Book Editorial Policy

The objective of the Editorial Policy is to provide clear explanations, best practices, and guidelines for the editorial management of IGI Global books. All editors, authors, and reviewers are expected to familiarize themselves and respectfully follow the policies and expectations established for IGI Global books. The following policies and guidelines are to ensure the highest level of quality, integrity, accuracy, and impact for IGI Global books. IGI Global is currently accepted as a FULL member of the international Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) due to its strict adherence to ethical publishing.

Will Publish

• Scientific Research
• Research Methodologies
• Empirical Research
• Practice-Based Research
• Case Studies
• Literature Reviews

Will Not Publish

• Previously Published Research
• Translations
• Dissertations/Theses
• Introductory/Basic Monographs
• Textbooks
• Biographies
• How-To Guides/Manuals
• Fiction

Format: Authored

Specifications: 160,000+ words, 15+ chapters, 300+ pages

Description: Written entirely by up to five authors, Authored References are comprised of illustrative chapters that delve into emerging research in niche areas. Though similar to Edited References, these books tend to be smaller and more compact, featuring focused discussions on key models, methodologies, and concepts from a narrowed point-of-view.

Handbook of Research

Format: Edited

Specifications:

• 250,000+ words, 25+ chapters, 400+ pages (1 Volume)
• 500,000+ words, 40+ chapters, 700+ pages (2 Volumes)

Description: Consisting of 1-3 volumes of careful examination, Handbooks of Research contain large chapters of exceptionally focused research. Containing at least 25 chapters, these incisive titles provide a comprehensive assessment on inclusive topics and present research methodologies that thoroughly describe the discipline of focus. These edited titles contain contributions from the world’s leading experts and offer well-rounded coverage of some of the most cutting-edge and trending concepts.

Case Book

Format: Edited (Sometimes Authored)

Specifications: 120,000+ words, 15+ teaching cases, 300+ pages

Description: Case Books provide a unique opportunity for research to take the shape of experience, implementation, and application. Real-life impacts of technology in a particular setting are described, analyzed, and synthesized for the objective of offering solutions for successful strategies. Also addressed are organizational challenges and pitfalls experienced during an implementation of various technological applications.

Protocol

Format: Edited and Authored

Specifications: 110,000+ words, 10+ chapters, 280+ pages

Description: Protocols are edited or authored books that introduce and guide readers through the current best practices, laboratory methods, policies and protocols, and more within a specific area. Covering everything from operational procedures to clinical trials, these peer-reviewed books provide the latest insights on standards and practices across all scientific and technological fields. Acting as handbooks or manuals, each chapter contains colored figures that enhance the understanding and reproducibility of the methods outlined within.

Encyclopedia

Format: Edited

Specifications: 750,000+ words, 250+ articles, 1,550+ pages (3 Volumes)

Description: Encyclopedias are between 3 to 10 volumes and contain a high volume of concise, abbreviated articles that offer critical perspectives on current issues and controversies, as well as provide prospective solutions and future directions in the field. Containing expansive knowledge focused on a particular discipline or topic area, these all-encompassing titles are contributed to by hundreds of international authors and include original articles that contain charts, graphs, tables, and formulae, as well as key terms and their definitions. An exhaustive list of references, as well as additional reading sections consisting of sources that complement the topical coverage within the article, are also provided for the benefit of scholars, students, and researchers looking to improve upon their own research.

Book Enhancement Project (BEP)

Format: Edited and Authored

Specifications: 160,000+ words, 15+ chapters, 300+ pages

Description: By invitation only, IGI Global editors or authors who previously published a book with IGI Global, may be asked to enhance their previous book’s content to a newer version. The book consists of updated chapters from the previous book as well as newly solicited chapters.

Journal Enhancement Project (JEP)

Format: Edited

Specifications: 160,000+ words, 15+ chapters, 300+ pages

Description: By invitation only, IGI Global Editor(s)-in-Chief who are currently leading an IGI Global journal may be asked to develop a book from the past volume’s worth of content they received. The book consists of journal articles from their journal that have been expanded and updated into full chapters as well as newly solicited chapters.

The role of the author of a book entails being able to successfully carry out various central responsibilities. The following is a general list of what is expected of an author

Manuscript Development

• Development of a complete first draft of the book by the deadline.
• Submitting a preface and any additional front matter desired.
• Adhering to IGI Global’s formatting and submission guidelines.
• Ensuring the complete work meets all submission guidelines and strictly adheres to APA format.
• IGI Global highly recommends eContent Pro to its authors and editors for supplemental editorial services that can support them in further polishing their work. IGI Global authors and editors receive an exclusive discount on all these services.
• Being sure that the content within the manuscript is original and has never been published or distributed before elsewhere.
• Securing appropriate permissions if using previously published or copyrighted figures to support the work.

Submitted Manuscript Duties

• Submission of the complete first draft of the book through the eEditorial Discovery Submission System.
• Making revisions to the manuscript based on feedback received from the double-blind peer review process.
• Ensuring the manuscript is in its final revised form before it is moved into our pre-production and production stages.
• Proofing the final typeset manuscript and providing the Production Division with edits within the allotted 3-day turnaround time.
• Edits should refer to issues caused by the typesetting and formatting and final appearance of the manuscript. Line-by-line editing of the content should have been done prior to the submission of the final manuscript and will not be made at this point.

Citation Impact/Indexing of the Book

• Ensuring the book adheres as closely as possible to the criteria put in place by the indices. See the article “Meeting the Marks: Increasing Your Chances of Having Your Book Indexed” for more information.
• Ensuring published content is making a significant contribution to the academic community.
• Ensuring the data is represented accurately and clearly.
• Ensuring the book’s research has global relevance.
• Recommending the book to professional networks and libraries.
• Posting the table of contents and chapter abstracts on various listservs.
• Keeping IGI Global abreast of any indices or international libraries that may be of interest to the betterment of the book.
• Keeping IGI Global abreast of any awards that the book may be submitted for.

IGI Global Contact

• Staying in regular contact with the development editor with whom you have been assigned to collaborate for the duration of the book.

IGI Global recommends that all members of the book have their IGI Global profiles and their ORCiD iDs linked to ensure that all activities done within IGI Global (not strictly just for books) are recorded for your academic and professional careers. Learn More

Authors and Co-Authors

Many IGI Global book publications have more than one author on them. We recommend that if the work load for a book is too much for one person to handle that up to four (4) additional co-authors could be recruited to help. IGI Global has set a maximum of no more than five (5) authors on one book publication at a time. This will allow accurate and constant communication between the authors and there will be less confusion should something happen in the system that the other authors do not know about.

If there are disputes between the authors of a book, IGI Global as the publisher, will not get involved. It is the responsibility of the authors to resolve all disagreements between each other in a professional manner.

Contract Amendments for Authors

If a sole authors decides to step down, the Development Editor should be immediately notified. A cancellation of the author’s contract will be sent.

If an author decides to step down and they have co-authors, all the other authors will need to confirm that they are aware of the departure. A contract addendum will need to be signed outlining the removal of the author from the contract agreement and confirming the current authorship.

Should any adjustments to the leadership of the book be required such as the addition of a co-author or a change to the order in which the authors are listed, a formal contract addendum will need to be issued out by the Intellectual Property & Contracts Department and all parties will need to sign the agreement.

Individuals appointed to review an authored book are performing an important and valuable job, assuring that the book is being published with integrity and accuracy. All reviews must be conducted using the review form provided to them by an IGI Global Book Development Editor and should be robust, quality evaluations. These forms should be filled out electronically and returned to the IGI Global Book Development Editor by the assigned due date. Deadlines will be clearly stated in the review request. Payment terms for the receipt of a review for an authored book will be dictated at the time of invitation. Reviewers must sign and return a Reviewer Contract before commencing with the review of the book. Payment will not be made until the evaluation form is received and reviewed by IGI Global staff. Should the review prove to be of low quality and/or incomplete, payment terms may be adjusted or revoked at IGI Global’s discretion.

The role of the editor of a book entails being able to successfully carry out various central responsibilities. The following is a general list of what is expected of an editor.

Manuscript Recruitment Duties

• Development of a Call for Chapters for the book.
• Promoting the book’s Call for Chapters within their professional network, on social media, on listservs, at conferences, etc.
• Acquiring quality research chapters to meet the requisite number of chapters required for completion of the book.
• Making a timely decision on chapter proposals as they are submitted.
• Communicating with chapter authors to support with the submission of their chapters.
• Ensuring that all chapters are submitted through the eEditorial Discovery Submission System.

Submitted Manuscript Duties

• Assessing submitted articles to ensure they fit the scope and topic coverage of the book before assigning reviewers.
• Sending chapters for double-blind peer review.
• Securing at least 3 peer reviews on each paper. A review from the editor cannot replace a review in the double-blind peer review process.
• Coordinating the chapter revision process with contributing authors.
• Ensuring that authors submit revised materials that meet all submission guidelines and strictly adhere to APA format.
• IGI Global highly recommends eContent Pro to its authors and editors for supplemental editorial services that can support them in further polishing their work. IGI Global authors and editors receive an exclusive discount on all these services.
• Running plagiarism checks on research papers to ensure that the papers have not been plagiarized.
• Ensuring that authors do not self-plagiarize or self-citate in their own papers and that authors do not cite references in such a way that tells the reviewers who they are.
• Being sure that the chapters that are being considered for publication are original and have never been published or distributed before elsewhere.
• Helping chapter authors secure appropriate permissions if using previously published or copyrighted figures to support the work.
• Ensuring that all contributing authors strictly follow IGI Global’s formatting and submission guidelines.
• Ensuring each accepted chapter is in its final revised form before it is moved into our pre-production and production stages.
• Numbering the final accepted chapters so that they appear in a specific order in the book.
• Writing an Introduction and Conclusion, if desired.
• Development of a preface and any additional front matter desired.
• Proofing the final typeset manuscript and providing the Production Division with edits within the allotted 3-day turnaround time, as well as assisting corresponding authors of chapters with the proofing process.
• Edits should refer to issues caused by the typesetting and formatting and final appearance of the manuscript. Line-by-line editing of the content should have been done prior to the submission of the final manuscript and will not be made at this point.
• Ensuring that all chapter authors sign an Author’s Warranty and Transfer of Copyright Agreement.

Peer Review Management

• Recruiting qualified individuals to join the Editorial Advisory Board (optional).
• Managing reviewers and the entire double-blind peer review process through the eEditorial Discovery Submission System.
• Assigning 2-3 reviewers to each chapter manuscript through the eEditorial Discovery Submission System.
• Maintaining contact with the reviewers to ensure timely and quality reviews are completed.
• Ensuring review evaluations are made available to the authors of the submitted chapters.
• Monitoring the reviews to maintain ethicality.

Citation Impact/Indexing of the Book

• Ensuring the book adheres as closely as possible to the criteria put in place by the indices. See the article “Meeting the Marks: Increasing Your Chances of Having Your Book Indexed” for more information.
• Ensuring accepted and published content is making a significant contribution to the academic community.
• Ensuring the data in accepted chapters is represented accurately and clearly.
• Acquiring diverse content from all around the world.
• Ensuring the peer review process is being completed with the highest quality and ethical practices.
• Ensuring that there is a level of selectivity with regard to the chapters that are being considered for publication.
• Ensuring that all chapters accepted into the book adhere to the mission and scope of the book.
• Encouraging contributing authors to recommend the book to their professional networks and to their institutions’ libraries.
• Posting the table of contents and chapter abstracts of all accepted chapters on various listservs.
• Keeping IGI Global abreast of any indices or international libraries that may be of interest to the betterment of the book.
• Keeping IGI Global abreast of any awards that the book may be submitted for.

IGI Global Contact

• Staying in regular contact with the development editor with whom you have been assigned to collaborate for the duration of the book.
• Submitting periodic interim status reports within two weeks of each designated deadline.

The role of the Managing Editor is to aid the editor(s) with the workload of the book at the discretion of the editor. Choosing to use a Managing Editor is completely optional. Often, the editor(s) may request the Managing Editor to perform the following functions:

• Assist with recruitment of chapter submissions by posting the Call for Chapters to their network, listservs, research groups, etc.
• Move chapters in the system to different phases.
• Assign reviewers to submitted chapters.
• Help organize and maintain an Editorial Advisory Board.
• Send chapters out for revisions.
• Assist chapter authors with the submission of their chapters to the eEditorial Discovery Submission System.

*Note: Managing Editors should get a confirmation from the editor(s) before making important decisions on manuscripts.

IGI Global recommends that all members of the book have their IGI Global profiles and their ORCiD iDs linked to ensure that all activities done within IGI Global (not strictly just for books) are recorded for your academic and professional careers. Learn More

Editors and Co-Editors

Many IGI Global book publications have more than one editor on them. We recommend that if the work load for a book is too much for one person to handle that up to four (4) additional co-editors could be recruited to help. IGI Global has set a maximum of no more than five (5) editors on one book publication at a time. This will allow accurate and constant communication between the editors and there will be less confusion should something happen in the system that the other editors do not know about.

If there are disputes between the editors of a book, IGI Global as the publisher, will not get involved. It is the responsibility of the editors to resolve all disagreements between each other in a professional manner.

Managing Editors

Editors are welcome to invite and appoint Managing Editors to support with the workload as well. There should be no more than two (2) Managing Editors appointed to a book. Having too many Managing Editors on the book could lead to disorganization and the potential to duplicate items that have already been completed. Having fewer managing Editors is also easier for the editors to manage on a daily basis.

Contract Amendments for Editors

If a sole editor decides to step down, the Development Editor should be immediately notified. A cancellation of the editors contract will be sent. It will then be at the discretion of IGI Global if a new editor will be appointed to takeover the vacant editor position, should the book have received chapter submissions at the time the editor stepped down.

If an editor decides to step down and they have co-editors, all the other editors will need to confirm that they are aware of the departure. A contract addendum will need to be signed outlining the removal of the editor from the contract agreement and confirming the current editorship.

Should any adjustments to the leadership of the book be required, such as the addition of a new co-editor or a change to the order the editors are listed, a formal contract addendum will need to be issued out by the Intellectual Property & Contracts Department and all parties will need to sign the agreement.

Individuals appointed to a book’s review board are performing an important and valuable job, assuring that the book is being published with integrity and accuracy. All reviews must be conducted through the eEditorial Discovery^® manuscript submission system and returned to the editors electronically by the assigned due date from the time the manuscript is received. Deadlines will be clearly stated in the review request.

Editorial Advisory Board

Book editor(s) may choose to develop an Editorial Advisory Board for their book. These individuals are invited and appointed to be part of the board by the editor(s) of the book and should be considered experts in the book’s topic. Individuals appointed to the Editorial Advisory Board should be prepared to provide initial reviews for a chapter or serve higher-level evaluations in which they collect and summarize previous reviewers evaluations and offer an over-arching recommendation to the editor(s). Members of the Editorial Advisory Board are listed with their name and affiliations within the completed copy of the book.

*Note: It is at the Editor(s)' discretion on how they would like to manage their review board.

As a full member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), IGI Global and its editors have been found to be following sound ethical standards as well as having the highest quality of publication process. As such the double-blind peer review process must be conducted ethically and responsibly as the credibility of the book could be at stake if an author, reviewer, or reader were to know that the double-blind peer review process was compromised. Should they open a case with COPE to investigate, IGI Global is expected to provide any information to COPE that we have on record.

As such, IGI Global requires that the entirety of the double-blind peer review process is conducted through the eEditorial Discovery Submission System. This provides IGI Global with documentation on every review conducted on each publication and allows the peer review process to be closely monitored by all parties. At any time, IGI Global may audit the double-blind peer review results for book chapters by examining all reviews conducted and documents secured in the eEditorial Discovery Submission System.

Failure to properly conduct an ethical double-blind peer review process on every chapter submitted to the book will result in the termination of the editor’s contract.

For more information regarding an ethical peer review process, please see this guideline document that COPE has put together for editors, authors, and publishers to reference.

Chapters that the editors of the book deem in scope and suitable then enter the double-blind peer review process. This process is designed to ensure that there is no bias for or against any articles that are being considered for future publication. If any reviewer has a concern that they have a competing interest, they should immediately notify the editor of the book. The editor will then assign a new reviewer to the chapter.

The editor may not assign themselves as reviewers or complete reviews that take part in the double-blind peer review evaluations for chapters that are submitted to the book that they oversee. Editors have the ability to view the names, affiliations, and contact information of the authors, which directly compromises their ability to act as a reviewer in a double-blind peer review process. Providing feedback to authors is welcomed and encouraged; however, an editor's comments/review cannot take the place of a reviewer evaluation for the double-blind peer review process.

The editor should not adjust the decision a reviewer makes in their evaluation during the double-blind peer review process. Adjusting the formal decision from a reviewer is compromising the peer review process as the decision is being adjusted to what the editor wants, which could show a bias or favoritism to indices or other authors. It is at the editor’s discretion on whether or not they would like to continue with a manuscript, but the authors are entitled to view the true evaluations that were conducted by the reviewers. Moreover, editors should not alter reviewer’s comments or add their own feedback to a review. If an editor feels that a reviewer’s comments are overly critical, biased, or harsh, they may choose not to disclose it to the author and assign a new reviewer to provide a replacement review.

Tampering with the double-blind peer review process will lead to a dismissal from the book and a cancellation of the contract following a thorough investigation. Moreover, future editorial opportunities with IGI Global will be diminished.

The editor is expected to maintain full management and responsibility for all aspects related to the completion of the work and should provide IGI Global with frequent updates and status reports within the eEditorial Discovery Submission System and via email. Editors are encouraged to follow the schedule of deadlines provided to them within their book’s contract as this schedule will keep them on track to meet the final manuscript deadline. However, the dates leading up to the final manuscript deadline are meant as a guide to inform the editor as to how long each step is expected to take. Editors may adjust these dates to conform to their own project schedule. However, the final manuscript deadline cannot be changed. The complete final manuscript structured exactly as it will appear in the final typeset book must be provided to IGI Global by the final manuscript deadline.

Should the editor find that the book will be completed ahead of schedule and meets all contractual obligations including chapter and word count requirements, he/she/they may submit the final manuscript before the final manuscript deadline. IGI Global will not hold the book if it arrives early; instead, the book’s release date will be moved forward, and the book will be published and released to the public ahead of its original schedule.

Editors should make every effort to ensure that the book is published on time. However, IGI Global understands the unforeseen circumstances can arise during the development of a book. Editors should remain vigilant during the entirety of the management of their project and should bring problems or issues immediately to the attention of their assigned Book Development Editor. Such issues include difficulties recruiting the required number of chapters, problems with the eEditorial Discovery Submission System, personal issues that will delay the project, and difficulties managing the double-blind peer review process. IGI Global will work with editors on solutions to these and other issues to ensure that the book remains on-time.

If after every effort has been made to prevent a book’s delay, and there are no other options, IGI Global may issue a contract addendum to move the book’s final manuscript deadline. Should the book simply need a week or two to be finalized, the Book Development Editor may issue an informal extension to the editor. Should the book need to move its final manuscript deadline by over a month, a formal contract addendum will be issued to the editor and must be countersigned by all editors on the project.

Please note that extensions are only granted after all other efforts to keep the book on time have been exhausted. IGI Global announces a book’s anticipated release date as much as six (6) months in advance in order to help drive the book’s discoverability. As such, partners and libraries expect the book to be released to them within a certain timeframe. Delaying the book’s release can thus be harmful to its impact on the research community. This is also why it is important that editors remain proactive to any issues that arise and alert their Book Development Editor as soon as possible.

Editors who seek more than one (1) extension for their book may be required to provide a list of tasks that have been accomplished thus far, as well as an action plan for the completion of the book.

Books on a significant delay or unable to otherwise fulfill contractual obligations may be canceled at IGI Global’s discretion. Editor’s dealing with unforeseen circumstances that significantly inhibit their ability to complete the book in a timely manner may choose to cancel the book and potentially revisit it at a later date, should IGI Global still find it suitable for publication at that time. Editors of book project’s that have received a decent number of chapter submissions, and who become unresponsive and unnecessarily cause significant delay to the book, may be dismissed from the editorship of the book at IGI Global’s discretion. In such cases, and as a courtesy to the chapter authors who submitted content, the book itself may not be cancelled and new leadership may be appointed to complete it.

Only original, previously unpublished manuscripts should be considered for publication. Any manuscript that has a pre-publication posting online by another publisher or has already been formally published cannot be considered. Also, materials posted openly online in databases such as ResearchGate, SSRN, arXiv, etc. should not be considered until they have been pulled from those respective sites.

IGI Global abides by international copyright law, and as such all contributors of traditionally published books (published behind a paywall) are asked to sign an IGI Global Author’s Warranty and Transfer of Copyright Agreement prior to publication. Authors of Open Access manuscripts will be required to sign an Author’s Warranty (but the copyright will not be transferred to IGI Global and will remain with the author). The warranty portion ensures that materials submitted to IGI Global for consideration are original and have not been published elsewhere previously.

IGI Global exercises First Publication Rights to open access work, meaning that the verbatim article has not appeared elsewhere, which includes open access publication online or in print, prior to being released by IGI Global. After publication with IGI Global, the open access content may be republished in other outlets.

IGI Global defines plagiarism as the intentional or unintentional use of another individuals, or collection of individuals’, ideas, theories, models, equations, conclusions, research (intellectual property), and/or verbatim or paraphrased words without proper attribution to the original source.

IGI Global defines self-plagiarism as reusing work that the author had already published previously including copying or paraphrasing large passages from their previous work without proper attribution to the original source. Although IGI Global acknowledges the importance of the use of previously published work to the evolving research process, work submitted for publication must show significant advances in the research conducted and should appropriately quote, cite, and attribute the earlier work for any prior research mentioned. The failure to disclose previously published work upon which the current work is based may be considered cause for investigation into allegations of plagiarism.

If an editor has reason to believe that a work has been submitted that may contain plagiarized or copyrighted material, they are advised to run the manuscript through plagiarism software. If the results yield further concern, they are to bring it to the attention of their Book Development Editor who will then forward the discrepancy to IGI Global’s Intellectual Property & Contracts Division for further investigation. IGI Global will carefully review the manuscript with the assistance of iThenticate, a plagiarism detection software, to determine if plagiarism has taken place and to what extent. If the manuscript contains plagiarism, the Intellectual Property & Contracts Division will contact the editor and the authors of the chapter and inform them of the rejection of the submitted work If warranted, the Intellectual Property & Contracts Division will conduct a full-scale investigation and will contact the authors regarding potential plagiarism concerns and/or copyright infringement issues.

In certain cases, IGI Global will allow authors to enhance chapters that were previously published by IGI Global. In such cases, authors should enhance and update the chapter by at least 20% including updated reference and literature review sections that include the most current research findings related to the subject of the manuscript; updated tables/graphs/figures that incorporate new information; new title and abstract that reflects the enhanced scope of the manuscript; and updates to the body of the manuscript with the latest research findings and coverage of the topic. Such chapters should still appropriately cite the research.

Competing interests occur when any financial or other personal considerations from authors or reviewers have the potential to compromise or bias professional judgment and objectivity. It is important that authors and reviewers declare all competing interests relevant to the work under consideration. These competing interests may include any relationships or roles, both financial and personal, that might interfere with the interpretation of the work to avoid the potential for bias. Competing interests include, but are not limited to: funding sources, financial interests, employment status, as well as those that go beyond financial interests (non-financial interests). The disclosure of such interests helps to provide a transparent process that allows readers to form their own judgments of potential bias.

If at any time an editor or author suspects a competing interest they should bring the matter to the publisher’s attention immediately (e.g. an author of submitted work is based at their same institution and on a competitive project). Should a reviewer experience a competing interest (e.g. they are aware of the article manuscript author’s identity and/or are based at the same institution), they should bring the matter to the editor’s attention immediately. If an author perceives that there may be a competing interest for their submitted work, they should include a declaration of any competing interest along with the article manuscript upon submission.

Competing interest statements/declarations are now mandatory for all chapters to have before publication of an accepted chapter manuscript. This declaration should be placed after an acknowledgement and before the funding agency information. Competing interest statements should state whether all, some, or none of the authors have conflicting ideas, research, beliefs, etc.

If all or some of the authors have a competing interest, each author should provide their statement in this section.

If none of the authors have any competing interests, the statement can simply say, “The authors of this publication declare there are no competing interests.”

The editors of the book can collectively submita total of two (2) chapters for possible inclusion in the book without requiring written permission from the publisher. Editors attempting to submit more than two (2) chapters to their book must first receive written permission from the publisher.

If all editors of the book co-author a chapter, or for book’s with only one (1) editor, they must appoint an Editorial Advisory Board member to manage the double-blind peer review process for the chapter in order to retain the validity of the blinded review by maintaining the reviewer’s anonymity.

If not all editors of the book author a chapter, an editor of the book who is not listed as an author on the chapter must oversee the double-blind peer review process and retain the anonymity of the reviewers.

Editors may not assign a chapter to reviewers if they are listed as an author, as the identity of the reviewer – including their name, affiliation, contact information, etc. – is known to them. Please note that under no circumstances should an editor be managing the review or decision processes for their own chapter.

If the editor’s chapter is selected for publication in the book, the editor should provide a conflict of interest statement that states that the review process was handled independent of the book leadership and that the double-blind peer review process was no in any way compromised.

Simultaneous submission is defined as a work submitted to IGI Global for publication that is under review, has been previously published, or has been accepted for publication elsewhere in whole or in part. IGI Global only accepts original, previously unpublished content to every one of its publications. Even if prior permission is received, IGI Global will not publish already published work. Book and journal proposals, book chapters, and journal articles may only be in active submission with one source (i.e., book chapters may only be under review by one (1) book at a time). This includes submissions within IGI Global publications and across other publisher publications (i.e., a book chapter submitted to an IGI Global book cannot be submitted to another IGI Global book while under review; a book chapter submitted to an IGI Global book cannot be submitted to another publisher’s book while still under review).

IGI Global has recently encountered occurrences where authors will take a manuscript or a certain “edited” version with an “edited title” and submit it across multiple IGI Global books and journals at the same time for simultaneous processing. This can result in the same chapter being published in two different books. Please note and please tell your contributors that this action is ethically wrong and IGI Global does not tolerate this behavior. When IGI Global encounters this behavior, we will outright reject all the manuscripts submitted by the individual.

If a manuscript is rejected following the peer review, an author can make the appropriate revisions and either submit it for new consideration to the same book or consider submitting it to another related book.

Upon completion of a thorough investigation, those found guilty of simultaneously submitting their work will face appropriate consequences that typically includes the removal of the author’s chapters from the submission process and a suspension of the author from publishing with IGI Global.

Salami slicing, or data fragmentation, is defined as the practice of splitting up the findings of one large study into multiple papers. Oftentimes, these fragmented papers are reporting on the same research population, methods, and research question with different findings in each piece. While salami slicing increases the amount of literature, the amount of knowledge remains the same. This overcrowds journals and books with the same information, potentially making it more difficult to find different, emerging information and wasting the time of editors and peer reviewers who could have instead reviewed one comprehensive and valuable paper.

Upon completion of a thorough investigation, those found guilty of salami slicing will face appropriate consequences that may include the removal of the author’s chapters from the submission process and a suspension of the author from publishing with IGI Global.

IGI Global allows limited use of AI tools to support authors writing processes. However, as AI can produce incorrect, repetitive, or biased output, authors must provide a level of oversight and control in its usage and must carefully review and edit the content generated. Authors are ultimately accountable for the contents of the work. Authors may use AI tools to:

• Support the analysis of data during the research process.
• Improve the readability of the paper.

Authors choosing to use AI tools in the research and writing process must also disclose the tool and its usage by providing a written statement in the manuscript.

No AI tool will be credited with authorship and authors should not list or cite any AI as an author. This is because only humans have the ability to accept the responsibilities and accountability for the work, such as confirming its accuracy and integrity, of which AI cannot take responsibility.

IGI Global follows the guidance of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), which acknowledges that patients and study participants have a right to privacy that should not be breached without informed consent.

Consent to Participate

Informed written consent must be voluntarily provided from any participants involved in a study, prior to the start of the study. Should the participant be a minor or is considered vulnerable and unable to provide informed consent, a legal guardian will need to provide consent. Should the participant be deceased, a next of kin may provide consent. Participants must have full knowledge of the study they are participating in, including the risks involved. Authors must include a statement confirming the participants consent within the manuscript.

Should verbal consent be obtained instead of written consent, authors must explain why written consent was not obtained, the approval process for the verbal consent, and its documentation methods.

Consent to Publish

Individuals who agree to participate in a study, may not agree to have their identifiable data published. Identifiable data includes but is not limited to descriptions, photographs, images, videos, names, dates of birth, and biometrical characteristics. Identifiable data should generally be excluded from the manuscript as much as possible. Manuscripts that do include potentially identifiable data should obtain written informed consent that the data and any additional images may be published. Consent must be received from the participant (or a legal guardian for minors or next of kin for the deceased) prior to submission. When in doubt, it is best to obtain written informed consent.

Manuscripts that include identifiable images or data of participants must include a statement confirming that permission was obtained to publish the images or data. If the data is anonymized, authors must state that no consent to publish was required. Alterations to images and/or data to anonymize them should not distort scientific meaning.

Ethics Approval

All studies on humans (individuals, human data, or material) must be conducted in accordance with the principles stated in the Declaration of Helsinki. Authors must receive ethical approval for all protocols from the Institutional Review Board (IRB) or other appropriate ethics committee to ensure compliance with national and international guidelines. Authors must include details of this approval upon submission of the manuscript and should provide the name of the ethics committee and permit numbers where available.

Manuscripts granted an exemption by an ethics committee should state so with a full explanation and the name of the granting committee within the manuscript. Ethical approval should always be sought prior to the start of the research/study. Retrospective ethics approval usually cannot be obtained. Authors should also check their national ethical guidelines.

Non-stigmatizing and non-discriminatory language should be used when categorizing groups by race/ethnicity, age, disease, disability, religion, gender, sexual orientation, etc. A justification of the choice of definitions and categories should be explained including whether a relevant funding agency required the categorization.

Clinical Trials

Clinical trials must be registered in a publicly accessible registry prior to the trials initiation. Suitable registries can be found at the WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP). The trial registration number and registration date should be included in the article and/or article’s abstract.

Should a trial have not been registered prior to participant recruitment, a retrospective trial registration should be sought. Authors retrospectively registering trials should provide an explanation for the retrospective registration as well as the trial registration number and date.

Human Embryos and Stem Cells

Submissions that include studies involving vertebrates or regulated invertebrates must offer detailed information on the ethical treatment of the animals including their appropriate care and handling. Manuscripts should include the name of the ethics committee(s) which approved the study and study procedures must be carried out in accordance with applicable national or international guidelines. If the study did not require ethics approval or was granted an exemption, this should be stated in the manuscript.

Studies involving client-owned animals should have documented informed consent from the client or owner. Such studies should still showcase an adherence to the best practices of veterinary care.

Authors should consult with the “Animal Research: Reporting In Vivo Experiments’ (ARRIVE) guidelines developed by the NC3Rs when submitting manuscripts describing animal research. Every effort should be taken to reduce suffering and euthanasia or anesthesia methods must be described in detail. Researchers are advised to consult the NC3Rs guide on Humane Endpoints and the American Veterinary Medical Association Guidelines for the Humane Slaughter of Animals, as well as follow applicable veterinary guidelines such as the American Veterinary Medical Association.

Authors should also consult the ethical principles in the Basel Declaration and the guidelines by the International Council for Laboratory Animal Science (ICLAS) and the Association for the study of Animal Behaviour.

When describing research on threatened/endangered species, studies should comply with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Policy Statement on Research Involving Species at Risk of Extinction and the IUCN red list index of threatened species and the Convention on the Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.

Research involving cultivated or wild plants and plant material should follow guidelines provided by the authors’ institution and national or international regulations. Manuscripts describing such research should include a statement of permissions granted and/or licenses.

Voucher specimens much be deposited in a public herbarium or other public collection that provides access to deposited material. The manuscript must include information on the voucher specimen and who identified it, including Genus name, species name, and year of publication.

Authors should comply with the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Convention on the Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.

Manuscripts that include paleontological and geological material should provide detailed information that shows a clear provenance (or attempt to determine provenance in older museum collections), numbers and repository information, museum name (if applicable), and geographic location. Studies must be conducted in accordance with national or international regulations and the author should obtain any permits that may be required for the research and publication of the manuscript from the relevant authority. Manuscripts must include a statement confirming that the necessary permits were acquired and should name the authority that provided those permits. All samples must be collected and exported responsibly and in accordance with national and local law.

Archaeological work that involves human remains requires that all necessary permits relevant for access to the site and the handling of the remains is obtained prior to data collection. Authors should comply with the Guidelines to the Standards for Recording Human Remains (Chartered Institute for Archaeologists).

Authors should also consult the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) normative instruments for the protection of cultural heritage, and Resolutions, Motions, guidance and other statements of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

Manuscripts that include studies from protected heritage sites must be conducted in accordance with any necessary guidelines and authors should obtain any permits that may be required for the research and publication of the manuscript from the relevant authority prior to data collection. Manuscripts must include a statement confirming that the necessary permits were acquired and should name the authority that provided those permits.

Authors should also consult the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) normative instruments for the protection of cultural heritage.

Authors may be asked to provide the underlying source data used to support their manuscript in order to comply with open data requirements of the publication, especially in the case of Open Access publications. In such cases, authors should be prepared to provide public access to such data or present an explanation for why such data cannot be openly displayed (i.e., ethical or security considerations). In cases where the data is restricted for such reasons, authors should provide a description for its restrictions and the necessary information required for a reader to apply to access the data.

Standards of reporting guidelines should be utilized to ensure transparency and reproducibility of research. A comprehensive list of reporting guidelines for medical research can be viewed via the EQUATOR network website.

After a chapter is published, it may be found that major corrections must be made, or the chapter needs to be retracted due to ethical concerns including plagiarism. IGI Global will conduct a thorough investigation of these corrections and retractions and take the appropriate steps, as outlined below.

In the cases of plagiarized content

The chapter in question is fully and thoroughly investigated before further action is taken. Once confirmed to be plagiarized, as of 2020, IGI Global now keeps the full plagiarized content (body text) within the publication; however, each page is noted with a watermark that the content is considered retracted from the publication. This is so that the various retraction monitoring databases can adjust their data appropriately and it offers even fuller transparency. The adjusted publication is resent to the printers and IGI Global’s full network of booksellers and distributors are notified and provided updated metadata feeds and the electronic content.

Regarding major corrections

If an author, editor, or reviewer brings forth a major correction request to IGI Global, the request will be carefully reviewed and the decision to honor the change request will be made at the publisher’s discretion. Major correction requests include: changes to titles, name changes, affiliation changes, and content changes. If a change is made, the file in question will be updated appropriately and distributed out in the form of updated files and/or metadata to all impacted parties, and IGI Global will communicate with the contributors impacted.

As a U.S.-based company, IGI Global must comply with federal, state, and local statutes and mandates administered by the Federal Government of the U.S. and related regulatory agencies. Sanctions imposed by the U.S. upon other countries will be discussed with IGI Global’s legal counsel. Any necessary actions that IGI Global may need to take due to U.S. sanctions will be made transparent and communicated to those affected.

We as a publisher do strive to remain neutral to geopolitical issues. As we understand there are many conflicts taking place all over the world and do exercise sensitivity and heartfelt concern, we are continually striving to make our publishing opportunities as inclusive as possible, ensuring that researchers around the world – regardless of race, gender, religion, or nationality – are able to collaborate on research projects and contribute to research progressions that benefit so many people. This follows the advice from the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

IGI Global will continue to monitor geopolitical issues and consult with our legal counsel as necessary.

Books are held to word count and chapter count requirements based on their format.

• Standard Authored Monograph: 160,000+ words, 15+ chapters
• Standard Edited Monograph: 160,000+ words, 15+ chapters
• Handbook of Research:
• 1. Volume: 250,000+ words, 25+ chapters
  2. Volumes: 500,000+ words, 40+ chapters
• Case Book: 120,000+ words, 15+ teaching cases
• Protocol: 110,000+ words, 10+ chapters
• Encyclopedia: 750,000+ words, 250+ articles (3 Volumes)
• Book Enhancement Project (BEP): 160,000+ words, 15+ chapters
• Journal Enhancement Project (JEP): 160,000+ words, 15+ chapters

Authored Books

For authored books, it is the author’s responsibility to write enough quality content to meet these chapter and word count requirements.

Edited Books

For edited books, it is the editor’s responsibility to ensure that the book project receives enough quality chapter submissions to fulfill the chapter count requirements. Moreover, editor’s should ensure that the word count of the chapter matches the format requirements, as shown below and outlined in the Author Guidelines:

• 7,000-10,000 words (Edited book chapter)
• 10,000-12,000 words (Handbook of research chapter)
• 7,000-10,000 words (Case book chapter)
• 5,000-7,500 words* (Encyclopedia article) (*word count ranges may vary from project-to-project)

Editors are encouraged to seek and receive more chapter submissions than stated in their requirements in order to offer a level of selectivity for what is accepted. For example, editors of standard edited monographs are encouraged to receive at least 20 chapter submissions, knowing that during the double-blind peer review process, they may need to reject submissions. Editors who accept a number of high-quality chapters that exceed their format requirements may have the format of their book adjusted (as appropriate) and may receive an increase to their honorarium.

Please note that editors should NEVER disregard relevancy of scope and quality of work so that they can simply accept all chapter submissions to their book in order to either A) meet the minimum format requirements, or B) exceed the format requirements in hopes of a reward.

Editors struggling to receive submissions should alert their book development editor as soon as possible. The book development editors may be able to offer suggestions and support for increasing quality submissions. Occasionally, the scope and title of the book may be re-examined in order to broaden it for better submissions. Note: Should a book’s title change, the editors will be informed and required to sign a new contract with the new book title before the change would go into effect.

Publishing under the subscription-based (non-Open Access) model is free of charge to chapter authors. Publishing under Open Access models incurs an Open Access Processing Charge that is requested by the publisher after the double-blind peer review and upon formal acceptance of the chapter to the book. Editors should never ask chapter authors to pay submission fees, peer review fees, Open Access processing fees, or request fees for services they elect to run on the chapters (i.e., plagiarism checker software, professional copyediting services, etc.) Editors who request remuneration from authors will be asked to cease and desist immediately. Failure to do so may result in the editors withdraw from the leadership team of the book and their suspension from publishing with IGI Global.

Editors are responsible for setting up a Call for Chapters for their edited book projects. Calls for Chapters should be developed and handled by the editor(s) to ensure that the manuscript submissions adhere to the scope of the book. IGI Global will host the Call for Chapters on its website on the Publications Seeking Submissions Page. A Call for Chapters must be developed for each book; if a Call for Chapters is not created, a submission link will cease to exist for the book project and chapter authors will not be able to submit a chapter proposal to the book project via the eEditorial Discovery Submission System.

Editor(s) should:

• Develop a robust Call for Chapters with a clearly outlined scope.
• Distribute the call for chapters and send personalized invitations to their colleagues and network.
• Utilize listservs to post their call for chapters.
• Post the call for chapters to relevant research community websites and/or their own personal webpages.

Should the Call for Chapters expire, and the editor wishes to re-open the call to seek more submissions, they may contact their book development editor to request its reinstatement.

For further support in the development of a Call for Chapters and best practices for seeking chapter submissions, please view the article, “Tips for Garnering High Quality and Diverse Submissions: Soliciting Chapters for Edited Book Projects”.

For more help setting up a Call for Chapters, please visit the "Creating Your Call for Chapters" section of the eEditorial Discovery User Guide - Books.

As invitations for edited books are distributed, interested contributors will submit their chapter proposals for consideration to the eEditorial Discovery Submission system. Editors should assess proposals in terms of their:

• Overall quality
• Relevance to the topic
• Suitability for the book
• Effectiveness of proposed discussion

Editors must make a decision on each chapter proposal that is submitted. If a proposal is rejected, no chapter will be submitted. If a proposal is accepted, the editor must provide a deadline for the submission of the author’s full chapter and approve it. Editors may also wish to follow-up with authors regarding chapter proposals that are nearly able to be approved but may need some minor alterations.

Please be sure to direct authors of accepted proposals to the Contributor Resources Page and provide them with the Chapter Guidelines. It is important that editors are also familiar with these guidelines to ensure that each author has adhered to them and so that they are able to answer any questions that may arise.

IGI Global is an international publishing house that represents the published works of individuals around the world. Books must be global in scope or have global relevancy and should showcase a variety of contributors. IGI Global considers diversity of submissions and reviewers to include racial diversity, gender diversity, regional diversity, professional diversity (early career vs tenured), etc.

IGI Global does not discriminate against content submitted by contributors because of their age, gender, race, affiliation, religious beliefs, political beliefs, or sexual orientation. We expect editors of IGI Global books to adhere to these principles as well. It is very important that the book does not appear biased toward any specific demographic, country, university, etc.

IGI Global collaborates with researchers from various disciplines from all over the world and from all different universities. These books reach the far corners of the world and if the readers/subscribers see that some books show favoritism to one or a few cultural backgrounds/universities over the rest, then the submissions and interest in IGI Global publications could greatly decrease.

Editors are expected to support diversity initiatives by:

• Being mindful of the university affiliations and country/regional representations that are appearing across submissions and ensure that there is not an unbalanced ratio. Editors should seek to distribute the Call for Chapters in regions they are not receiving submissions from. Ideally, chapter manuscripts will be collected from no less than three (3) different continents
• Ensuring that the same authors do not have over three (3) chapters published in the same book.
• Focusing on the merit of the research submitted and less on the individual that submitted it.

Please remember that having good diversity for the published works and review board for your book is not only a requirement of IGI Global but can help boost the book’s chances of being indexed upon publication. Indices support a book when specific criteria is met. One of the criteria is selecting authors from diverse backgrounds, both culturally and by university. If the selection committee at a prestigious indexing organization believes there to be any bias in the selection of chapters, the book could be at risk of not being accepted into the index.

IGI Global’s chosen manuscript submission system is the eEditorial Discovery^® submission system. The system supports with the editorial management of projects and streamlines the following areas:

• Launching a call for chapters
• Submission of chapter proposals and full chapters
• Submission and project tracking (with dashboards that showcase the overall status of the book)
• Storage of critical documents and information
• Communications (ability to send reminders to authors and reviewers)
• Quality assurance
• Assigning chapters for peer review (throughout all stages of the peer review process)
• Review board management
• Revision processing
• Author proofing
• Promotional material and content access

Every book MUST be actively utilizing the eEditorial Discovery^® submission system to manage submissions and perform peer reviews, with a zero-tolerance policy on publishing work that has not been fully vetted through the eEditorial Discovery^® submission system. This means that every editor, author, reviewer, and chapter author will need to be fully logged in and active in the system. Hybrid use (working in and out of the system) is not allowed.

Authors have the ability to track the movement of their chapter in the submission system as well. Working outside the system with the chapter not moving through the phases in the system creates a false pretense that the chapter is not actively being considered for the book. This could lead to the author seeking an alternative publication under the impression that their chapter is not being considered and could ultimately lead to a higher percentage of withdrawn papers. There could be bad press following the book as well after that which could deter authors from submitting, if that negative notion is present.

If an author is having trouble submitting their paper, please be sure that their document is in .docx format. Any other form of a document for their article cannot be uploaded into the system. Should they continue to have issues uploading their article in the system, please forward them to the development editor, and they should be able to help. It’s very important that authors submit their manuscripts through the system to ensure that the appropriate final versions are being used for publication, and so that they will have access to their proofs and complimentary content later.

Moving manuscripts in the system is important to ensure accuracy, quality, and timely processing. We will not accept any article manuscripts or finalized materials submitted to us by e-mail.

The double-blind peer review process must also take place completely in the eEditorial Discovery submission system. As a full member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), IGI Global is required to have full documentation of the double-blind peer review process for each and every one of its publications. Reviewers must be assigned to a chapter through the system, and reviews must be uploaded to reside directly with the chapter in the system. At any time, COPE may audit a publication for evidence of the peer review process. It is therefore imperative that all record of the peer review process is available through the system at any time.

Documentation of the peer review process also helps to safeguard editors, reviewers, authors, and the publisher against any litigious accusations or allegations of predatory behavior pre- and post-publication.

Should you have any questions regarding the system, please ask your development editor and they will be able to help you navigate the system.

IGI Global authors are required to sign an author's warranty and transfer of copyright (for subscription-based publications) or an Author Warranty (for Open Access publications) when submitting their chapters to a book.

Individuals added as authors to manuscripts should be aware of and consent to their role as author. There are two types of authors whose name should appear as an author of the manuscript. Acknowledged Authors are not listed as true authors on the manuscript and instead are noted at the end of the manuscript, typically being thanked for their support of the project, but not necessarily providing to the written research:

• Corresponding Author: In cases where more than one author writes a manuscript, one author will be designated as the corresponding author. This author handles communication with the Editor(s), signs the publishing agreements on behalf of all the authors, proofs the final manuscript upon acceptance into the book, and ensures that all author information, including affiliations and order, appear correctly.
• Co-Authors: An individual who has made a significant contribution to the manuscript in regards to the actual research (analysis and acquisition of data, study design, etc.) and writing (drafts, revisions, etc.) that were conducted. Co-authors should assist with and agree to revisions that take place during the double-blind peer review process as well as the final publishable manuscript.
• Acknowledged Authors: These individuals are not listed as part of the authors of the manuscript but are formally recognized in an Acknowledgment section of the manuscript. Such individuals may have provided technical assistance, translation assistance, general mentoring of the research, contributed general scholarly discussion on the topic, performed formatting-related writing assistance or copyediting services, etc. Corresponding and co-authors are responsible for notifying and securing permission from these individuals for their inclusion in the Acknowledgment section.

Authors submitting chapters that will be published behind a paywall (subscription-based) must sign an Author’s Warranty and Transfer of Copyright. The copyright portion ensures that authors understand that the contents of the chapter cannot be posted or distributed on any website or other forms of content distribution. This also ensures that the authors have secured the necessary permissions for materials that may be copyrighted (figures, photographs, etc.). The author's warranty portion ensures that materials submitted to IGI Global for consideration are original and have not been published elsewhere previously. IGI Global cannot publish the chapter until the warranty and copyright are signed. Should this fail to occur and the chapter becomes a liability to the timeliness of the book’s release, it may have to be removed from the book.

Authors submitting chapters that will be published as Open Access must sign an Author Warranty. The author's warranty portion ensures that materials submitted to IGI Global for consideration are original and have not been published elsewhere previously. Moreover, it ensures that any necessary permissions for the use of copyrighted materials (figures, photographs, etc.) are secured by the author(s) before publication. Open Access publications carry the CC BY 4.0 licensing arrangement. Under this licensing, authors and editors are allowed the freedoms below, so long as they give credit to the original author(s). IGI Global cannot publish the chapter until the warranty is signed. Should this fail to occur and the chapter becomes a liability to the timeliness of the book’s release, it may have to be removed from the book.

Editors and authors are required to submit a preface for the book. A book may be held for release if a preface is not received. The preface must be between 3,000 and 4,000 words (7 and 8 pages) long.

Editors and authors are responsible for providing their updated affiliation and biography as they wish for it to appear in the printed book. Failure to do so can result in the incorrect affiliation being attributed to the editor/author, and/or an outdated or incomplete biography, or no biography, to be published.

Editors and authors are able to submit optional front matter, if they so wish. These include:

• Acknowledgment
• Dedication

Editors and authors are welcome to invite renowned experts to write a Foreword for the book. Foreword authors should sign the Foreword with their name and affiliation and are welcome to include their biography. Please note that members of the Editorial Advisory Board cannot write a Foreword for the book.

Editors who utilized an Editorial Advisory Board should provide the list of members to be included in the book for their recognition. Information should include the member names, affiliations, and countries (ex.- John Smith, University of Pennsylvania, USA). Members should be listed in alphabetical order by last name.

All authors submitting their work for consideration should be submitting their manuscript as a Microsoft Word document in APA format. Authors are responsible for ensuring that all references and in-text citations are provided in the proper format. All submission guidelines, templates, and resources can be found here.

Authors should submit their own work to the eEditorial Discovery Submission system with their specific information including name, affiliation, email, and address. This information is vital for authors to receive communications about the status of their work, proofs of their final manuscripts, and complimentary content. Authors are responsible for ensuring their affiliation is updated and for providing an updated author biography to include in the publication.

Authors should solidify the corresponding author, order of authors, and which authors should be included on a manuscript PRIOR to submitting the manuscript to a book.

In cases where there needs to be a change in authorship DURING the manuscript’s publishing process, an email notification must be sent to the Editor(s) and shared with the publisher. All authors listed on the manuscript must agree to the change and must be included on the email for the changes to be made. Such changes can include switching corresponding authors, adding or removing authors, and reordering the authors.

Changes to authorship AFTER the manuscript has been accepted and/or published will be reviewed carefully on a case-by-case basis and are not guaranteed to be made, especially if there is no significant just cause for the change and/or not all authors are in agreement. Please note that if the content has already been released digitally and while IGI Global will resend corrected metadata to all partners, IGI Global cannot guarantee that all digital records will reflect the changes that were made and has no power over how quickly a third-party platform will make that change.

Affiliations should be formatted as:

Institution, Country

No departments or cities will be included in the affiliation unless included in the institution’s name.

Authors’ affiliations are the affiliations where the research was conducted. No changes to affiliations can be made after the paper is accepted. It is the responsibility of the author to ensure that their affiliation is entered correctly upon the manuscript’s submission and that should any change occur during the development of the manuscript, that it is communicated immediately to the Editor(s) and/or the publication’s development editor.

IGI Global has seen an increase of submitted chapters with low quality figures. Figures in a chapter are meant to enhance certain research to improve the readability and comprehension of the chapter. If the figures are unreadable, it decreases the effect of the research that the author originally intended. IGI Global often catches these problems and reaches out to the authors personally to get better quality figures; however, as our publications continue to grow, IGI Global is now asking the editors of our timely publications to ensure that there are high quality figures uploaded before the publication of accepted chapters.

Please see IGI Global's Image Guide for more information.

The editor(s) is/are not permitted to request and/or pressure any author to incorporate citations from work published by the editors or any other leadership member of the book. Should we learn of this happening, IGI Global will have cause to take action against the editor(s) in terms of a contract termination.

Please review the IGI Global Editor's Guide and the eEditorial Discovery User Guide – Books for support with managing the book through its various phases in the eEditorial Discovery Submission System.

The peer review process is at the core of reputable scholarly publishing and is the driving force behind all IGI Global books and journals. IGI Global reviewers maintain the highest ethical standards of scientific research and all manuscripts follow a double-blind peer review process that is fully conducted within the IGI Global eEditorial Discovery® manuscript submission system.

The reviews are then easily accessible to the IGI Global editorial staff which ensures that should accusations of questionable peer review arise, IGI Global will be able to support its published authors and editors in dismissing these claims and ensuring the continued success of the corresponding publications. View IGI Global’s full Ethics and Malpractice Statement.

As a publisher of scholarly articles and chapters, IGI Global realizes that fraud erodes the public trust and deeply affects the outcomes of all research results and findings reported within scholarly journals and academic reference books. As such, IGI Global mandates that a double-blind peer review process must be undertaken on each of its publications, including each chapter submission.

IGI Global follows a double-blind peer review process, which means that the authors of the chapter and the reviewers of the chapter remain anonymous to each other. It is at the discretion of the reviewer if they wish to reveal themselves to the authors after any and all revisions are made and a formal decision has been determined for the chapter by the editor.

The double-blind peer review process is entirely managed by the editor(s) of an edited book. Responsibilities of the editor(s) include:

• The editor(s) of a book is/are the only person responsible for the initial review of chapter proposals that are submitted to the book and their subsequent acceptance or rejection.
• The editor(s) of a book is/are the only person responsible for the initial review of a full chapter submission to verify that it meets the coverage of the book and also to ensure that authors’ names and affiliations are removed from the paper prior to assigning it for review.
• All editors of books must utilize the eEditorial Discovery® manuscript submission system to assign reviewers to manuscripts. Likewise, all reviews must be submitted by the reviewers through the system. This allows a paper trail in the event a question arises surrounding the review process.

For edited books, a double-blind peer review process must be conducted on any manuscript that is not desk rejected. Editors may choose from a variety of methods for conducting the peer review process:

1. Editors may use the chapter submission authors to peer review each other’s work.
2. Editors may appoint an Editorial Advisory Board to peer review the chapters.
3. Editors may utilize a mixture of both methods above, using chapter submission authors to provide the first layer of the peer review process, while keeping the Editorial Advisory Board members as back-up reviewers, as tiebreakers, or as a second level of review.

Editors should not participate in the double-blind peer review process as reviewers as this compromises the peer review process due to editors knowing the identity of the authors.

Ideally, no less than two to three (2-3) quality peer reviews should be obtained for each manuscript. Should two (2) reviews be received and have conflicting recommendations, a third (3rd) review should be obtained. If necessary, revised manuscripts may be returned to the initial reviewers for re-evaluation. The editors may require more than one revision of a manuscript, and additional reviewers may also be invited to review the manuscript at any time. The entire review process can typically take anywhere from twelve (12) to sixteen (16) weeks.

Editors should follow the below steps:

Step 1: Once a chapter is deemed suitable by the editor(s) to enter the double-blind peer review process, it will be anonymized (if not already) and assigned to at least three (3) to five (5) reviewers via the eEditorial Discovery^® manuscript submission system.

Reviewers are given evaluation criteria and asked to provide anonymous comments to the author and may also provide confidential feedback to the editor(s).

Step 2: Once all reviewer evaluations have been received, the editor(s) may choose to send the reviews to an Editorial Advisory Board member or other trusted expert for their evaluation of the manuscript as a second layer of review. Once all requested reviews are received, the editor(s) will determine whether the manuscript is accepted, requires revision, or is rejected.

Step 3: The editor(s) will make the reviews and comments available to the author(s) of the manuscript following their editorial decision on the manuscript. If the manuscript is rejected, the process ends and the editor(s) may recommend another outlet if appropriate. If the manuscript is accepted without any revisions required, then the author will be provided with the formatting guidelines for final submission. If the manuscript requires substantial revisions, then the author will be expected to follow the reviewer’s commentary and also the formatting guidelines to complete the revision of their article.

When requesting a revision from the authors, the due dates should not exceed one (1) month from the time that the revision request was sent (and should certainly not exceed the final manuscript deadline). Should the author not get the revision in on time, it is important that the editors reach out to them to ensure that they get their revisions in or to at least confirm whether or not they are still interested in having their work considered for publication. Some authors will require an extension to get their revisions in. It is at the editors discretion whether or not the editor wants to give them an extended deadline. Revisions should always be supplemented with revision notes that address the reviewers’ commentary.

Step 4: Once the revised manuscript is received (if applicable) it may be sent back to an original or new reviewer for evaluation, and then the reviewers new decision will be sent to the editor(s). This process may repeat itself several times before a final decision is reached. If the manuscript is rejected, then the process ends and the editor(s) may recommend another outlet if appropriate.

Note: The return of a manuscript to the author(s) for revision does not guarantee acceptance of the manuscript for publication.

Only the editors may make the final decision for the chapter as to whether it will be accepted for publication in the book. The editor(s) are requested to complete their editorial decisions in no more than two (2) weeks.

All manuscript submission status updates, acceptance, and rejection notifications must be handled by the book’s editor. Should an author come to the development editor with a request for a status update, they will forward the author on to the editor(s) to respond. It is important that editors do not feel pressure from the authors to bypass or hurry any level of the peer review process. Editors should not be accepting any form of remuneration or bribes for pushing the work through the process.

IGI Global’s Intellectual Property & Contracts Department can provide authors with a formal acceptance letter that should suffice until the accepted work is published online.

Regarding submissions that have not been completed, it is the responsibility of the editors to contact the authors and ensure that they are still willing to publish within the book. Letting them know the phases that they are still missing (e.g. documents, figures, etc.) allows for a more responsive author. Should the editor(s) not receive a response from the authors in two (2) weeks, they may exercise their right as the editor to remove the listing from the system.

View IGI Global’s full peer review process webpage and flow chart here.

The double-blind peer review process is entirely managed by the publisher (IGI Global) of an authored book. The steps include:

Step 1: Authors are responsible for submitting the final version of their manuscript including a Table of Contents, Preface, and the full, completed version of each chapter. Manuscripts submitted that are missing elements or are works-in-progress will not be entered into the peer review process.

Step 2: IGI Global is responsible for identifying and inviting reviewers for the book. Reviewers are required to sign an agreement before the review can be undertaken. IGI Global supplies reviewers with the review form and a blinded version of the final manuscript.

Step 3: Reviewers are responsible for providing the final review form to IGI Global upon a designated deadline. Reviewers receive an honorarium upon completion of a high-quality and thorough review.

Step 4: IGI Global provides the author with the review and all comments/feedback.

Step 5: Upon reviewing the evaluations for the book, it is at IGI Global’s discretion, based on the reviewer recommendations, as to whether the book will continue with publication or be rejected and the author(s) released from the contract. Should the book proceed with publication, authors are expected to make revisions based on reviewer feedback. Authors will return a revised final version of the book to IGI Global, who will inspect it to ensure that proper revisions have been made. Revised manuscripts may be placed under the peer review process once again or returned to the original reviewer if necessary. IGI Global makes the final decision on whether the manuscript will be accepted for publication.

It is very important that the evaluators assigned to review book chapters showcase expertise and experience directly related to the chapter’s topic. Editorial Advisory Board members enlisted for the book should also demonstrate expert-level knowledge and be currently active in the book’s area of research.

Having individuals on the board or as reviewers who are not experts in the field is not going to be helpful to the authors who receive an evaluation from them. Reviewers are expected to provide not only qualitative reviews in the form of grammar and formatting, but they are also expected to review the research as it is presented and provide feedback to the authors on how that research can be improved.

This is where having the research areas included in the reviewer profile is helpful to the editor. Reviewers can update their areas of interest at any time. Having relevant and up-to-date research areas included in the reviewer profile will help the editor pair the reviewer with articles that match the reviewer's expertise.

To update your profile, please log in to your IGI Global Portal and update your Research Areas of Expertise by clicking here.

The assignment of reviewers is managed by the editors of the book for edited books and by IGI Global for authored books. Authors of authored books are welcome to suggest expert researchers to review their book by providing IGI Global with the researcher’s information. IGI Global does not guarantee that suggested reviewers will be utilized.

Editors of edited books should select reviewers based on their areas of expertise. Chapter authors submitting a chapter to a book should be prepared that they may be asked to review another chapter submission. IGI Global does request that reviewers kindly keep in mind that from time-to-time they will likely be assigned manuscripts that do not 100% align with their current research interests, but as an appointed reviewer we expect and appreciate their willingness to evaluate the manuscript based on its adherence to the overall scope and coverage of the book.

It is the responsibility of the reviewer to disclose any conflicts of interest that may impact their review and/or to decline reviewing any chapter that they feel they cannot properly and ethically evaluate.

We encourage all editors to appoint an Editorial Advisory Board (EAB) to the book and we highly recommend that they begin assembling the board during the early stages of the development process. The EAB should consist of seven to ten individuals who are seen as pioneers or prevalent researchers in the subject areas covered by the book. It is strongly encouraged that the EAB showcase regional diversity.

The members of the EAB may serve as a reference for the editorial process and could be used to strengthen the overall quality of the publication. For example, EAB members can:

• Assist in preparing and distributing the call for chapters
• Evaluate proposals
• Help coordinate the review process of full chapters
• Review full chapters
• Edit final chapters for language, grammar, and formatting consistency
• Help in promoting and marketing the publication

Please note that EAB members may submit chapters to the manuscript as well but may not author a foreword.

The members of the EAB are recognized with their names and affiliations listed in the first few pages of the book.

Book development editors can assist with suggestions and recommendations for gathering potential members for the EAB.

If the title or scope of the book is changed/altered, it is the editor’s responsibility to review the appointed Editorial Advisory Board members, ensure that their expertise still matches the scope of the new book, and inform them of the title change.

Individuals appointed as reviewers are performing an important and valuable job, assuring that a manuscript is being published with integrity and accuracy. Serving as a reviewer is a key step and significant contributing factor in an individual’s academic career progression. This responsibility increases visibility, as well as an individual’s knowledge of current and novel research in the field. Reviewers are conducting a professional service for their colleagues to improve the quality of their work and the availability of advanced research in the field at large. Editorial Advisory Board members are also encouraged to act as ambassadors for the book with the editor’s approval.

Reviewers are expected to review the chapters thoroughly and within the allotted time frame. It is expected that reviewers will meet the review deadline. All reviews must be conducted through the eEditorial Discovery^® manuscript submission system and returned to the editor electronically by the assigned due date from the time the manuscript is received. Deadlines will be clearly stated in the review request. Should unforeseen circumstances arise that prevent them from meeting the deadline, the reviewer must communicate with the editor (for edited books) or IGI Global (for authored books) directly for further guidance on how to proceed.

Upon receipt of a manuscript for evaluation, reviewers are requested to carefully read each manuscript, supporting their evaluation with relevant citations with the goal of helping the author(s) construct a more rigorous research work by providing constructive feedback, as well as an honest assessment of the value of the manuscript. Reviewers are requested to provide their overall assessment of the work, followed by a specific list of comments. While grammatical corrections are valuable, the review must stretch beyond the use of punctuation, spelling, and language usage. Reviewers are not expected to copyedit, proofread, or translate the manuscript, as the author is expected to have their work professionally copyedited prior to submission.

Reviewers are asked to evaluate a manuscript for:

• Originality and significance of contribution. Is the manuscript in congruence with the scope of the book?
• Interest to research community and/or practitioners. How useful is the material to the field?
• International relevance.
• Coverage of existing literature. Does the literature review contain relevant information in support of the chapter?
• Satisfactoriness of methodology, analysis, and comprehension. Does the chapter contain a detailed explanation of research methods and procedures?
• Clear, concise, and jargon-free writing. Does the chapter clearly state the issues being addressed?
• Organizational structure. Is the chapter clearly organized in a logical fashion? Are the author’s conclusions supported by the research?

An appropriate evaluation for all reviewer roles includes:

• An analysis of the manuscript’s strengths and weaknesses
• Suggestions on how to make it more complete, relevant, and readable
• Provide questions for authors to address
• Provide advice that leads to action/revision

Vague statements and no points of action do not provide goals for the authors and will hinder any subsequent revisions.

At the end of each reviewer form, there will be a suggested decision that each reviewer can provide. This is for the editor's review to aid with making a decision on the article. This decision made by the reviewers shall not be edited by the leadership of the publication as it directly contrasts the ethical guidelines put in place by COPE regarding editing a review evaluation.

Reviewers are requested to avoid making derogatory and unprofessional comments. If a reviewer does not find the manuscript to be publishable, they should still provide extensive comments regarding why the paper is not acceptable and constructive directions for future submissions. A decision to “reject” the manuscript, with no feedback to the author(s), does not help them advance their skills. Reviewers are also requested to provide specific page numbers and explicitly state the areas of the manuscript to which they are referring, providing relevant citations to the authors to improve the work, and assessing the tables, figures, and diagrams and providing further recommendations as needed.

Reviewers have the opportunity to provide direct comments to the author on their manuscript by downloading the article and uploading the marked-up version on the reviewer form before submitting their evaluation.

*Note: Upon removal from the review board, or demotion to an Ad-Hoc reviewer, the name and affiliation of that reviewer will be automatically removed from the review board. It is at the Editor(s)' discretion on how they would like to manage their review board.

Sample ERB Review

Sample AE Review

Because IGI Global is an accepted full member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and takes pride in a rigorous double-blind peer review process, it is very important that each and every book is managed within the eEditorial Discovery® system and maintains the highest level of accuracy and integrity. Every book must have full review documentation for every published chapter. Should the book ever be called into question for its peer review practices, it’s very important that the editorial team at IGI Global have access to all chapters submitted for consideration to the book and supporting peer reviews. Proof of peer review is extraordinarily important especially as predatory publishers and vanity presses are conducting questionable peer review practices. If a manuscript is authored by a prestigious individual that was carefully invited and vetted by the editor and deemed an “invited paper”, the editor is encouraged to notify IGI Global immediately as the peer review process on these entries will differ. If an editor is approved to call for enhancements to previously published book chapters or journal articles, they must follow the altered peer review process for these entries.

For more information, please view our Ethics and Malpractice Page.

COPE has put together a document that outlines the best practices and ethical guidelines for the peer review process. Learn more.

IGI Global sends every book to applicable indexing and abstracting services immediately upon its publication. The indices determine which books they will include in their lists. Books with the highest chance of being selected for inclusion showcase high-quality content, adherence to the highest ethical standards, diversity of authorship, high citation and usage rates, and a clear impact on the research community. Because the citation rate of the book is taken into consideration, it can take as long as two or more years for a book to mature and be determined suitable for indexing.

Upon publication, IGI Global books are submitted to the following databases:

• Web of Science™ - Book Citation Index
• Scopus^®
• PsycINFO^®
• ACM Digital Library
• Australian Education Index
• Blended, Online Learning and Distance Education (BOLDE) Research Bank
• Database of Research on International Education (DRIE)
• DBLP
• Directory of Open Access Books (DOAB)*
• ERIC – Education Resources Information Center
• Inspec
• OAPEN: Online Library and Publication Platform*
• Reference Universe
• Research Library

*Only applicable for Open Access books

Should you want to have your book submitted for consideration to an abstracting or indexing database that is not listed, please contact the book’s development editor.

View more information on abstracting and indexing here.

We have recently seen increasing claims that books will be guaranteed to be indexed in specific indices upon publication. Upon discussion with our contacts at various book indexes, we can confirm that every book must go through an evaluation process by the index upon its publication and that there is never a guarantee that a book will be indexed. Individuals or entities claiming that a book is guaranteed to be indexed should be treated with suspicion and their adherence to ethical publishing called into question.

Any IGI Global editor or author claiming that their book is guaranteed to be indexed in a specific index, especially in order to garner more chapter submissions, will face a thorough investigation from IGI Global and potentially be removed from their leadership position.

IGI Global is happy to help coach editors and authors with ways in which to maximize the indexing potential of their books to increase their chances of being indexed upon publication.

All the points above are meant to provide important guidelines and best practices to ensure that each and every book published by IGI Global receives the highest level of recognition and meets all ethical standards.

It’s important to note that in order to ensure the greatest success for a book, editors and authors should maintain a healthy dialogue with their book’s development editor on the status of the book and submissions within the system. Telling the development editor their intentions, communicating problems as they arise, or even something as simple as telling them that they have assigned a few manuscripts out for review will greatly help. This lets the development staff know that the project leaders are actively attempting to meet the book’s deadlines and bring it to completion.

Should you have any additional questions that were not laid out in this document, please feel free to contact the development editor for your book and they will gladly answer any questions you have.

Frequently Asked Questions