Peer Review and Oversight for Special Issues

Peer Review Procedure for Special Issues
All special issues are subject to the same rigorous double-blind peer review as regular submissions. Minor adjustments may be made to align with the unique focus of each special issue.

• Guest Editors: Thematic experts may be invited to act as guest editors, assisting with the initial assessment of submitted manuscripts and recommending appropriate peer reviewers.

• Evaluation Criteria: Submissions are reviewed for both their academic quality and their alignment with the theme of the special issue.

• Editorial Collaboration: Guest editors work closely with the JCSE editorial team to ensure consistency in the peer review process.

• Final Decision-Making: The JCSE editorial board maintains full authority over all final publication decisions, ensuring the journal’s academic integrity is upheld.

Editorial Oversight of Special Issues

• Guest Editor Involvement: Where guest editors are appointed, they collaborate with JCSE’s editorial board to ensure that all manuscripts meet the journal’s editorial standards and formatting guidelines.

• Initial Screening: Manuscripts are first checked for thematic relevance and adherence to JCSE’s scope and submission requirements.

• Editorial Board Supervision: The JCSE board provides quality assurance and has the final say on all acceptances or rejections, including for papers in special issues.

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Policy on Guest Editor Submissions
To promote fairness and transparency, JCSE has specific rules governing submissions from guest editors.

1. Independent Review Process

   • Manuscripts authored or co-authored by guest editors must go through JCSE’s standard double-blind peer review.

   • Guest editors may not select reviewers or influence decisions on their own submissions.

   • A neutral editor or JCSE board member oversees the review of these manuscripts to avoid conflicts of interest.

2. Submission Limits

   • Contributions by guest editors (individually or in collaboration) may not exceed 25% of the total articles in any special issue.

   • This policy ensures a balanced and inclusive range of scholarly voices in each issue.

Please contact the editor

Editor: Professor TJ Mudau
Institute of Gender and Youth Studies
University of Venda, South Africa
Thizwilondi.Mudau@univen.ac.za