Dr Andrea Whittaker, Asia Institute, University of Melbourne Publishing in international journals: Realities, tips and tricks

Why do we want to publish our work?

What do you need to know to publish?

Questions to ask yourself…. What is the purpose of my paper? Who am I writing for? Why is it worth publishing? What is its significance? Where should I send it? What sort of journal should I target? How long is the review time usually?

What can you publish?

Technical papers Policy/practice review papers Papers about projects Research papers Primary – Qualitative and quantitative research methodology or mixed methods Secondary – Re-analysis of the existing data set – Meta-analysis (e.g. Cochrane collaboration) Methodology papers

Consider writing your job! not extra activity- make time for it and as within your organisations ensure conditions facilitate writing Accept critiques of your work, don’t get insulted Do the background work to identify the right journals and follow their word limits and style guides Have a publication strategy Ground rules to writing and publishing

There are millions of journals! Best place to start is to look at who you are citing…. Have a strategy, journal selection is THE most important aspect of publication, look at what they are publishing and write in that style (eg demography vs anthropology vs epidemiology) Be practical, think in terms of speed, quality, quantity and reality Talk to your colleagues who publish- check that the editor hasn’t died! Create a file of style guide of possible journals to refer to Choosing journals

Choosing Journals Check the peer-review status What’s the journal’s impact factor & its Rank– ISI Journal Citation Reports Is my topic relevant for the national or international audience? Discipline-specific vs. multidisciplinary

Journals Health care for Women international Reproductive health matters Health & Place Global public health Health promotion international Health policy and planning Practice development in health care Primary health care research and development Others>>>Migration journals, Asian studies, gender, disaster, nutrition etc

How is a journal article different from a research report? Group exercise

Peer review process Editorial office Reviewers Editorial office Authors Editorial office

Realities of international journals Editors usually unpaid position, part of academic duties, vary in the level of support staff they have… they may be working late at night with no coffee! Journals receive hundreds of papers, the more prestigious the higher the rejection rate The whole process usually averages about one year from submission, so you need to plan ahead Articles are reviewed by academics like me, they try to get appropriate people but not necessarily, check names on editorial board as well as they usually use their networks to find reviewers

Editor/ Assoc Editor Screens papers Does it address issues of relevence to the readers? Does it apply sound methodology? What is its significance? Is it worth sending off for review? Anonymous reviewers Between 2-4 reviewers, voluntary Usually experts in methods or area of expertise Must provide written feedback to the editor about the manuscript Reviewers are human too! They work for nothing and so are unlikely to spend enormous amounts of time- your paper needs to be clear, grab attention and be easy to understand or it simply won’t be recommended

Focus of Reviewers Literature review pertinent to the topic? Latest research included? Clearly defined aims and objectives, including hypotheses? Detailed description of the study design (data collection methods, instruments, sampling, analysis) Logical presentation of the results Sound Interpretation of the data Evidence presented to support the arguments Study limitations (confounding, bias)

Feedback to the authors The editor advises the author(s) about the outcome of the review process May override the reviewers’ recommendations to a certain degree and invite the author to address some concerns but ignore others Provides reviewers comments if revision is required Specifies the timeframe for revisions

Editor’s decision To accept the manuscript as is (RARE!) To accept on the grounds that minor revisions be made To reject it but encourage revision and invite resubmission To reject it outright (don’t despair, it may still be publishable!)

Revising your paper Deal with ALL comments made by the reviewers, editors Dealing with comments doesn’t mean you have to accept them all However, you need to justify why you rejected reviewers suggestions Don’t get angry, be strategic in your thinking! Do what is needed to improve the paper, be it new analysis, presenting the data differently or adding new data Write in letter to editor the changes you have made in paper until ALL recommendations addressed, explain the changes you have made

Please see the resubmission letter to the Editor as an example

Revised manuscripts The revised manuscripts will most probably go to the same reviewers Usually a revised paper which addresses all comments will be accepted although it may be a very different paper by then If unsuccessful you may choose to resubmit your paper to another journal and start the process again

What goes in a paper? What should be its structure?

Manuscript structure Determined by the journal Abstract Introduction Study design Results Discussion Conclusion References - Learn to use a software (e.g Endnote) for generating the list of references! Some journals are strict & do not allow for combining the results & discussion

What goes in an Introduction?

Introduction Know the key authors in the field – present up- to-date literature review- SYNTHESIS not a list Check if other researchers published on the similar topic in that journal & make sure you refer to their work Explain why you did the study Present the overall research aims/objectives/hypotheses & those specifically discussed in the paper

What goes in the Study design/ Methods section?

Study design Describe clearly – Study site – Piloting the instruments & what was done with the data, changes to the instruments – Study participants’ selection criteria – Recruitment process – Sampling (e.g. random, convenience, theoretical), refusals, attrition – Data collection methods – Data analysis & the use of software

When presenting study results Be concise – short sentences Use simple language Do not use vague terms Use active voice Provide evidence for your arguments Interpret the results for the reader

Qualitative research papers Allow more flexibility in data presentation than quantitative research findings Use of quotes to illustrate participants’ perspectives Presentation of case studies

What goes in a Discussion section? In the Discussion section, summarize your findings Discussion presents systematic analysis Discussion may include practical/policy implications of findings Compare your findings with other research Be explicit how your research contributes to theory/practice/policy Suggest new areas of research

Conclusions Do not introduce new arguments in the conclusion Conclusions sums up the key points of your argument Restatement of the significance and importance of the findings

SUMMARY Read other people’s work Write and submit manuscripts as often as you can Learn from mistakes/reviewers’ comments, so you do not repeat them in subsequent manuscripts Practice is the best way to learn BE PERSISTENT & DO NOT GIVE UP!