author, including the right to post a revised personal version of your
article on your own website. More information can be found here:
http://www.elsevier.com/authorsrights.
Language and language services
Please write your text in good English (American or British usage is accepted,
but not a mixture of these). Authors who require information about language editing and copyediting services pre- and post-submission
please visit
http://webshop.elsevier.com/languageservices
or our customer support site at
http://support.elsevier.com
for more information.
Please note that Elsevier neither endorses nor takes responsibility for any products,
goods or services offered by outside vendors through our services or in any advertising. For more information please refer to our Terms & Conditions:
http://www.elsevier.com/termsandconditions.
Submission
Submission
to this journal proceeds totally online and you will be guided stepwise through the creation and uploading of your files. The system
automatically converts source files to a single PDF file of the article, which is used in the peer-review process. Please note that even
though manuscript source files are converted to PDF files at submission for the review process, these source files are needed for further
processing after acceptance. All correspondence, including notification of the Editor's decision and requests for revision, takes place
by e-mail removing the need for a paper trail.
You will be asked to submit both a full version of your
paper and also a 'blinded' version in which all the authors' names and affiliations have been removed and any identifying references
have been suitably anonymised. You may also want to submit a covering letter to the Editor, bringing to his/her attention any pertinent
facts with regard to the changes made in the 'blinded' version.
The EES system automatically converts these source files to PDF
files, which are then used in the peer-review and editing process. Please note that, even though manuscript source files are converted
into PDF files at submission for the review process, these source files are needed for further processing after acceptance. All correspondence,
including notification of the Editor's decision and requests for revision, takes place by e-mail through the EES on-line system, removing
the need for a separate paper trail. Authors are therefore requested to refrain from sending emails to the Editor outside the EES system
unless this is absolutely essential.
Use of wordprocessing
software
It is important that the file be saved in the native format of the wordprocessor used. The text should be in single-column
format. Keep the layout of the text as simple as possible. Most formatting codes will be removed and replaced on processing the article.
In particular, do not use the wordprocessor's options to justify text or to hyphenate words. However, do use bold face, italics, subscripts,
superscripts etc. When preparing tables, if you are using a table grid, use only one grid for each individual table and not a grid for
each row. If no grid is used, use tabs, not spaces, to align columns. The electronic text should be prepared in a way very similar to
that of conventional manuscripts (see also the Guide to Publishing with Elsevier:
http://www.elsevier.com/guidepublication).
Note that source files of figures, tables and text graphics will be required whether or not you embed your figures in the text. See also
the section on Electronic artwork.
To avoid unnecessary errors you are strongly advised to use the 'spell-check' and 'grammar-check'
functions of your wordprocessor.
The Editors request that text should be left-aligned and double-spaced
(or at least 1.5 spacing), with margins of 1 inch or 2.5 cm all round.
In addition, make sure that you
have first 'accepted' all changes previously listed in earlier versions under 'track changes', and that all embedded comments or highlighting
of the text has likewise been removed.
To avoid unnecessary errors you are strongly advised to use the
"spell-check" and "grammar-check" functions of your word-processor. Authors for whom English is not their first language should also
seek help from colleagues or professional editors if this is necessary to bring the standard of the written English up to an acceptable
standard.
Article structure
Subdivision - numbered sections
Divide
your article into clearly defined and numbered sections. Subsections should be numbered 1.1 (then 1.1.1, 1.1.2, ...), 1.2, etc. (the
abstract is not included in section numbering). Use this numbering also for internal cross-referencing: do not just refer to 'the text'.
Any subsection may be given a brief heading. Each heading should appear on its own separate line.
Please
note that the 'acknowledgements' section at the end should not be included in the section number either.
A
typical article might include the following main sections.
Introduction
State the objectives
of the work and provide an adequate background, avoiding a detailed literature survey or a summary of the results.
The introduction should also justify why the topic of the paper is important and that the content is original . The summary
of results should have been dealt with in the abstract.
Literature review, conceptual framework, hypotheses
etc.
This section should extend (but not repeat) the background to the article already dealt with in the Introduction and
lay the foundation for the work being reported. It should identify the most relevant previous literature on the topic (but not in excessive
detail) in order to position the paper and demonstrate how it will make a significant contribution. It (or a separate section) should
set out (and justify) the theoretical or conceptual framework adopted in the paper. It may identify a number of hypotheses to be tested
or research questions to be explored. In short, this section (or sections) should explain what is the motivation for the paper and why
its contribution is original and significant.
Material and methods
Provide sufficient detail
to allow the work to be reproduced. Methods already published should be indicated by a reference: only relevant modifications should
be described.
The reader needs to know that the empirical data and/or other material are relevant, reliable
and capable of supporting robust conclusions, and that the methodology is appropriate, systematic and rigorous.
Results
Results
should be clear and concise.
Discussion
This should explore the significance of the results
of the work, not repeat them. A combined Results and Discussion section is often appropriate. Avoid extensive citations and discussion
of published literature.
Conclusions
The main conclusions of the study may be presented
in a short Conclusions section, which may stand alone or form a subsection of a Discussion or Results and Discussion section.
This section should also may make clear what is the original contribution of the paper, discuss the policy or management
implications of the findings, provide a critical assessment of the limitations of study, and outline possible fruitful lines for further
research.
Appendices
If there is more than one appendix, they should be identified as A,
B, etc. Formulae and equations in appendices should be given separate numbering: Eq. (A.1), Eq. (A.2), etc.; in a subsequent appendix,
Eq. (B.1) and so on. Similarly for tables and figures: Table A.1; Fig. A.1, etc.
Article length
RP
has a strong preference for articles to be no more than 8-10,000 words. In exceptional circumstances, however, the RP Editor handling
the paper may be willing to agree some latitude here with the author.
Essential title page information
•
Title.
Concise and informative. Titles are often used in information-retrieval systems. Avoid abbreviations and formulae
where possible.
•
Author names and affiliations.
Where the family name may be ambiguous (e.g., a double name),
please indicate this clearly. Present the authors' affiliation addresses (where the actual work was done) below the names. Indicate all
affiliations with a lower-case superscript letter immediately after the author's name and in front of the appropriate address. Provide
the full postal address of each affiliation, including the country name and, if available, the e-mail address of each author.
•
Corresponding author.
Clearly indicate who will handle correspondence at all stages of refereeing and publication, also
post-publication.
Ensure that telephone and fax numbers (with country and area code) are provided in addition to the e-mail address
and the complete postal address. Contact details must be kept up to date by the corresponding author.
•
Present/permanent
address.
If an author has moved since the work described in the article was done, or was visiting at the time, a 'Present address'
(or 'Permanent address') may be indicated as a footnote to that author's name. The address at which the author actually did the work
must be retained as the main, affiliation address. Superscript Arabic numerals are used for such footnotes.
Example
title
Often, it may be helpful to split this into a short main title, followed (after a colon or a 'dash') by a subtitle:
for example, 'Profiting from technological innovation: Implications for integration, collaboration, licensing and public policy'.
Abstract
A concise and factual abstract is required. The abstract should state briefly the purpose of the
research, the principal results and major conclusions. An abstract is often presented separately from the article, so it must be able
to stand alone. For this reason, References should be avoided, but if essential, then cite the author(s) and year(s). Also, non-standard
or uncommon abbreviations should be avoided, but if essential they must be defined at their first mention in the abstract itself.
Graphical abstract
A Graphical abstract is optional and should summarize the contents of the article in a
concise, pictorial form designed to capture the attention of a wide readership online. Authors must provide images that clearly represent
the work described in the article. Graphical abstracts should be submitted as a separate file in the online submission system. Image
size: Please provide an image with a minimum of 531 × 1328 pixels (h × w) or proportionally more. The image should be readable
at a size of 5 × 13 cm using a regular screen resolution of 96 dpi. Preferred file types: TIFF, EPS, PDF or MS Office files. See
http://www.elsevier.com/graphicalabstracts for examples.
Authors can make use of Elsevier's Illustration and Enhancement
service to ensure the best presentation of their images also in accordance with all technical requirements:
Illustration Service.
Highlights
Highlights are mandatory for
this journal. They consist of a short collection of bullet points that convey the core findings of the article and should be submitted
in a separate file in the online submission system. Please use 'Highlights' in the file name and include 3 to 5 bullet points (maximum
85 characters, including spaces, per bullet point). See
http://www.elsevier.com/highlights for examples.
Keywords
Immediately after the abstract, provide a maximum of 6 keywords, using American spelling and avoiding
general and plural terms and multiple concepts (avoid, for example, 'and', 'of'). Be sparing with abbreviations: only abbreviations firmly
established in the field may be eligible. These keywords will be used for indexing purposes.
Acknowledgements
Collate
acknowledgements in a separate section at the end of the article before the references and do not, therefore, include them on the title
page, as a footnote to the title or otherwise. List here those individuals who provided help during the research (e.g., providing language
help, writing assistance or proof reading the article, etc.).
This section must identify the source(s)
of funding for the research. It should acknowledge any research assistants or others who provided help during the research (e.g., carrying
out the literature review; producing, computerizing and analyzing the data; or providing language help, writing assistance or proof-reading
the article, etc.) but who are not included among the authors. It should state where and when any earlier versions of the paper were
presented (e.g. at a seminar or conference). Lastly, it should acknowledge the help of all individuals who have made a significant contribution
to improving the paper (e.g. by offering comments or suggestions).
Math formulae
Present
simple formulae in the line of normal text where possible and use the solidus (/) instead of a horizontal line for small fractional terms,
e.g., X/Y. In principle, variables are to be presented in italics. Powers of e are often more conveniently denoted by exp. Number consecutively
any equations that have to be displayed separately from the text (if referred to explicitly in the text).
Footnotes
Footnotes
should be used sparingly. Number them consecutively throughout the article, using superscript Arabic numbers. Many wordprocessors build
footnotes into the text, and this feature may be used. Should this not be the case, indicate the position of footnotes in the text and
present the footnotes themselves separately at the end of the article. Do not include footnotes in the Reference list.
Table
footnotes
Indicate each footnote in a table with a superscript lowercase letter.
Artwork
Electronic artwork
General points
• Make sure you use uniform lettering and sizing of your
original artwork.
• Save text in illustrations as 'graphics' or enclose the font.
• Only use the following fonts in
your illustrations: Arial, Courier, Times, Symbol.
• Number the illustrations according to their sequence in the text.
•
Use a logical naming convention for your artwork files.
• Provide captions to illustrations separately.
• Produce images
near to the desired size of the printed version.
• Submit each figure as a separate file.
A detailed guide on electronic
artwork is available on our website:
http://www.elsevier.com/artworkinstructions
You are urged to visit this
site; some excerpts from the detailed information are given here.
Formats
Regardless of the application used, when
your electronic artwork is finalised, please 'save as' or convert the images to one of the following formats (note the resolution requirements
for line drawings, halftones, and line/halftone combinations given below):
EPS: Vector drawings. Embed the font or save the text
as 'graphics'.
TIFF: Color or grayscale photographs (halftones): always use a minimum of 300 dpi.
TIFF: Bitmapped line drawings:
use a minimum of 1000 dpi.
TIFF: Combinations bitmapped line/half-tone (color or grayscale): a minimum of 500 dpi is required.
If
your electronic artwork is created in a Microsoft Office application (Word, PowerPoint, Excel) then please supply 'as is'.
Please
do not:
• Supply files that are optimised for screen use (e.g., GIF, BMP, PICT, WPG); the resolution is too low;
•
Supply files that are too low in resolution;
• Submit graphics that are disproportionately large for the content.
Color artwork
Please make sure that artwork files are in an acceptable format (TIFF, EPS or MS Office files)
and with the correct resolution. If, together with your accepted article, you submit usable color figures then Elsevier will ensure,
at no additional charge, that these figures will appear in color on the Web (e.g., ScienceDirect and other sites) regardless of whether
or not these illustrations are reproduced in color in the printed version.
For color reproduction in print, you will receive information
regarding the costs from Elsevier after receipt of your accepted article. Please indicate your preference for color: in print or
on the Web only. For further information on the preparation of electronic artwork, please see
http://www.elsevier.com/artworkinstructions.
Please note: Because of technical complications which can arise by converting color figures to 'gray scale' (for the printed version
should you not opt for color in print) please submit in addition usable black and white versions of all the color illustrations.
Figure captions
Ensure that each illustration has a caption. Supply captions separately, not attached to the
figure. A caption should comprise a brief title (
not on the figure itself) and a description of the illustration. Keep text in
the illustrations themselves to a minimum but explain all symbols and abbreviations used.
Tables
Number
tables consecutively in accordance with their appearance in the text. Place footnotes to tables below the table body and indicate them
with superscript lowercase letters. Avoid vertical rules. Be sparing in the use of tables and ensure that the data presented in tables
do not duplicate results described elsewhere in the article.
References
Citation
in text
Please ensure that every reference cited in the text is also present in the reference list (and vice versa). Any
references cited in the abstract must be given in full. Unpublished results and personal communications are not recommended in the reference
list, but may be mentioned in the text. If these references are included in the reference list they should follow the standard reference
style of the journal and should include a substitution of the publication date with either 'Unpublished results' or 'Personal communication'.
Citation of a reference as 'in press' implies that the item has been accepted for publication.
Web references
As
a minimum, the full URL should be given and the date when the reference was last accessed. Any further information, if known (DOI, author
names, dates, reference to a source publication, etc.), should also be given. Web references can be listed separately (e.g., after the
reference list) under a different heading if desired, or can be included in the reference list.
Reference
management software
This journal has standard templates available in key reference management packages EndNote (
http://www.endnote.com/support/enstyles.asp)
and Reference Manager (
http://refman.com/support/rmstyles.asp). Using plug-ins to wordprocessing packages, authors only
need to select the appropriate journal template when preparing their article and the list of references and citations to these will be
formatted according to the journal style which is described below.
Reference style
RP now
follows the Harvard referencing style (or a slight variation of it in which journal names are spelt out in full - see below). In this
author/date referencing style, you should indicate a reference in the text by giving the author name (family name only, although include
initials if the paper refers to work by two different authors with the same family name) followed by date of publication (in parentheses).
If you cite two or more publications at the same time, separate these with a semicolon and list them alphabetically. If a publication
has two authors, give both of these, but if the publication has three or more authors, give only the name of first author followed by
"et al.". For quotations or where the reader needs to be guided to a specific point in the cited reference, always give the relevant
page number.
Example of referencing within text to illustrate the above rules:
"... as argued by Nelson and Winter (1982, p.52).
Other authors (e.g. Dosi et al., 1988; Freeman, 1987; Lundvall, 1992a & 1992b) have suggested ..."
Reference
examples
In the reference list at the end of the article, the references should be listed in alphabetical order by author
(and chronologically for works by the same author, with the letters "a", "b" etc. being used if that author has published more than one
article in a given year).
Reference to a journal article
Pavitt, K., 1984. Sectoral patterns of technical change: Towards
a taxonomy and a theory. Research Policy 13, 343-73.
(Note that RP uses a slightly stylized form of the Harvard system in which the
names of journals are spelt out in full rather than being abbreviated. In addition, issue numbers only need to be given if each issue
of that journal begins its numbering from page 1.)
Reference to a book
Nelson, R.R., Winter, S.G., 1982. An Evolutionary
Theory of Economic Change. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Mass.
Rogers, E.M., 2003. Diffusion of Innovations (5th ed.). Free
Press, New York.
Reference to an edited book
Dosi, G., Freeman, C., Nelson, R., Silverberg, G., Soete, L. (Eds), 1988.
Technical Change and Economic Theory. Pinter Publishers, London.
Reference to a chapter in an edited book
Kline, S.J.,
Rosenberg, N. (1986). Overview of innovation, in: Landau, R., Rosenberg, N. (Eds), The Positive Sum Strategy: Harnessing Technology for
Economic Growth. National Academy Press, Washington D.C., pp. 275-305.
Reference to a report
Levin, R.C., Klevorick,
A.K., Nelson, R.R., Winter, S.G., 1987. Appropriating the returns from industrial research and development. Brookings Papers on Economic
Activity, Brookings Institution, Washington D.C.
Reference to a working paper, report etc. available on the web
Pachauri,
R.K., Reisinger, A. (Eds), 2007. Climate Change 2007: Synthesis Report. Contribution of Working Groups I, II and III to the Fourth Assessment
Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (downloaded on 12 November 2009 from
http://www.ipcc.ch/publications_and_data/publications_ipcc_fourth_assessment_report_synthesis_report.htm).
Reference to a conference paper, lecture etc. that has not been published:
Martin, B.R. 2010. Science Policy
Research - Can Research Influence Policy? How? And Does It Make for Better Policy? Distinguished Lecture, Centre for Science and Policy,
University of Cambridge, 3 March 2010.
Reference to unpublished report, dissertation etc.:
Sherwin, C.W., Isenson, R.S.,
1966. First Interim Report on Project Hindsight (Summary). Office of the Director of Defense Research and Engineering, Washington D.C
Video data
Elsevier accepts video material and animation sequences to support and enhance your scientific
research. Authors who have video or animation files that they wish to submit with their article are strongly encouraged to include these
within the body of the article. This can be done in the same way as a figure or table by referring to the video or animation content
and noting in the body text where it should be placed. All submitted files should be properly labeled so that they directly relate to
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of our recommended file formats with a preferred maximum size of 50 MB. Video and animation files supplied will be published online in
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http://www.sciencedirect.com.
Please supply 'stills' with your files: you can choose any frame from the video or animation or make a separate image. These will be
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refer to this content.
Supplementary data
Elsevier accepts electronic supplementary material
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In order to ensure that your submitted material is directly usable, please provide the data in one of our recommended file formats. Authors
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For more detailed instructions please visit our artwork instruction pages at
http://www.elsevier.com/artworkinstructions.
Submission checklist
The following list will be useful during the final checking of an article prior to sending
it to the journal for review. Please consult this Guide for Authors for further details of any item.
Ensure that the following
items are present:
One author has been designated as the corresponding author with contact details:
• E-mail address
• Full postal address
• Telephone and fax numbers
All necessary files have been uploaded, and contain:
•
Keywords
• All figure captions
• All tables (including title, description, footnotes)
Further considerations
•
Manuscript has been 'spell-checked' and 'grammar-checked'
• References are in the correct format for this journal
•
All references mentioned in the Reference list are cited in the text, and vice versa
• Permission has been obtained for use
of copyrighted material from other sources (including the Web)
• Color figures are clearly marked as being intended for color
reproduction on the Web (free of charge) and in print, or to be reproduced in color on the Web (free of charge) and in black-and-white
in print
• If only color on the Web is required, black-and-white versions of the figures are also supplied for printing purposes
For any further information please visit our customer support site at
http://support.elsevier.com.
Use of the Digital
Object Identifier
The Digital Object Identifier (DOI) may be used to cite and link to electronic documents. The DOI consists
of a unique alpha-numeric character string which is assigned to a document by the publisher upon the initial electronic publication.
The assigned DOI never changes. Therefore, it is an ideal medium for citing a document, particularly 'Articles in press' because they
have not yet received their full bibliographic information. The correct format for citing a DOI is shown as follows (example taken from
a document in the journal
Physics Letters B):
doi:10.1016/j.physletb.2010.09.059
When you use the DOI to create URL
hyperlinks to documents on the web, the DOIs are guaranteed never to change.
Proofs
One
set of page proofs (as PDF files) will be sent by e-mail to the corresponding author (if we do not have an e-mail address then paper
proofs will be sent by post) or, a link will be provided in the e-mail so that authors can download the files themselves. Elsevier now
provides authors with PDF proofs which can be annotated; for this you will need to download Adobe Reader version 7 (or higher) available
free from
http://get.adobe.com/reader. Instructions on how to annotate PDF files will accompany the proofs (also given online).
The exact system requirements are given at the Adobe site:
http://www.adobe.com/products/reader/tech-specs.html.
If
you do not wish to use the PDF annotations function, you may list the corrections (including replies to the Query Form) and return them
to Elsevier in an e-mail. Please list your corrections quoting line number. If, for any reason, this is not possible, then mark the corrections
and any other comments (including replies to the Query Form) on a printout of your proof and return by fax, or scan the pages and e-mail,
or by post. Please use this proof only for checking the typesetting, editing, completeness and correctness of the text, tables and figures.
Significant changes to the article as accepted for publication will only be considered at this stage with permission from the Editor.
We will do everything possible to get your article published quickly and accurately – please let us have all your corrections within
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with the publication of your article if no response is received.
Offprints
The corresponding
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For inquiries relating to the submission of articles (including electronic submission) please
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http://www.elsevier.com/authorFAQ) and/or contact Customer Support via
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