Reviewing

Topics in this section

How-to guides

• Responding to a Review Invitation

  Opening a review invitation, accepting it with a conflict-of-interest declaration, or declining it with an optional reason.

• Opening the Anonymous Files

  Opening and downloading the files of a review you accepted, stripped of author details, and knowing when your access ends.

• Writing a Review

  Scoring the criteria in the review form, choosing your recommendation, writing comments to the author and the editor, adding an attachment and submitting the review.

• Sending a Note to the Editors

  Sending the editors a separate note to add a correction or an explanation to a review you have already submitted.

• Joining the Reviewer Pool

  Joining the reviewer pool from your profile and setting the expertise keywords that editors use to find you.

Screens and settings

• Reviewing Screen

  The tabs and rows of the screen where reviewers follow their invitations, their reviews in progress and the reviews they completed.

• Review Invitation Screen

  The header and cards of the screen where an invitation and its review open, and its views for pending, accepted and closed invitations.

Concepts

• Peer Review Types

  What authors and reviewers see of each other in double-anonymous, single-anonymous and open review, and when the type is set.

• Reviewer Deadlines and Reminders

  The response and review periods of reviewer invitations, when reminders go out and how unanswered invitations close.

Troubleshooting

• I got the invitation e-mail but cannot see it in the panel

  Causes and fixes when the e-mail of a review invitation arrived but the invitation does not appear in the panel.

• I cannot meet the deadline

  Asking the editor for more time, or stepping down, when the time given to respond to an invitation or to write the review is not enough.

• I want to add something to a submitted review

  Adding a correction or an explanation later to a review that has been submitted and locked.

• I can no longer open the files

  Why the anonymous files of a work you reviewed no longer open, and where the files are in a new round.

• I was asked to review again after a revision

  The invitation of the new round, its files and your earlier review when you are asked to review the revision of the same work.

More topics on this feature

How-to guides

• Inviting Reviewers

  Inviting a reviewer to a submission under review, from the reviewer pool or by e-mail address.

• Tracking Invitations and Reviews

  Following the status and deadlines of invitations on the Reviewers tab, reading reviews, changing deadlines, cancelling an invitation or inviting a reviewer again.

• Starting a New Round After a Revision

  Making a decision directly after the author submits a revision, or sending the submission to a new review round.

• Setting Author Guidelines and Review Criteria

  Entering the author guidelines, reference style, abstract limit and former titles of a journal, and defining the criteria scored in the review form.

• Setting the Reviewer Minimum and Reviewer List

  Setting the minimum number of reviewers expected in a review round and publishing the yearly list of reviewers of the journal.

Concepts

• Separation of Duties

  An editor who reviewed a submission cannot decide on it, authors take no role on their own submissions, and only the editor-in-chief makes final decisions.

Troubleshooting

• The reviewer did not receive the invitation e-mail

  Helping a reviewer who says the invitation e-mail never arrived to find the invitation in the panel.

• The reviewer's deadline has passed

  Giving more time, cancelling the invitation or inviting another reviewer when a reviewer did not respond in time or is late with the review.