Editorial Policy

Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal

Editorial Policy & Process

How ASSRJ is governed, the principle of editorial independence, and the path a manuscript follows from submission to publication.

Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal (ASSRJ) is an international, peer-reviewed, fully open-access journal published by Scholar Publishing, United Kingdom (ISSN 2055-0286), publishing original theoretical and empirical research across the social sciences. This policy describes how the journal is governed and how a manuscript travels from submission to publication. ASSRJ is a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and follows its Core Practices.

Editorial independence

Editorial decisions are based solely on a manuscript’s academic merit — originality, rigour, clarity and relevance to the journal’s scope. They are never influenced by the authors’ nationality, ethnicity, gender, religion, institution or seniority, or by commercial considerations, including the Article Processing Charge. The Editor-in-Chief has full authority over editorial content and the timing of publication, consistent with WAME’s definition of editorial freedom.

Roles and responsibilities

▸	Editor-in-Chief holds final responsibility for all editorial decisions and for upholding the journal’s standards and ethical policies.
▸	Editorial Board members advise on scope and strategy, handle manuscripts within their expertise and help identify reviewers.
▸	Editorial Office manages day-to-day administration, initial checks and author communication.
▸	Reviewers provide independent, confidential expert assessment (see the Peer Review Policy).
▸	Authors are responsible for the integrity, originality and ethical conduct of their work.

The editorial process

1	Submission. Manuscripts are submitted through the journal’s online system (Open Journal Systems). The corresponding author submits on behalf of all co-authors.
2	Initial editorial check. The Editorial Office confirms the manuscript is within scope, complete, correctly formatted and accompanied by the required declarations. Every submission is screened with plagiarism-detection software.
3	Editorial assessment (desk decision). The Editor-in-Chief assesses soundness and fit. Manuscripts that are out of scope, below threshold or in breach of ethics may be rejected without external review.
4	Peer review. Suitable manuscripts are sent to at least two independent expert reviewers under a single-blind model.
5	Decision. Based on the reviews, the Editor-in-Chief decides among Accept, Minor Revisions, Major Revisions or Reject. Revised manuscripts may undergo further review.
6	Acceptance and production. Accepted articles are copy-edited, typeset, assigned a DOI and published open access. The Article Processing Charge applies only after acceptance.