Peer Review Process and Criteria

Peer review is essential for assessing the quality of articles submitted to academic journals. Before an article is approved for publication in a peer-reviewed journal, it must undergo the following steps:

1. The author submits the article to the journal editor.

2. The editor forwards the article to experts in the subject area.

3. These impartial reviewers thoroughly evaluate the manuscript's quality.

4. Reviewers examine the manuscript for accuracy and assess the validity of the study's methods and procedures.

5. If needed, they suggest revisions.

Articles published in peer-reviewed journals meet the discipline's standards, representing the best research practices.

Criteria and Considerations for Peer Review

Overall Impact: Reviewers assign an overall impact/priority score based on the project's potential for a significant, lasting influence on the research field.

Scored Review Criteria: Reviewers evaluate scientific and technical merit by scoring each criterion separately. A project doesn't need to excel in every category to have a significant scientific impact; for example, a non-innovative project might still be crucial for advancing a field.

- Significance: Does the project tackle a significant problem or barrier? Will achieving the project's aims enhance scientific knowledge, technical capability, or clinical practice? How will it change the concepts, methods, technologies, treatments, services, or preventative interventions in the field?

- Investigator(s): Are the project directors, principal investigators, collaborators, and other researchers well-suited for the project? For early-stage or new investigators, do they have the appropriate experience and training? For established researchers, have they consistently advanced their field? In collaborative or multi-investigator projects, do the investigators' expertise complement each other, and is their leadership and organizational structure suitable for the project?

- Innovation: Does the application challenge or seek to shift current research or clinical practices with novel concepts, approaches, methodologies, instrumentation, or interventions? Are these elements new to the field or broadly innovative? Does the project propose improvements or new applications of existing theories, methods, instrumentation, or interventions?

- Approach: Are the strategy, methodology, and analyses well-reasoned and appropriate for achieving the project's aims? Are potential issues, alternative strategies, and success benchmarks clearly presented? For early-stage projects, does the strategy demonstrate feasibility and manage particularly risky aspects? For clinical research, are the plans for protecting human subjects and including diverse populations justified in terms of the project's scientific goals and strategy?

- Environment: Does the scientific environment support the project's success? Are the institutional support, equipment, and other resources adequate? Will the project benefit from unique features of the environment, such as specific populations or collaborative arrangements?

Additional Review Criteria: Reviewers will also consider the following without assigning separate scores:

- Protections for human subjects

- Inclusion of women, minorities, and children

- Use of vertebrate animals

- Handling of biohazards

- Considerations for resubmissions, renewals, and revisions

Additional Review Considerations: Reviewers will consider, but not score, the following:

- Applications from foreign organizations

- Select agents

- Resource sharing plans

- Budget and support period