Each reviewer scores seven criteria from 1 to 10. Its vote is Reject if it raises a critical fail, its weighted score is below 6 or any criterion is below 4; Minor if the weighted score is at least 7.5 and every criterion is 6 or more; otherwise Major. The paper is rejected if two or more reviewers vote Reject, accepted with minor revisions if two or more vote Minor, and otherwise accepted with major revisions. The decision is made automatically by this rule; no person changes scores or decisions.
Rubric
| Criterion | What is assessed | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Relevance and scope | Does the paper fit the journal's scope and readership? | 10% |
| Originality | Is there a novel contribution compared with the cited prior work? | 20% |
| Methodology | Is the design sound, appropriate and reproducible? | 25% |
| Results and evidence | Do the results support the claims, and is the analysis correct? | 20% |
| Literature and references | Is related work covered fairly and cited accurately, taking the integrity report into account? | 10% |
| Clarity and structure | Are the writing, organisation, figures and tables clear? | 10% |
| Ethics and transparency | Are approvals, conflicts of interest, data availability and the authors' own AI use declared? | 5% |
Each reviewer's vote
- Reject if the reviewer raises a critical fail, the weighted score is below 6, or any criterion scores below 4.
- Minor if the weighted score is at least 7.5 and every criterion scores 6 or more.
- Major otherwise.
A critical fail can only be raised for:
- Missing ethics approval for human or animal research
- Fabricated or impossible results
- Out of the journal's scope
The vote the model states itself is shown for transparency but does not count.
The decision
- Reject if two or more reviewers vote Reject.
- Accept with minor revisions if two or more reviewers vote Minor.
- Accept with major revisions in every other case.
Revision deadlines and rounds
- Minor revisions are due within 14 days; major revisions within 45 days. A submission expires if its deadline passes without a revision.
- Corrections raised only by a reviewer who voted Reject are advisory: they are shown but not required.
- A correction counts as made when at least 2 of the 3 reviewers agree. Corrections that are still outstanding start another revision round.
- A paper that still has outstanding corrections after 2 revision rounds is rejected.