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Types of Peer Review

Peer review is “a process where scientists (“peers”) evaluate the quality of other scientists’ work. By doing this, they aim to ensure the work is rigorous, coherent, uses past research and adds to what we already know.” This quote comes from an explainer on The Conversation, which you can read here. 

A picture showing a manuscript with annotations, a notebook, and a journal.

Peer review brings academic research to publication in the following ways:

  • Evaluation – Peer reviewing research helps publications select the highest quality articles.
  • Integrity – Peer review ensures the integrity of the publishing process and the scholarly record.
  • Quality – The filtering process and revision advice offered by verified experts within the academic field improves the quality of the final article, as well as providing the author with new insights into their research.

 

Types of peer review

  • Single-anonymized – The name of the reviewer is hidden from the author.
  • Double-anonymized – Names are hidden from reviewers and authors.
  • Triple-anonymized – Names are hidden from authors, reviewers, and the publication’s editor.
  • Open peer review – At Sage we offer open peer review on some journals through our Transparent Peer Review program, whereby reviews are published alongside articles. The names of the reviewers may also be published, depending on the reviewers’ preference.
  • Post publication peer review – This involves an ongoing discussion of the research conducted via an open forum between the scientific community. It is the least common type of peer review and is not appropriate in all fields.

To learn more about the different types of peer review, see page 14 of Peer Review: The Nuts and Bolts of Peer Review, from Sense about Science.

A full list of Sage’s journals can be found here. Each journal will have its own set of instructions and submission guidelines for authors, so please double check the manuscript submission guidelines of the journal you are reviewing for in order to ensure that you understand the method of peer review being used.