Author Guidelines
The International Journal of Alcohol and Drug Research is an online journal that is free to authors and free to access. The journal welcomes manuscripts reporting findings of original research, reviews and other scholarly reports that contribute to knowledge and practice relating to substance use and problems from an international perspective.
Peer Review Process
The Editorial Team manages submissions by assessing first whether the manuscript addresses the aims of the journal and is of sufficient scientific quality to be considered for publication. That is, the study must meet an acceptable level of scientific rigor and make a significant contribution to knowledge. The manuscript is then sent to experts in the area for peer review.
Decision Categories
Once the initial review is completed, the Editorial Team responds to the author(s) with one of the following outcomes:
(1) publish as is or with minor modifications
(2) major revisions to be reviewed by the Editorial Team
(3) major revisions to be resubmitted for peer review
(4) major revisions with recommendations that authors should consider obtaining advice from, or collaboration with, a Consulting Editor or mentor from the International Society of Addiction Journal Editors (ISAJE) mentoring program
(5) reject paper.
Mentoring
The editor may recommend that the author consult or collaborate with a mentor. Additionally, authors who are asked to make major revisions may request assistance from a mentor if the necessary revisions are deemed by the authors to be beyond their capabilities, experience or resources.
Mentoring may be sought through the ISAJE mentoring program or internally through the IJADR’s Consulting Editors. If the assistance of a Consulting Editor is requested, the Editorial Team will attempt to facilitate a match between the authors and a Consulting Editor who has suitable expertise and who has not been involved in the review process of the manuscript.
The Consulting Editor may provide limited assistance (advice or mentoring) for which an acknowledgement of the Consulting Editor’s assistance in the final publication is appropriate. In some circumstances, the authors and the Consulting Editor may agree in advance that extensive assistance is needed warranting the involvement of the Consulting Editor as a co-author (see authorship criteria below).
Regardless of whether a Consulting Editor is involved in the revisions, the resubmitted paper must address all concerns raised in the peer review process in order to be accepted for publication.
Authorship Criteria
Authorship of the paper should include those who made substantial contributions to: the development and design of the research; data collection, analysis and interpretation of the data; or drafting the manuscript or making critical revisions.
Research Ethics Board Approval and Statement of Ethics
The submitting authors are required as part of the online submission process to include a cover letter stating the research contained in the report has been reviewed by a Research Ethics Board, or review from a comparable institution depending on the governance of research within that particular country. It is the responsibility of the author(s) to ensure that respondent/subject anonymity is carefully protected and to verify that any experimental investigation with human subjects reported in the manuscript was performed with informed consent and following all the guidelines for experimental investigation with human subjects required by the institution(s) with which all the authors are affiliated. Plagiarism is defined as the use of any portion of the work of another without permission or without comprehensive and appropriate notations of use. IJADR will reject manuscripts where plagiarism is detected and may also reject any subsequent manuscripts submitted by the same authors.
Once a manuscript has been accepted for publication, the Managing Editor will send the submitting author a copy of the Author Ethical Statement relating to all authors, including: a statement that the manuscript is an original work and, has not been submitted for publication or published either in part or in full elsewhere; a declaration of interests relating to direct or indirect sources of funding; and any publishing constraints imposed by funders. A signature from each author is required (electronic or faxed signature is acceptable). This must be signed and returned to the Managing Editor before the paper will be published.
Copyright
Authors must agree that the International Journal of Alcohol and Drug Research has sole copyright to publish the article, including the abstract. Once a manuscript has been accepted for publication, the Managing Editor will send the submitting author the copyright transfer from for completion. Manuscripts will not be published online until this completed and signed form is received by the Managing Editor.
Preparation of Manuscript
Authors are encouraged to review the checklist for writing research reports (West, R. (2000). A check list for writing up research reports. Addiction 95(12), 1759-1761) located at the following websites.
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1046/j.1360-0443.2000.951217594.x/pdf or: http://www.rjwest.co.uk/resources.php
Manuscripts that do not adhere to the following instructions will be returned to the submitting author for technical revision before undergoing peer review.
Format
Manuscripts must be submitted in a Word format document. Manuscripts should include the following components: title page, abstract, main text, references, tables, figures, appendices (if appropriate).
Length
Manuscripts must not exceed 3,000 words exclusive of references, tables and figures. Manuscripts exceeding this word limit will be returned to authors without peer review unless a convincing case is made for an article to be longer and is approved by the Editorial Team.
Title Page
Include on the title page:
- complete manuscript title,
- authors' full names and affiliations,
- sources of financial support,
- word count exclusive of abstract, references, tables and figures, and
- 3–5 informative keywords.
- name and address of author to whom correspondence will be sent, including fax number, telephone number, and e-mail address,
Abstract
Limit the abstract to 250 words. For research reports, a structured abstract should be used including: Aims, Design, Setting, Participants, Measures, Findings, and Conclusions.
Text
Reports of original research should be organized into four main headings: Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion. Remaining material (when applicable) should be included after the conclusions in the following order: Funding Sources, Declaration of Interests, Acknowledgments, References, Tables, and Figures. Avoid abbreviations or acronyms to the extent possible. When used, they should be defined at first mention in the text and in each table and figure. Indicate in the text the approximate location for tables and figures.
Acknowledgments
Acknowledgments should include all forms of support, including pharmaceutical and industry support.
References
References and citations in the text should follow the Vancouver referencing style. Refer to the following website for more details: http://www.icmje.org/
Tables
The journal uses APA style table formatting. Each table should be typed on a separate page following the references. If the table exceeds one typewritten page, duplicate all headings on the second page. Very wide tables should be avoided by dividing the data into smaller tables. Tables should be numbered using Arabic numerals (i.e., 1, 2, 3…) in the order in which they are cited in the text. Each table should have a title that clearly explains the content of the table. All abbreviations should be defined, even if they have been defined previously in the text. Use horizontal rules only (no vertical rules) and these should be used only to separate sections (e.g., table title from column headings). Footnotes to the table should be designated with superscript letters (a, b, c, etc.) cited in alphabetical order as the table is read horizontally and asterisks (*p< 05, **p<.01, ***p<.001) to indicate statistical significance. If data obtained from any other source, published or unpublished, are used, permission for their use must be obtained (and submitted to the editorial office). In addition, appropriate credit must be provided as a footnote to the table.
Figures
The journals uses APA style figure formatting. Each figure should be presented on a separate page following the tables and be clear and easy to read. Figures should be numbered using Arabic numerals (i.e., 1, 2, 3…) in the order in which they are cited in the text. Each figure should have a title that clearly explains the content of the figure. Letters, numbers, and symbols should be clear and large enough to be read easily. If symbols, arrows, numbers, or letters are used to identify parts of a graph or other part of the figure, these should be explained clearly in the legend. Legends should permit figures to be understood without reference to the text. Define all abbreviated terms the first time used, even if the term has been defined in text.
Appendices
Supplementary material that provides additional material about the research may be included in an appendix or appendices. Material contained in the appendices should not be necessary for understanding, evaluation or interpretation of the research report itself.
Blind Peer Review
Authors should format their manuscript submission in such a way as to facilitate blind review. The submitting author should ensure that all author names are deleted from the text, with ‘author’ and year used in the references and footnotes. Toe ensure the integrity of the blind peer review for submissions to this journal every effort will be made to prevent the identities of the authors and reviews from being known to each other.
Online Publication
Articles will be published online as PDF and html documents after receipt of corrected proofs and completion of the copyright transfer and author ethical statement.
Form Used by Manuscript Reviewers
The comments section of this form will be released to the authors. In order to ensure confidentiality, do not include any information that could identify you as the reviewer. The final page of the form (Ratings and Recommendations) will be sent only to the Editors and will not be shared with the authors.
Reviewer’s Comments
Please consider the following in evaluating the manuscript:
Title: Does title reflects the contents of the article? If not, we would appreciate suggestions for an alternative title.
Abstract: To what extent does the abstract adequately reflect the background, objectives, methods, results and conclusions of the study?
Introduction: Is the study rationale adequately described? Is the introduction concise and to the point? Have key studies been cited? Are research questions and/or hypotheses provided?
Methodology: To what extent is the study design appropriate for the objectives/research question? If applicable, are the sampling technique and sample size appropriate and adequately described? Are the data analyses appropriate and adequately described?
Results: Are the findings presented clearly in tables and figures? Do the findings clearly address the study objectives research questions?
Discussion/Conclusion: To what extent have findings been placed into context by comparing differences or similarities with previous studies? Do the results justify the conclusions?
Bibliography/References: Are references appropriate, relevant and up to date? Do the references follow the Vancouver style of referencing?
General: Is the manuscript appropriate in length? Is the manuscript well-written with few spelling, grammar or other problems?
Ratings and Recommendations (for Editors only)
Rating: poor fair good excellent
Importance of the research question
Clarity of presentation
Sampling
Sample size
Analysis
Interpretation and discussion of findings
Extent that research findings increase international knowledge and understanding about substance use and problems
Rating of the manuscript overall
Publication Recommendations
- publish as is or with minor modifications
- major revisions to be reviewed by the Editorial Team
- major revisions to be resubmitted for peer review
- major revisions with recommendations that author should consider obtaining advice from, or collaboration with, a Consulting Editor or mentor from the International Society of Addiction Journal Editors (ISAJE) mentor program
- reject paper
If you rated the paper 3 (major revisions to be resubmitted for review) would you be willing to review the resubmission? yes/no
Do you think this paper merits a commentary? yes/no
If yes, would you be interested in writing a commentary? yes/no
Additional Comments