Peer Review Policy

Double-Blind Peer Review Policy

Modern Multidisciplinary Research Review follows a structured and independent peer-review process to support academic quality, impartial evaluation, originality, methodological reliability, and research integrity.

Peer Review Policy

Modern Multidisciplinary Research Review (MMRR) follows a rigorous double-blind peer-review policy for research manuscripts submitted for publication. The purpose of peer review is to evaluate the scholarly quality, originality, methodological soundness, ethical compliance, and relevance of each manuscript before an editorial decision is made.

Under the double-blind model, the identities of the authors are concealed from the reviewers, and the identities of the reviewers are not disclosed to the authors. This confidentiality is intended to reduce personal, institutional, geographical, professional, or reputational influence on the evaluation process.

Peer review provides expert recommendations to the editorial team but does not itself determine publication. The final decision remains with the Editor-in-Chief or an authorized handling editor acting in accordance with the journal’s editorial and ethical policies.

Double-Blind Review Model

Author Identity Protected

Reviewers receive an anonymized version of the manuscript from which author names, affiliations, contact details, acknowledgements, and other directly identifying information should be removed.

Reviewer Identity Protected

Reviewer names and identifying details are treated as confidential and are not disclosed to the authors unless disclosure is specifically permitted under an applicable journal procedure.

Peer Review Process

1

Submission and Administrative Check

The editorial office examines the submission for completeness, required files, author information, manuscript structure, references, declarations, formatting, and compliance with the journal’s submission requirements.

2

Initial Editorial Screening

The manuscript is assessed for relevance to the journal’s aims and scope, academic quality, originality, clarity, ethical compliance, methodological suitability, and potential contribution to the journal’s multidisciplinary readership.

3

Originality and Integrity Assessment

The submission may be examined using similarity-detection software and editorial checks. A similarity report is interpreted by the editorial team and is not treated as automatic proof of plagiarism. Improper attribution, substantial unattributed overlap, duplicate publication, or manipulated text may result in rejection or further investigation.

4

Reviewer Selection

Manuscripts passing preliminary screening are normally assigned to at least two independent reviewers with suitable subject knowledge, research experience, and methodological expertise. Reviewer selection considers expertise, independence, availability, and potential competing interests.

5

Independent Expert Evaluation

Reviewers independently examine the manuscript and submit confidential comments, recommendations, and constructive feedback. Reviewers are expected to evaluate the work objectively, respectfully, and within the agreed review period.

6

Author Revision

When revision is requested, authors must submit a revised manuscript together with a clear point-by-point response explaining how each reviewer and editorial comment has been addressed. Authors should justify any recommendation they have not followed.

7

Re-evaluation

Revised manuscripts may be returned to the original reviewers or evaluated by the handling editor. Major revisions generally require further assessment to confirm whether the identified academic, methodological, or reporting concerns have been adequately resolved.

8

Final Editorial Decision

The Editor-in-Chief or authorized handling editor considers the manuscript, reviewer reports, author responses, ethical requirements, and editorial standards before issuing the final decision.

Evaluation Criteria

Reviewers are requested to evaluate manuscripts using criteria appropriate to the discipline, study design, and article type. Assessment may include:

Originality, novelty, and significance of the research
Relevance to the journal’s declared aims and scope
Clarity and importance of the research problem
Appropriateness of the theoretical or conceptual framework
Soundness of the research design and methodology
Adequacy of data collection and analytical procedures
Accuracy and transparency of results reporting
Validity of interpretations, discussion, and conclusions
Appropriate engagement with relevant scholarly literature
Quality, clarity, organization, and readability of the manuscript
Ethical compliance and protection of research participants
Limitations, reproducibility, and overall scholarly contribution

Editorial Decision Categories

Following editorial and peer-review assessment, a manuscript may receive one of the following decisions:

Accept

The manuscript is suitable for publication, subject to final editorial and production checks.

Minor Revision

Limited corrections or clarifications are required before final acceptance can be considered.

Major Revision

Substantial changes, additional analysis, or detailed responses are required before further evaluation.

Reject

The manuscript does not sufficiently meet the journal’s academic, ethical, methodological, or scope requirements.

A request for revision does not constitute acceptance. Revised manuscripts remain subject to editorial examination, further peer review where required, and a final publication decision.

Role of the Editor-in-Chief

The Editor-in-Chief is responsible for protecting the independence, consistency, fairness, and integrity of the editorial decision-making process. Decisions are based on scholarly merit, relevance, reviewer assessments, ethical compliance, and the overall quality of the manuscript.

Where reviewer recommendations conflict, the Editor-in-Chief or handling editor may obtain an additional review, seek specialist advice, or independently assess the manuscript before making a decision. Editorial decisions must not be influenced by an author’s nationality, institutional affiliation, gender, personal identity, professional status, or unrelated beliefs.

Review Timeline

Indicative Review Period: Approximately 2–6 Weeks

The journal seeks to complete the initial peer-review process within approximately two to six weeks after a manuscript has passed editorial screening and suitable reviewers have accepted the review invitation.

This timeframe is indicative and not guaranteed. The actual review period may vary depending on reviewer availability, subject specialization, manuscript length and complexity, the need for additional reviewers, revision requirements, ethical inquiries, and the responsiveness of authors and reviewers.

The journal does not compromise the quality or independence of peer review merely to achieve a faster publication decision.

Confidentiality Requirements

Participant Confidentiality Responsibility
Editors Must protect manuscript content, author information, reviewer identities, reports, correspondence, and editorial records from unauthorized disclosure.
Reviewers Must treat the manuscript as confidential, avoid sharing or using unpublished material, and securely dispose of review copies after completing the assignment.
Authors Must not attempt to identify, contact, influence, or retaliate against reviewers and must respect confidential editorial communications.
Editorial Staff Must access manuscript and reviewer information only where required for legitimate editorial and publication responsibilities.

Reviewer Independence and Competing Interests

Reviewers must disclose any financial, professional, academic, institutional, collaborative, or personal relationship that could influence—or reasonably be perceived to influence—their assessment.

A reviewer should decline the assignment when they cannot provide an impartial evaluation, lack the required expertise, recognize a serious conflict of interest, or cannot complete the review within a reasonable period. Editors must also disclose and appropriately manage their own competing interests.

Ethical Standards and Research Integrity

Responsible Editorial and Peer-Review Practice

MMRR is committed to recognized principles of publication ethics and responsible editorial conduct. The journal does not tolerate plagiarism, fabrication, falsification, duplicate or redundant publication, inappropriate authorship, manipulated citations, undisclosed competing interests, unethical research, or interference with the peer-review process.

Concerns relating to research or publication integrity may be investigated before or after publication. Authors, reviewers, and editors may be asked to provide supporting documents, ethics approvals, original data, explanations, or other relevant evidence.

Depending on the nature and severity of a concern, the journal may reject a submission, suspend its evaluation, request clarification, contact an institution, publish a correction or expression of concern, retract an article, or take another proportionate editorial action.

Reviewer Responsibilities

  • Provide an objective, evidence-based, and constructive assessment.
  • Comment respectfully and avoid personal or discriminatory language.
  • Assess only matters within the reviewer’s expertise.
  • Identify relevant literature that may have been omitted.
  • Report suspected plagiarism, duplication, fabrication, or ethical concerns.
  • Maintain confidentiality before, during, and after the review.
  • Declare competing interests and decline unsuitable assignments.
  • Do not use unpublished ideas, methods, results, or data for personal benefit.
  • Submit the review within the agreed period or promptly request withdrawal.
  • Do not delegate the review without prior editorial permission.

Author Responsibilities During Review

  • Submit an anonymized manuscript prepared according to the journal’s double-blind review requirements.
  • Provide complete, accurate, original, and ethically conducted research.
  • Respond to editorial and reviewer comments clearly and professionally.
  • Highlight revisions and provide a point-by-point response when requested.
  • Disclose relevant competing interests, funding, permissions, and ethical approvals where applicable.
  • Notify the journal promptly of any error or integrity concern identified during the review process.
  • Avoid simultaneous submission of the same manuscript to another journal.
  • Refrain from attempting to identify or improperly contact reviewers.

Editorial Independence

Editorial decisions are made independently and are based on the academic merit, ethical acceptability, methodological quality, relevance, and clarity of the submitted work. Journal ownership, commercial considerations, author payments, institutional relationships, advertising, sponsorship, or personal influence must not determine whether a manuscript is accepted or rejected.

Final Publication Authority

Final acceptance rests with the Editor-in-Chief or an officially authorized editor. Even after favourable reviewer recommendations, a manuscript may require further revision, clarification, ethical verification, editorial correction, or production compliance before it is formally accepted for publication.