Peer Review Process

The MAZAWA Journal implements a double-blind peer-review process, in which the identities of authors and reviewers are kept confidential. The journal assigns a minimum of two reviewers, with the option to assign more if necessary, to ensure a comprehensive and unbiased assessment of manuscripts.

Manuscripts submitted to the MAZAWA Journal will undergo a selection and assessment process by the Editorial Board to ensure their compliance with writing guidelines, focus, and scope, as well as their academic quality. Manuscripts will be reviewed using a double-blind peer-review method, in which neither the authors nor the reviewers know each other's identities.

Desk Review. At the desk review stage, manuscripts will be examined to ensure that they meet the writing guidelines, focus, and scope with excellent academic quality. If they do not meet the requirements, authors will be given the opportunity to revise their manuscripts according to the criteria provided. However, there is also the possibility that manuscripts will be rejected outright.

Peer Review. After passing the desk review stage, manuscripts are sent to two reviewers who are experts in the field of the submitted manuscript. The review process takes three to five weeks. Manuscripts that do not pass the desk review stage do not proceed to this stage.

Reviewer's Decision. Reviewers will provide the following recommendations:

Accepted means the manuscript is suitable for publication;

Accepted with minor revisions means the manuscript can be published after being revised according to the reviewers' input;

Accepted with major revisions means there are substantial deficiencies in the manuscript, such as data analysis, main theories used, and rewriting of paragraphs, which need to be revised;

Rejected means that the manuscript is not suitable for publication or that the review points to fundamental problems.

The editorial board will consider the reviewer's decision to determine the next steps for the manuscript.

Revision Stage. Once a manuscript has been accepted with minor or major revisions, it will be returned to the author along with a review summary form. Authors are given four weeks to revise manuscripts accepted with major revisions. Meanwhile, two weeks are given for revisions of manuscripts accepted with minor revisions. When returning the revised manuscript, authors are required to fill out and attach a review summary form.

Final Decision. At this stage, the editorial board will re-evaluate the manuscript to ensure that the author has revised it according to the reviewer's input. At this final decision, the manuscript may still be rejected if the author does not take the necessary revisions seriously.

Final Editing. Once the editorial board considers the manuscript acceptable, it will undergo a final editing process to maintain the quality of the language.

Publication confirmation. At this stage, the final layout of the manuscript will be sent back to the author to ensure that the content matches the author's writing. At this stage, the author can revise any typographical errors found in the final manuscript. Once confirmation has been received from the author, the Editorial Secretary will process the manuscript for online publication on the website and in print (if necessary).