Home > About the journal > Submitting material to the journal

Submitting material to the journal

The journal publishes a range of material, from full academic articles and papers to short research notes and reflections on social work and related areas nationally and internationally.

The journal publishes material presented or to be presented in the School for Social Work Theory and Practice, at IUC Dubrovnik. This provides authors with a live reception of their work in an audience of peers, academics and students as well as practitioners. The papers therefore benefit from an iterative process of peer review. Authors may expect guidance and advice on how to continue the work on the paper. The symposia, in the spirit of collegiality, will provide a forum where all participants can benefit from constructive critique which will benefit the development of their ideas.

Submission and selection procedure

For a paper to be accepted for delivery at a given course the author has agree a topic with the organising course Director by submitting and abstract of no more than 200 words to the organising course Director by February 28th. The topic of the paper should cohere with the focus of the course for that year. Once agreed draft versions of the papers should be submitted to the course directors by May 15th.

Papers will be presented at the symposia in June. The School of Social Work fosters knowledge exchange and discussions will assist in the development of ideas. During the symposia Directors will identify which papers are to be invited for publication as ‘reviewed articles’ or as papers for other, non-reviewed sections of the journal. Each course will also incorporate space for feedback and discussions of papers to exchange ideas on how ideas and papers can be developed.

By the end of July all papers identified for publication in the journal will need to be submitted for review. The papers are reviewed independently of the course directors for the given course.

Alternatively, on invitation some papers can be commissioned or submitted to be published prior to the presentation at IUC. These should be submitted by the end of July and will be subject to the peer review process in the same manner.

All contribution should be submitted to the editors by e-mail or to the organising course director who are identified in the course details for the given year. In submitting material for consideration, please work to the following guidelines.

Instructions for Authors of Academic Papers.

Authors should send two versions of their manuscript. One should be a complete text, while in the second all document information identifying the author should be removed from files to allow them to be sent anonymously to referees. Authors are asked to define the anonymous version as “File for review”. The submissions should be sent in Word.

Authors should state that the article has not been published previously and has not been submitted for any other publication. If more than one author it must be stated that co-authors agree with submission to the journal.

Length and presentation: Academic articles should be between 5,000 and 8,000 words, including abstract, keywords and references. All material should be typed double-spaced and justified to the left throughout. Ample margins should be allowed. The pages should be numbered serially. Papers should conform to the guidance for submission of papers for the journal.

Abstract and Keywords: An abstract of not more than 200 words and up to 6 keywords will be requested. First keyword should denote the content of the specific course where the paper was or would be presented. If the paper is accepted for publication, the contributor will also be expected to supply the abstract and keywords in either their own first language or the language of the country from which the contribution is made.

Up to two levels of sub-headings are permitted as a means of dividing up the text and indicating to the reader the structure of the article. Notes, when necessary, should be numbered continuously and will be printed as end notes. These should also be typed on a separate page. Tables and Figures should be comprehensible without reference to the text. Each must be uploaded as a separate file, with the desired position indicated in the text and numbered continuously (for example, Table 1, Table 2; Figure 1, Figure 2 etc.). Where various shadings are used within one figure please ensure that it is easy to differentiate between them.

Assessment Criteria: Peer review of full academic papers will judge the quality of the submission using the following criteria:

Is the content of the article explicitly related to social work, social care or the social professions?
If addressing local or national concerns, is the material appropriately contextualised, and the national context explained, in order to assist understanding by an international audience?
Is the purpose of the article clear, and does it achieve its purpose?
Is the article well structured and clearly written, including English language expression, that it uses a style that is easily understood but at the same time able to express complex ideas and concepts?
Is the article grounded within relevant and current literature, including literature that supports the international relevance of the topic?
If the article is research-based, is the methodology sound, including statistical analysis if used?
Are the references complete and do they follow the Harvard system?
Has the author included an accurate abstract and keywords?
Is the article within the permitted word length (5,000 - 8,000 words including abstract, keywords and references)?

Instructions for submission of material for other sections of the journal

Views and Reviews Section

Views: In this section views expressed in the courses or on special topics as well as international book reviews will be published.Views could be critical reflections and reports on the courses, summarising the discussion and expressing one’s point of view on the topic. They could also be pamphlets on individual topics of contributors concerns which cohere with the topic of the course in the given year.Views contributions should not exceed 1500 words (inclusive of any references).

Reviews

International Book Reviews section is primarily aimed to provide reviews of the social work literature (books, journals, research reports and other published materials) not published in English. The aim is to provide insight on what is published beyond the dominant language limits and to provide readership with information otherwise not available in English.Submissions of books and other published materials for review are also possible. All books reviews must be approved in advance by one of the two editors. Only books relevant to social work will be reviewed. Book reviewers may propose a book for review. Book authors, of course, may not review their own work. Reviewers can be suggested. If the material is accepted for a review and a reviewer is not suggested, the book reviews editor will allocate a reviewer. Reviewers should refrain from agreeing to review any book with which they have a conflict of interest. Queries from reviewers regarding proposed book reviews should be e-mailed to the book review editor. Queries from publishers and/or authors regarding submission of review copies of books should also be e-mailed to the book review editor.

Content: Each review as a minimum should contain:

the author's qualifications and perhaps any relevant previous work he/she has published as well as any pertinent information about him/her:
a description of the aim(s) of the book with a short summary, its proposed audience, its organization, and its major thesis; and its usefulness for social work education and/or practice, especially as it relates to social work values and ethics
a discussion of the book's strengths and weaknesses.

Length: Reviews will typically run 500-1,500 words, but may exceed this length, if necessary. There is no need either to pad the review or feel cramped. Say what needs to be said.
Style: Reviews should be critical but non-polemical, pointing out the strengths as well as weaknesses of the work.

Submissions should be sent in Word format to .

Country Perspectives: Contributions are invited in the form of short reflective pieces on social work within specific geographical contexts. These could be centred on social policy, service organisation, state of art of social work science and profession, developments and innovations in organisation, methods etc.; or they may be combined with a report of a national or international event (conference, congress, workshop, etc.) that has taken place in the country in question. For the purpose of compiling a cross country data base guidelines can be used.

The Country Perspectives contributions should not exceed 3,000 words, should have keyword and abstract (if longer than 2,000 words) and preferably list of references. They will be subject to peer review process. Contributions are to be sent to the editors ( ) in Word format.

Projects: In this section contributions are invited that report on research or developmental projects, on innovations in social work, social care and social security as well as related areas. These could be summary findings from research studies, together with abstracts from doctoral dissertations and other students’ projects, and summaries of projects and innovations work that has not yet been published. If the contributions exceed 1,500 words (but no more than 3,000 words) they should have an abstract and keyword and will be subject to peer review process.

Comments by the readership on the contributions will be possible on-line (upon registration). The comments will be revised to ensure the high standard of discussion by editors.

Dialogue on Praxis is a dialogic feature of this journal. It is a forum of ideas and praxis reports. It will provide a space for an on-going discussion on the selected topics. The topics may be suggested at the IUC courses or independently by the readership. The proposal of the topic should entail the title and a short introduction (not more than 500 words) specifying the issue, express a thesis and point out the possible directions of the debate. An administrator or an editor for each topic will be appointed by the editors and will be rotated regularly to ensure the high quality of discussion and that it is well grounded in theory, empirical data or experience and articulated in a manner that is both easily understood and well explained.

Style guidelines can be accessed via - LINK

If you have any questions about references or formatting your article, please contact the editors ( ).

Proofs of full papers will be sent to authors for correction and should be returned within one week of receipt. No changes to content are permitted at this stage and alterations are restricted to correction of typographical errors. Proofs for checking, and offprints, will be sent to the author named for correspondence on the front sheet.

Submission of a contribution implies that the author(s) is transferring the copyright to the publishers, but retains the right to publish the material (including the editor’s corrections) if the publishing details in DIALOGUE IN PRAXIS are properly and fully quoted.

Exceptions are made for certain Governments' employees whose policies require that copyright cannot be transferred to other parties. We ask that a signed statement to this effect is submitted when returning proofs for accepted papers.