Peer Review Process

Manuscripts that proceed to peer review

Only manuscripts that pass the initial editorial assessment and editorial review pass to peer review stage.

Type of peer review

Each manuscript is subjected to a review by a minimum of two independent, anonymous expert reviewers who may be members of the editorial/advisory board. These reviewers are selected according to their area of expertise and act independently, without knowing each other’s identities. MCLP also asks submitting authors to suggest reviewer names. The reviewers remain anonymous to the author, and the author's name is removed from the manuscript under review.

Expected timeline for the first decision

The peer review process is expected to take up to 3 months, depending upon the number of papers submitted and other factors.

Acceptance or rejection procedures

Based on the reviewers' recommendations, the editors then decide whether to accept, revise or reject a paper. If the authors have serious and reasonable objections to the reviews, the Editors will assess whether the reviews are objective and meet academic standards. If there is any doubt about the objectivity or quality of the review, an additional reviewer will be assigned. Additional reviewers may also be assigned if reviewers' decisions (to accept or reject) are inconsistent with each other or otherwise substantially incompatible.

Peer Review Criteria

Reviewers apply the MCLP peer review criteria and follow the COPE Ethical Guidelines for Peer Reviewers. Within the double-blind review process the peer reviewers shall consider the following MCLP peer review and evaluation criteria :

  • The relevance of the topic and its academic fit with the journal
  • The development, clarity and formulation of the research question/hypothesis
  • The soundness and adequacy of the methodology
  • The originality of the submitted article
  • The article's logical structure and readability
  • The adequacy of sources and adherence to journal’s referencing style
  • Final evaluation and further recommendations from the reviewer

Authorship criteria

Please see the Ethics Statement, paragraphs on Authorship and on Changes to Authorship.

Corrections

MCLP is committed to maintaining the accuracy and integrity of the scholarly record. If errors are identified in published articles that do not affect the overall conclusions or validity of the research (e.g., typographical errors, incorrect author affiliations, or minor factual inaccuracies), a correction notice will be issued. The correction will be linked to the original article and will clearly describe the nature of the error and the changes made.

Retractions  

In cases where significant issues are identified that compromise the reliability or ethical integrity of the research (e.g., plagiarism, data fabrication, or ethical violations), the journal may issue a retraction. Retractions are considered a last resort and are only issued after a thorough investigation by the editorial team, in consultation with the authors and, if necessary, their affiliated institutions. For reasons of transparency a retraction notice will be published and linked to the original article, which will remain accessible but clearly marked as "Retracted". Retractions will be published on the journal's website.

Plagiarism procedures

Please see the Ethics Statement, paragraph on Plagiarism screening.