Page 3
Peer Review Statement
Peer review is a widely--recognized process designed to ensure the professional quality of scholarly work that is published. Peer review can, however, take a wide variety of forms, depending on the venue in which a publication appears, and the nature of the work being done. In all these forms, the key element is that a scholar’s work is reviewed and assessed by academic professionals working in the same field of scholarly endeavor.
The following three paragraphs provide examples of peer review:
1. Peer reviewed articles. The essential factor here is for articles to be screened by persons involved in the editorial process for the venue in which the article is published. For a journal, it typically involves review by one or more persons involved in the editorial process, who have the power to decline to publish the article, to publish it as submitted, or to accept it with certain required revisions. For a volume of collected essays, or a supplement series of volumes for a journal, the same standards apply. In this setting, it may be more likely that the editor(s) will initially select the persons to write the articles.
2. Single authored books or co-authored books. Publishers typically screen a book proposal from a particular scholar or scholars, using their review process to accept or decline to accept the proposed volume as a book they will publish. Publishers may also approach a particular scholar or scholars due to the person’s(s’) reputation and expertise in the field, and ask the scholar(s) to write a book, or edit a book, on a topic specific to the scholar’s(s’) field of expertise. The manuscript of such a volume may or may not be sent out to other scholars for review prior to its publication.
3. Editing of journals or books. Scholars who have an established reputation for quality of work in their field may be asked to serve as an editor for a journal or for a volume of collected essays. In such cases, the scholar’s experience and expertise qualify that person not only to assess the scholarship of others, but also to help shape and form such scholarship into a professional product that will meet the accepted standards of quality and rigor in the field.
Revised 2/9/05
|
