The Peer Review Process

1. The manuscript is accepted for review. The author(s) have followed the journal’s guidelines in development and submission of the manuscript.
2. Manuscript read by editors. Editors review manuscript and send it to reviewers. In some cases editors reject manuscripts due to poor writing, poor study design, or obvious bias.
3. Blind peer review. Editors choose two or more reviewers to evaluate the manuscript. Typically reviewers are selected from the journal’s "Board of Editors" for expertise specific to the article’s topic. Reviewers receive manuscripts that do not have author or institution information included. They review each manuscript, provide comments in their reports to the editor, and pass judgment on the article, commonly "publish," "publish with revisions," "re-submit with revisions" or "do not publish."
4. Editorial decision. The editors consider the comments and judgements of peer reviewers and make a decision based on the reviewers’ reports and their own reviews of the manuscript.
5. Revision and resubmission. Author(s) revise or rewrite the article and submit it for review by one or more of the original editors and/or reviewers. Suggested revisions are checked and approved.
6. Production. The author(s) provide the final copy of the manuscript according to the editor’s specifications. New possibilities for electronic submissions may change the nature of production. At this time copyright releases are usually signed by the author(s) allowing the publisher to hold the copyright. The publisher also sends galley proofs to the author(s) for final corrections or changes prior to printing.
7. Final publication. Article appears in the journal, author(s) are provided with reprints of the article (typically 50-100) for distribution upon request. (Day, 1994)

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