Special Issues

A Special Issue of this journal is a collection of articles focusing on a theme or themes relevant to the journal's aims and scope and is often produced by one or more Guest Editors with the assistance of the Journal Editor. Each Special Issue may contain between five and 20 full-length articles that provide excellent opportunity to address particular theme(s), examine previously unaddressed aspects, propose and develop new approaches, exchange perspectives and encourage new lines of research.

Submission of manuscripts for Special Issues

Call for submission of articles for any Special Issue is often made by the Guest Editor(s). Such articles will be submitted directly to the Guest Editor(s) for review or submitted online through the link to be provided by the Guest Editor(s) in the call for submission of manuscripts. However, the final decision on acceptance of the manuscripts for publication will be made by the Journal Editor.

Selection of papers and decision process 

• The Guest Editor is responsible (cooperation with any other guest editor) for the Special Issue and for ensuring that the review process is conducted in an appropriate manner in line with normal review practices for the journal.
• The selection of papers is usually based on the scientific quality of the content and the topic which clearly fall within the scope of the specific Special Issue of the journal.
• The Guest Editor will typically make the preliminary decision on all manuscripts based on reviews and subsequently transfer the manuscripts (and revisions) to the Journal Editor who normally has the sole right to review and accept/or reject any manuscript or arrange for any manuscript(s) to be independently peer reviewed prior to final acceptance for publication.

Peer review of Special Issue submissions

Special Issue manuscripts follow the same peer review process as other manuscripts in our journal.

We only publish articles that have been approved by highly qualified researchers with expertise in a field appropriate to the topic of the article.

Article Processing Charges

All papers submitted to Special Issues are subject to an Article Processing Charge under the fast-track payment mode if the manuscript is accepted for publication. All contributors are expected to show the commitment to make the payment before submission of manuscripts.

For details on article processing charges, kindly review the information under Guidelines for contributors