Peer Review Process
When we receive a manuscript, an assessment will be made to ensure the manuscript meets the formal criteria specified in the Instructions for Authors and that it fits within the scope of the journal. When in doubt, the editor will consult with other members of the Editorial Board. Manuscripts are then assigned to a Section Editor to send to 2-4 external experts for peer review. Authors are required to suggest at least 2 peer-reviewers (who do not have a conflict of interest) during the submission process.
JMIR Publications follows a single-blind model during the review process. Reviewers are aware of the names of the authors to avoid any potential conflict of interest when accepting the review invitation. Reviewers for JMIR journals will not remain anonymous. Their names will appear at the end of the published article and in JMIRx, we also publish the actual peer-review reports and the authors' responses. As publication of peer-review reports is mandatory in this journal, a peer reviewer may opt to be anonymous on the published review (this will also mark them as an anonymous reviewer on the original paper). In some cases, at the discretion of the Editor or Editorial Director, we may decide to not publish a peer review. Authors and reviewers should not contact each other directly to discuss manuscripts or reviews.
Innovative Peer Review Methods
As JMIRx is an innovative overlay journal, we are experimenting with novel (yet academically rigorous) review methods.
PREreview Online Preprint Journal Clubs (OPJC)
OPJCs are live video group reviews and are envisioned as a way to accelerate the peer review and subsequent publication of research (the event is scheduled and the peer review occurs on that day, and written feedback is given in lieu of a traditional review). More information on the PREreview OPJCs.
Crowd Review
This is a forthcoming review type that we are looking to implement in the near future. The essential idea is that a larger group of people come together over a period of a few days to review a manuscript quickly and thoroughly.