What Happens at the Journal Office Stays at the Journal Office: Assessing Journal Transparency and Record-Keeping Practices

Abstract

Dissemination of journal submission data is critical for identifying editorial bias, creating an informed scholarly marketplace, and critically mapping the contours of a discipline's scholarship. However, our survey and case study investigations indicate that nearly a decade after the Perestroika movement began, political science journals remain reserved in collecting and releasing submission data. We offer several explanations for this lack of transparency and suggest ways that the profession might address this shortcoming.

Publishing as a Graduate Student: A Quick and (Hopefully) Painless Guide to Establishing Yourself as a Scholar

“…Most target for about three months, but this can vary significantly and often independently from the reputation of the journal itself. For example, Yoder and Bramlett (2011) identify a range from 21 to 118 days as the average turnaround time of journals that responded to their survey. Other than desk rejects—where the editor declines to send out the paper for review based usually on its poor fit for the theme of the journal—having a decision on a paper in less than two months is rare.…”

Examining publication bias—a simulation-based evaluation of statistical tests on publication bias

“…Authors especially want to increase their publication chances, notably in top-tier journals where low acceptance rates of 5%–10% are quite common (for the top interdisciplinary journals Nature, 2017 ; Science, 2017 ; cf. for the political sciences Yoder & Bramlett, 2011 : 266). Two distinct strategies to achieve significant results by means of publication bias practices can be pointed out.…”