Editorial Policies

Focus and Scope

The Journal of Conflictology is an interdisciplinary and peer-reviewed open access journal on conflict resolution. Based on the conviction that non-violence is an effective means to wage conflict, it promotes non-violence both as a method of conflict resolution as well as a strategy of handling conflict.

The journal examines the application of conflict resolution theories and provides knowledge on the practice of non-violence through a realistic and scientific approach.

Contributions published at the journal share the results of original scientific research.

Edited at the Open University of Catalonia (UOC) in Barcelona by an international editorial board, Conflictology embraces a global focus on conflict and peace-making and aims to publish contributions which can be read by nonspecialists, academic experts and practitioners alike.

It encourages a wide conception of peace, while focusing on the ways and means of conflict resolution. As an interdisciplinary journal, Conflictology invites contributions from a broad range of traditions that address theories and practice of nonviolence, conflict resolution and peacebuilding; submissions may address theories of non-violence, theories regarding the development and transformation of conflicts, theories of practice, descriptions of the experience of practice, as well as the evaluation of practice. Articles can include policy briefings, review articles, comments and interviews.

The Journal offers professional copy editing and review process for all submitted articles.

Contributions are welcomed at any time.

 

Section Policies

Articles

Articles submitted to the journal should be original contributions. Please consult the Author Guidelines for details.

Contributions are welcomed at any time.

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Pioneers

This section presents significant thinkers and pioneers in the field of conflictology, their work and impact on the practice of conflict transformation and future studies.

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Interview

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Profile

The section Profile informs about the work and activities of organisations and projects in all disciplines of conflictology with the aim to display the diversity of practice and approaches in the field. Each profile answers a fixed set of questions and passes the journal's review process in order to ensure correctness of the information provided and informative quality.

Please consult the Author Guidelines for details.

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Agenda

Publication of announcements regarding conferences, publications, academic and research programmes as well as other relevant events is free provided that the announcement is related to the field of conflictology and that the announced product or service does not serve an exclusively commercial purpose.

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Peer Review Process

Articles are subject to blind review by at least one reviewer who is a recognized expert in the subject area and who doesn't belong to the institution that publishes the journal, based on initial editor screening. A completed review form will be returned within seven weeks following submission. Manuscripts are send out anonymously for editorial evaluation.

The Journal of Conflictology has its own reviewer data base with the following information: name, afiliation, electronic address, speciality, mother tongue, other working languages, and name of the person who recommended her/him to the editorial team.

The Journal of Conflictology provides reviewers with instructions and review forms for judging a submission's suitability for publication.

In the review process, remains concealed the identity of the authors and the reviewers.

Stages of the article review process

Stage 1: Submission of the original.

Stage 2: Blind peer-review by two external reviewers, experts in the subject area concerned.

Stage 3: Reviewers send the result of the evaluation report and an assessment to the director of the journal.

Stage 4: Communication of a motivated response on the evaluation results to the authors.

Acceptance: an article would be approved if the results of the both assessments are positive.

Non-acceptance: an article would be rejected if the results of both assessments are negative.

Acceptance (with modifications): assessment results require substantial modifications on the content. Once the changes have been made by the author, the article will be reviewed again.

In case of disparity of opinions a second round will be opened with two other reviewers of that particular subject area, in order to get a final approval. Making the changes demanded, does not guarantee that the article is going to be approved or published.

 

Publication Frequency

The Journal of Conflictology is a biannual publication, with issues in May and November.

 

Open Access Policy

This journal provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge.

Authors may deposit their works in open-access repositories, whether before peer-review (as pre-prints) or after (as post-prints).

 

Statement on publication ethics and misconduct

The Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (Open University of Catalonia, UOC) is committed to upholding the highest standards of quality and integrity in the publication of scientific articles, in accordance with the guidelines set out in its own Code of Ethics,[1] the Code of Conduct and Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors (Committee on Publication Ethics, COPE),[2] and CSE's White Paper on Promoting Integrity in Scientific Journal Publications (Council of Science Editors, CSE).[3] The UOC aims to satisfy the needs of authors and readers alike, ensuring the quality of articles published in its journals, protecting and respecting all rights pertaining to the content of articles, and respecting the integrity of all submissions and published work.

The Editorial Board of Journal of Conflictology undertakes to publish all corrections, clarifications, retractions and apologies as and when they are required. As part of its commitment to best practice, Journal of Conflictology makes publicly available the evaluation system for submitted articles and the criteria applied in the external peer review process. Journal of Conflictology regularly updates these criteria, which are intended to ensure the scientific relevance, originality, clarity and pertinence of published articles.

Journal of Conflictology maintains full confidentiality throughout the evaluation process, protecting the anonymity of authors and external reviewers, the reviewed content, the reviewers' report and any other communication issued by the editorial, advisory and scientific boards, as required. Equally, it applies the strictest standards of confidentiality to any clarifications, claims or complaints that an author may wish to refer to any of the journal's boards or to the external reviewers.

Journal of Conflictology undertakes to respect the integrity of all published work. As such, Journal of Conflictology will be particularly vigilant in identifying and sanctioning cases of plagiarism. Any manuscript that is found to plagiarize published work will be removed from the journal or barred from publication, as the case may be. The journal will act as swiftly as possible in all such cases. In agreeing to the terms of the journal, authors undertake to ensure that the articles they submit and all of the associated materials contain only original work and that they do not infringe on the rights of third parties. In the case of shared authorship, a clear statement must be made to the effect that all authors have agreed to the content of the manuscript and that the work has not been published previously in any other form.

Authorship

The authors of articles submitted for publication must ensure that the material they submit to Journal of Conflictology is original work and that it does not contain fragments of work published either by themselves or by other authors. In submitting a manuscript, the authors must also guarantee the accuracy of the data presented therein, which must not have been altered to verify the experimental hypothesis or hypotheses put forward.

Authors must ensure that the materials consulted during the preparation of their article are the most recent and relevant in the field with which the research is concerned and that they have given due consideration to all current schools of thought on the subject matter.

Authors must clearly identify all those individuals who have made a significant scientific contribution to the conceptual design and planning of the study, the interpretation of the results and the writing of the article. The list of authors must be ordered hierarchically to reflect the degree of responsibility of each author and their respective roles in the study.

All authors accept responsibility for the content of the manuscript.

Peer review

Reviewers undertake to produce a critical, sincere, constructive and impartial evaluation of submissions and to complete their review in the shortest time possible, to ensure that the deadlines of the evaluation process are met.

Reviewers are only assigned to a manuscript if they have the necessary expertise in the relevant field and are not affected by any conflicts of interest.

The reviewers will submit a full and thorough report, complete with the necessary references, in compliance with the terms of the evaluation process and any applicable public standards, particularly when rejecting a submission. In addition, reviewers must notify the Editorial Board of any part of the manuscript that has already been published or is under consideration for publication in another journal.

Reviewers must ensure that they have no conflicts of interest with regard to the research presented in the article, the author/s, and the sources of funding for the project.

Once the Editorial Board has verified that the article conforms to the standards on content and style indicated in the editorial criteria, it will send the article to two anonymous experts, not affiliated to the authors' home institution, for a double blind review.

The reviewers' evaluation of the article will focus on its interest to the scientific community, the novelty of its contribution to existing knowledge of the subject matter, the accuracy of the relationships it establishes with other work, the critical judgement displayed, the bibliographic references used, the quality of writing and presentation of the manuscript, and other standard considerations. Where necessary, recommendations will be made as to how the manuscript can or should be improved.

The Editor of Journal of Conflictology will examine the reviewers' report and notify the author/s of the outcome (fit for publication without changes; fit for publication with minor corrections; fit for publication with major corrections; not fit for publication) by sending an email to the address from which the manuscript was submitted. The reviewers' comments and suggestions will be provided for consideration by the first author.

If the manuscript has been deemed fit for publication with minor or major corrections, the authors must submit a revised version which addresses the external reviewers' comments and suggestions. The authors may also attach a rebuttal letter for the Editorial Board in which they explain the specific changes made to the original submission.

The Editorial Board will determine whether the revised manuscript is fit for publication on the basis of the changes made and the degree to which they successfully address the reviewers' comments and suggestions. The Editor will then notify the authors of the final decision.

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Footnotes

[1] Codi Ètic de la Universitat Oberta de Catalunya i Codi de Bones Pràctiques de Recerca i Innovació [Code of Ethics of the Open University of Catalonia and the Code of Good Practice for Research and Innovation] (in Catalan).

[2] Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). Code of conduct and best practice guidelines for journal editors.

[3] Scott-Lichter, D.; Editorial Policy Committee, Council of Science Editors. CSE'S White Paper on Promoting Integrity in Scientific Journal Publications. 2012 Update. 3rd Revised Edition. Wheat Ridge, CO: 2012. [Accessed 28 May 2013].

 

Editorial Team Functions

The Editor of the Journal of Conflictology (JoC) is in charge of setting editorial policy, extending the JoC network and ecosystem, and guaranteeing the journal’s economic sustainability.

The journal’s Managing Editor is in charge of keeping the review and editing process up-to-date, putting the decisions taken by the Editor into practice, and keeping the Editorial Board, Editorial Secretary and Scientific Advisory Board active.

The Editorial Board is made up of a group of scientific and academic specialists from the disciplines covered by the journal. They are selected for their prestige and standing. All of its members are invited to make proposals and advise the Editor and Managing Editor on the journal’s continuous improvement and in their strategic decision making.

The members of the Scientific Advisory Board are selected by the journal’s Editor. The Editor is also the person able to remove members from the board. The members are university faculty and researchers of renown and prestige and members of educational or governmental institutions linked to the journal’s areas of study and analysis. Their main functions are to supervise the editorial contents and the journal’s development in specific areas, promote the journal in the knowledge and research networks in their areas of expertise, enable collaboration, contribute to setting the journal’s scientific strategy and periodically assess the results, propose interesting or emerging subjects for monographic issues, and provide support and guide the Editor and Editorial Board both conceptually and scientifically. On occasion, they may also act as peer reviewers for articles received.

 

Indexing

The Journal of Conflictology has been accepted and included in the following directories, catalogues, libraries and databases:

Databases for the identification, evaluation and impact of scientific journals


Reference directories of journals

 

Databases of open access journals

 

Libraries catalogues

 

Preservation