Standards
Editorial policies
The editorial and publishing policies that apply in every journal, the same way in each.
Criteria
The same criteria apply in every journal and every submission track. Assessment covers the domain, method and argument: whether the work makes an original contribution to its subject, whether the empirical and analytical methods support the claims, and whether the reasoning is sound and coherent. Within those three, papers are read for reasoning, evidence, methods, originality, transparency and contribution, and for nothing else. The criteria are published before submissions open and are not varied for individual papers.
Review
Every submission is checked mechanically on arrival and read by a subject reviewer wherever a claim requires expert judgement. An acceptance is signed by a named editor. Any other outcome is issued by the rule that produced it. The rule is named to the author.
Editorial independence
Assessment is kept separate from commercial consideration. Ownership of a journal confers no influence over the decision on any paper. Payment and waiver status are held in a separate system and cannot be read by anyone assessing a paper.
Research integrity and misconduct
Allegations of plagiarism, data fabrication, undisclosed conflicts, or authorship abuse are investigated on the record. Where a concern is upheld after publication, the article carries the corresponding notice.
Corrections and retractions
Three kinds of notice are available: correction, expression of concern, and retraction. Corrections, expressions of concern and retractions remain permanently linked to the article. Published versions remain available. No published article is silently altered or removed. Each notice identifies whose error it was, including where it was the journal's.
Conflicts of interest
Financial and non-financial interests that could bear on a paper are declared by its authors and by anyone who assesses it. Declarations are published with the article.
Data and code
For a paper in the Empirical or Integrated track, the data and code behind the result are required. Deposit them in a durable repository and cite the deposit. Any restriction on access is stated and justified on the article.
Licensing and copyright
Authors retain copyright. Publication is under CC BY 4.0 unless a funder mandates otherwise. The licence is stated on the article page.
AI use
Use of AI carries no penalty. Disclosure is requested where the use affects how the results should be read.
Fees and waivers
The submission fee is US$125, or US$25 for a verified educational address. The applicable fee is charged when the paper is sent. Waivers are available through the Fees and Waivers section and must be requested before payment; a waiver cannot be applied afterwards, because fees are non-refundable. There is no publication charge. Payment is held separately from assessment and is invisible to anyone assessing the paper.
Privacy
An email address is collected to operate sign-in and to return decisions. Uploaded files belong to the account that uploaded them. Retention follows ordinary journal practice.