Peer Review Policy Regional Science and Urban Economics
The practice of peer review is to ensure that high quality scientific material is published.
It is an objective process at the heart of competitive academic publishing and is carried out at all reputable scientific journals. Our referees therefore play a vital role in maintaining the high standards of "Regional Science and Urban Economics". All manuscripts are peer reviewed following the procedure outlined below.
Special issues and/or conference proceedings may have different anonymous peer review procedures involving, for example, Guest Editors, Conference Organizers or Scientific Committees. On request from the Editorial Office, authors contributing to these projects may receive full details of the peer review process.
Initial manuscript evaluation
First, all manuscripts are evaluated by one of the Editors. Rejection of a manuscript at this first stage can be the result of material being insufficiently original, having serious scientific flaws, grammatical errors or poor English, or falling outside the aims and scope of the journal. Those that meet the minimum criteria are passed on to at least one expert for review. Authors of manuscripts rejected at the first stage are informed within 6 weeks of submission.
Type of peer review
This journal employs single blind review, where the referee remains anonymous
throughout the process but the author does not.
How referees are selected?
Referees are selected according to their expertise.
If it is difficult to obtain enough referees, and the paper falls within the expertise of one of the Editors, then the Editor may act as a referee.
Referee reports
Referees are asked to evaluate whether the manuscript:
- is original;
- is methodologically sound;
- follows appropriate ethical guidelines
- has results which are clearly presented and support the conclusions;
- correctly references previous relevant work;
- makes a significant contribution to the literature.
Referees are not expected to correct or edit manuscripts. Language correction is not part of the peer review process.
How long does the review process take?
Referees are asked to deliver their review within 8 weeks. In case of a substantial delay, another referee is nominated and asked to review the paper. Revised manuscripts are returned to the initial referees within 2 weeks.
Final report
A final decision to accept or reject the manuscript is sent to the corresponding
author, along with any recommendations made by the referees.
Editor's decision is final
Referees advise the Editor, who is responsible for the final decision to accept or reject
the manuscript.
Becoming a referee for "Regional Science and Urban Economics"
If you are not currently a referee for "Regional Science and Urban Economics" but would like to be added to the list of referees, please contact the Editorial Office.
The benefits of refereeing for the Journal include the opportunity to see and evaluate the latest work within your research area at an early stage, and to be acknowledged in an annual statement in the Journal. You may cite your work for "Regional Science and Urban Economics" as part of your professional development achievements.
