Reviewer Guidelines

REVIEWER GUIDELINES

Reviewer Responsibilities and Ethical Standards

AL-WAARITS: Alfabet Jurnal Wawasan Agama Risalah Islamiah, Teknologi dan Sosial is committed to maintaining the quality, integrity, and credibility of scholarly publications through a rigorous peer review process. The journal applies a Double-Blind Peer Review system involving three independent reviewers for each submitted manuscript. Reviewers play an essential role in evaluating manuscripts and providing constructive feedback to improve their academic quality.

1 Reviewer Selection and Qualifications

AL-WAARITS selects reviewers based on their academic qualifications, research experience, and expertise relevant to the subject of the submitted manuscript.

Reviewer qualifications include:

● Relevant academic or professional expertise in the manuscript's subject area.
● Research experience related to the topic being evaluated.
● Ability to provide objective, constructive, and evidence-based feedback.
● Independence from the authors and the research being reviewed.
● Willingness to comply with confidentiality and publication ethics.
2 Peer Review Process

AL-WAARITS implements a Double-Blind Peer Review process in which the identities of authors and reviewers remain confidential throughout the evaluation process. Each manuscript is independently assessed by three qualified reviewers to support a comprehensive and balanced academic evaluation.

The review process consists of the following stages:

1 Initial Editorial Screening: The editorial team examines the manuscript's relevance, completeness, originality, and compliance with the journal's submission requirements.
2 Assignment of Three Reviewers: The editor assigns three independent reviewers with relevant academic expertise.
3 Independent Manuscript Evaluation: Each reviewer independently assesses the manuscript and submits an individual evaluation report and recommendation.
4 Editorial Assessment: The editor examines the review reports, considers the reviewers' recommendations, and evaluates the manuscript's academic quality.
5 Revision and Final Decision: Authors receive the editorial decision and relevant reviewer comments. Revised manuscripts may be returned for further evaluation when necessary.
3 Responsibilities of Reviewers

Reviewers are expected to provide thorough and constructive evaluations that assist the editor in making informed publication decisions and help authors improve their manuscripts.

3.1. Contribution to Editorial Decisions

Reviewers should provide professional assessments and recommendations that support editorial decisions and contribute to the improvement of submitted manuscripts.

3.2. Technical and Scientific Assessment

Reviewers should evaluate the research objectives, originality, methodology, data analysis, findings, academic contribution, and relevance to the journal's focus and scope.

3.3. Constructive Feedback

Reviewers should provide clear, specific, objective, and evidence-based comments. Feedback should help authors improve their manuscripts without including personal or inappropriate criticism.

3.4. Acknowledgment of Sources

Reviewers should identify relevant published works that have not been appropriately cited and notify the editor of substantial similarities between the submitted manuscript and other publications.

3.5. Reporting Ethical Concerns

Reviewers should inform the editor of suspected plagiarism, duplicate publication, data fabrication, data falsification, inappropriate citation practices, or other potential violations of research integrity.

4 Confidentiality

All manuscripts received for review must be treated as confidential documents. Reviewers must not disclose, distribute, reproduce, or discuss manuscript contents with unauthorized individuals.

Reviewers must:

● Maintain the confidentiality of all manuscript information.
● Not share manuscripts or unpublished research findings with unauthorized parties.
● Not use unpublished information for personal, academic, or professional advantage.
● Not contact authors directly regarding the manuscript under review.
● Communicate manuscript-related matters through authorized editorial channels.
5 Objectivity and Fairness

Reviews must be conducted objectively, impartially, and professionally. Reviewers should assess manuscripts based on their academic and scientific merit rather than the authors' personal characteristics, institutional affiliations, nationality, gender, religious beliefs, or other personal attributes.

Personal criticism is inappropriate. All comments and recommendations must be supported by clear academic reasoning and relevant evidence.

6 Conflicts of Interest

Reviewers must disclose any actual or potential conflicts of interest that could affect their ability to provide an impartial assessment. Conflicts of interest may arise from professional, financial, personal, academic, competitive, or collaborative relationships with the authors or the research being evaluated.

If a conflict of interest exists, reviewers must promptly inform the editor and decline the review assignment when impartiality cannot be maintained.

7 Timeliness of Review

Reviewers are expected to complete their evaluations within the timeframe communicated by the editorial team. If a reviewer is unable to complete the assessment within the assigned period or lacks the necessary expertise, the editor should be notified promptly.

Reviewers should only accept assignments that they can reasonably complete within the specified timeframe.

8 Ethical Considerations

Reviewers are expected to uphold academic integrity and comply with ethical standards throughout the peer review process.

8.1. Research Integrity

Reviewers should report suspected plagiarism, fabricated or falsified data, duplicate publication, inappropriate citation practices, and other potential research misconduct to the editor.

8.2. Use of Artificial Intelligence

Reviewers must protect the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts. Unpublished manuscripts and confidential review materials must not be uploaded to public generative AI systems or used to generate substantive peer review assessments.

Any permitted use of automated tools must not compromise manuscript confidentiality, reviewer independence, or the integrity of the evaluation process.

9 Reviewer Recommendations

Each reviewer must provide an individual recommendation supported by constructive comments and an academic assessment. The available recommendations are:

Accept The manuscript meets the journal's academic and publication requirements.
Minor Revision The manuscript requires limited corrections or improvements before publication consideration.
Major Revision The manuscript requires substantial improvements and may undergo further evaluation.
Reject The manuscript does not meet the required academic or publication standards.

All reviewer recommendations are considered by the editor. The final editorial decision remains the responsibility of the editor and is not determined solely by a numerical vote among reviewers.

10 Editorial Decision

The editor is responsible for making the final decision regarding manuscript acceptance, revision, or rejection. Decisions are based on the reviewers' independent reports, the manuscript's academic quality, its relevance to the journal's focus and scope, and compliance with editorial policies.

The editor may request additional revisions or further review when necessary to ensure that the manuscript meets the journal's publication standards.

Commitment to Research Integrity

AL-WAARITS values the contributions of independent reviewers in maintaining the quality and credibility of scholarly publications. Through independent evaluations, constructive feedback, confidentiality, and responsible review practices, the journal aims to ensure that published research meets appropriate academic and ethical standards.

✓ Register as a Reviewer

Interested in contributing to the peer review process of AL-WAARITS? Complete the reviewer registration and upload a complete CV as a supporting document.

Register as a Reviewer →