30% of all articles submitted to the American Journal of BioMedicine in a calendar year that was accepted for publication in the same year. Articles that were withdrawn are not included in this percentage.
The time from submission to publication in American Journal of BioMedicine can be split into three phases:
- The time from submission from the first decision
- The time needed for the authors to revise
- The time from acceptance to publication
The second of these cannot generally be controlled by the journal, because different papers need different amounts of time to revise and the personal circumstances of the authors can affect the time needed. So only the first and third phases should be used to judge the journal.
Initial manuscript evaluation
All new submissions are screened for completeness and adherence to the Guide for Authors. Those that pass are then assigned to a Senior Editor for consideration for sending for peer review. Authors of manuscripts rejected at initial evaluation stage will normally be informed within 7-10 days of receipt.
Senior Editor evaluation
When assigned a new submission, the Senior Editor will decide if it warrants peer review or if it should be rejected without review. Manuscripts rejected at this stage are insufficiently original, have serious conceptual and/or methodological flaws, have poor grammar or English language, or are outside the aims and scope of the journal.
Authors of manuscripts rejected at this stage will normally be informed within 7-10 days of assignment to the senior editor.
Feedback is provided by the Senior Editor for all manuscripts rejected without review and, where possible, suggestions are made on other suitable publication outlets.
Those manuscripts deemed suitable for peer review are passed to at least 2 expert referees for review.
Type of peer review
American Journal of BioMedicine employs double-blind review, where both the referee and the author remain anonymous throughout the process.
How the reviewers are selected
Reviewers are matched to the paper according to their expertise, and our referee database is constantly being updated. We welcome suggestions for reviewers from authors, though these recommendations may or may not be used.
Reviewer reports
Reviewers are asked to evaluate a manuscript for:
- originality and significance of contribution
- interest to social scientists and/or practitioners
- international relevance
- coverage of appropriate existing literature
- adequacy of methodology, analysis and interpretation
- clear, concise and jargon-free writing style
- organization
Reviewers are asked to provide anonymous comments to the author and are also given the option of providing confidential comments to the editor. The comments to the author are also made available to other reviewers of the manuscript.
Reviewers are not expected to correct or copy edit manuscripts. Language correction is not part of the peer review process.
How long does the review process take?
Typically the manuscript will be reviewed within >60 days. Should the reviewers’ reports contradict one another or a report is unduly delayed, a further expert opinion will be sought. If necessary, revised manuscripts may be returned to the initial reviewers, usually within 1 month. Reviewers and Senior Editors may request more than one revision of a manuscript, and alternative reviewers may also be invited to review the manuscript at any time.
