Peer Review Integrity

All manuscripts considered for publication will undergo a process of double-blind peer review by independent expert referees. An internal evaluation will occur before the peer-review process. The editor will inform the author whether the manuscript has been accepted or rejected within one month of completing the peer-review process. In total, the internal evaluation and external peer-review process may take up to four months, whereby the result may be:

• Accepted without changes. If a manuscript is evaluated as "Accepted without change," it is published in its original form.
• Accepted with minor changes. If a manuscript is evaluated as "Accepted with minor changes," the editor will accept the submission on a revision of some minor aspects of the paper.
• Accepted with major changes. If a manuscript is evaluated as "Accepted with major changes," it will require an additional external evaluation by the peer review team.
• Rejected. If a manuscript is evaluated as "Rejected," it will not be accepted for re-submission, regardless of how it is later revised.

When the author is notified of acceptance to the Journal, the editor will forward comments from the two peer-reviewers for consideration. Where a manuscript requires changes, the author will be given 30 days each round to make changes. A manuscript may be reviewed for changes one or more rounds to meet the minimum standards required for publication in the Journal. The author may be offered one or more rounds of review to change the manuscript to meet the minimum standards required for publication in the Journal.