Peer review policy
RAC works with two evaluation methods: double-blind and open. In the open review method, RAC follows the guidelines of the fourth dimension of the SciELO guidelines (2024), which encourages reviewers to make their opinions public and publish them anonymously.
Double-blind – (double-blind peer review): The material is received by the editor-in-chief, who performs an initial evaluation to verify if the topic meets the scope of the journal. If so, it is sent to at least two reviewers; if there is disagreement with the final opinion, it is sent to a third reviewer. In this process, the author and the reviewers do not know the identities of the reviewers involved, and all communication is done via the editor and/or section editor.
Furthermore, if requested by the reviewers, the material may be sent to a second round of evaluation to determine if the authors have addressed the requested adjustments.
In this modality, the review is published alongside the final text, anonymously, without identifying the reviewers.
Open Review:
First possibility – partial openness – normal review, in which the text is sent to two or three reviewers. At the end of this process, the review is sent to the author without the reviewer's identification, and at the end of the process, the review is published along with the text, with the reviewers' identification.
Second possibility – total openness – open identity, interaction, and reports – recommended for the dynamics of preprint review. RAC encourages the total openness of the review process, with the identification of reviewers and authors throughout the process, and consequently, the publication of the review occurs along with all possible versions of the text, in an identified manner. In this modality, both the reviewers and the author know who they are, eliminating anonymity, which may or may not allow for direct communication between the reviewer and the author, always mediated by the section editor; however, throughout the process the system remains open for communication between those involved.
RAC encourages the practice of open peer review as it aligns with the best practices of open science, but emphasizes that this modality is not mandatory and that if the author or reviewer wishes to withdraw the publication of the identified review, the journal will respect the decision of both the author and the reviewer and proceed with the anonymous publication of the review.
It is believed that open peer review “increases the transparency, efficiency and accountability of the review process” (Nassi-Calò, 2015, 2017, 2019; Ross-Hellauer, 2017).
It is known that there is resistance to change, but for science to be more egalitarian, the ways of doing science must adapt to international practices and the best practices of open science, guided by the European Union and the UN.
Política redigida com base em:
FACILITATE OPEN SCIENCE TRAINING FOR EUROPEAN RESEARCH. Open Science. 2014. Disponível em: https://repositorium.sdum.uminho.pt/bitstream/1822/39596/1/FOSTER-poster.
NASSI-CALÒ, Lillian. Avaliação por pares aberta: a publicação dos pareceres influencia o comportamento dos pareceristas? SciELO em Perspectiva [on-line], 2019. Disponível em: https://blog.scielo.org/blog/2019/03/27/avaliacao-por-pares-aberta-a-publicacao-dos-pareceres-influencia-o-comportamento-dos-pareceristas/
NASSI-CALÒ, Lillian. Aumenta a adoção de avaliação por pares aberta. SciELO em Perspectiva [on-line], 2017. Disponível em: https://blog.scielo.org/blog/2017/01/10/aumenta-a-adocao-de-avaliacao-por-pares-aberta/
NASSI-CALÒ, Lillian. Avaliação por pares: modalidades, prós e contras. SciELO em Perspectiva, [on-line], 2015. Disponível em: https://blog.scielo.org/blog/2015/03/27/avaliacao-por-pares-modalidades-pros-e-contras/
ROSS-HELLAUER, Tony. What is open peer review? A systematic review. F1000Research, p. 1-39, ago. 2017. DOI: https://doi.org/10.12688/f1000research.11369.2
SCIELO BRASIL. Critérios, política e procedimentos para a admissão e a permanência de periódicos na Coleção SciELO Brasil. set. 2024. Disponível em: 20240900-Criterios-SciELO-Brasil.pdf
UNESCO. O que é ciência aberta? Ciência aberta no Brasil, 2023. Disponível em: https://encurtador.com.br/epbv0
