About the Journal

About the Journal

Contents

The Scholarship of Research is an international, peer-reviewed scientific journal dedicated to the scholarship, methodology, and critical thinking that shape and advance health and care research.

Rather than focusing exclusively on research findings, The Scholarship of Research considers the research process itself as an object of scientific inquiry. The Journal provides an interdisciplinary forum for examining how research is conceptualized, designed, conducted, analysed, interpreted, reported, challenged, and improved.

The Journal publishes scholarship addressing research design and protocols, methodological and analytical innovation, theory and conceptual development, ethics and epistemology, replication and reproducibility, research tools and software, open science, research integrity, and scientific dialogue. Particular attention is given to contributions that strengthen the methodological, theoretical, ethical, epistemological, or practical foundations of research.

The Scholarship of Research is based on the principle that research findings represent only one component of scientific knowledge. Protocols, methodological innovations, analytical approaches, conceptual frameworks, theoretical developments, replication studies, informative null findings, methodological lessons, ethical analyses, epistemological inquiry, research tools, software, and rigorous scientific debate may all contribute meaningfully to the advancement of knowledge.

The Journal therefore seeks to connect areas of scholarship that are often addressed separately, creating an integrated intellectual space where methods, protocols, theory, analytics, ethics, epistemology, philosophy, technology, and research practice can inform one another.

Its interdisciplinary orientation extends across health sciences, nursing, medicine, allied health sciences, public health, epidemiology, biostatistics, qualitative and mixed-methods research, psychology, sociology, anthropology, philosophy, bioethics, health services research, implementation science, engineering, computer science, data science, artificial intelligence, computational linguistics, health informatics, psychometrics, and measurement science.

Artificial intelligence represents an important cross-cutting area of interest. The Journal welcomes rigorous scholarship examining AI as a research method, analytical technology, research practice, ethical challenge, and epistemological question, including the implications of machine learning, Large Language Models, automation, human–AI collaboration, algorithmic interpretation, transparency, accountability, and meaningful human oversight.

The Journal is not intended to function as a general health sciences journal. Conventional clinical, observational, qualitative, or intervention studies are considered when their primary contribution advances a methodological, theoretical, conceptual, ethical, epistemological, analytical, or research-practice question.

The central question underlying the Journal's editorial mission is: How can we produce better health and care research?

In this context, better research means research that is methodologically rigorous, theoretically informed, analytically robust, transparent and reproducible, ethically responsible, epistemologically aware, interdisciplinary, innovative, and scientifically meaningful.

The editorial scope of The Scholarship of Research includes six interconnected domains:

  • Research Design & Protocols
  • Methods & Analytics
  • Theory & Concepts
  • Ethics, Epistemology & Philosophy of Research
  • Scientific Dialogue
  • Research Practice & Open Science

Together, these domains reflect the Journal's broader purpose: to provide a scholarly forum for both doing research and thinking critically about research.

The Scholarship of Research is published in English and is intended for researchers, methodologists, clinicians, statisticians, biostatisticians, qualitative researchers, data scientists, computer scientists, engineers, philosophers, bioethicists, research leaders, educators, and other scholars interested in how scientific knowledge is produced and improved.

The science behind, around, and beyond research findings.


External Rigorous Peer Review

Submissions to The Scholarship of Research undergo editorial assessment and, where appropriate to the article type, rigorous external peer review before a final editorial decision is made.

The initial editorial assessment considers the manuscript's relevance to the Journal's aims and scope, scientific and scholarly contribution, methodological or conceptual rigor, originality, ethical compliance, transparency, competing interests, data and research integrity requirements, and adherence to applicable reporting standards.

Manuscripts considered suitable for external evaluation are normally assessed by at least two independent reviewers with relevant methodological, disciplinary, or subject expertise. The Journal applies a double-anonymous peer-review process to standard peer-reviewed submissions, with the identities of authors and reviewers concealed from one another during the review process.

Because The Scholarship of Research publishes a broad range of scholarly formats, including methodological papers, protocols, theoretical and conceptual contributions, ethical and epistemological analyses, debates, perspectives, and other forms of scientific dialogue, the specific review process may be adapted to the nature of the contribution while maintaining appropriate standards of independence, rigor, transparency, and editorial oversight.

Where revisions are required, authors are invited to provide a revised manuscript together with a detailed response addressing the comments raised by reviewers and editors.

Submissions may undergo similarity and originality screening as part of the Journal's research-integrity procedures. The Editors oversee the peer-review process and retain full responsibility for the final editorial decision.

Open Access Policy

The Scholarship of Research is a fully open-access journal. Published articles are freely, immediately, and permanently available online without subscription barriers or embargo periods.

Detailed information concerning open access, copyright, licensing, author rights, reuse, self-archiving, and third-party material is available in the Journal's Open Access Policy.

Continuous Publication

The Scholarship of Research operates a continuous publication model. Manuscripts may be submitted at any time throughout the year.

Once an article has successfully completed peer review, been formally accepted, and completed the editorial and production process, it is published online individually as the final Version of Record without waiting for the completion of a scheduled issue.

The Journal publishes one annual volume. Articles are assigned to the current annual volume in the order in which they are published and are not organized into issues.

This model enables accepted research to enter the scholarly record as soon as it is ready for publication, supporting timely dissemination, citation, discoverability, and access.

Publication Fees

The Scholarship of Research operates as a diamond open-access journal and does not charge fees to authors or readers.

The Journal does not charge article processing charges (APCs), submission fees, publication fees, page charges, colour figure charges, supplementary material fees, subscription fees, or pay-per-view charges.

Editorial assessment, peer review, acceptance, rejection, and publication decisions are entirely independent of financial considerations.

Further information is available in the Journal's Open Access Policy.

Business Practices

The Scholarship of Research operates according to internationally recognized principles of transparency and best practice in scholarly publishing. Editorial evaluation, peer review, and publication decisions are conducted independently of commercial, financial, institutional, or other external interests.

Revenue Sources

The Journal is primarily supported by its publisher, iEditore, and may receive additional support through transparent institutional collaborations, scholarly partnerships, research initiatives, or other activities consistent with its scientific mission.

The Journal does not derive revenue from article processing charges, submission fees, subscriptions, pay-per-view access, or paid commercial advertising.

The Journal is committed to transparent disclosure of its principal sources of financial support. Revenue arrangements do not determine or influence editorial decisions.

Sponsorship

The Scholarship of Research may receive financial, institutional, academic, or organizational support from external partners.

Any such support must remain clearly separated from editorial decision-making. Sponsors, institutional partners, funding bodies, and other supporting organizations have no authority over peer review, manuscript evaluation, reviewer selection, or publication decisions.

All editorial decisions are based on scholarly quality, methodological or conceptual rigor, originality, ethical compliance, and relevance to the Journal's aims and scope.

Editorial Independence

The Editor-in-Chief and Editorial Board retain full authority over the Journal's editorial content and publication decisions.

The Publisher, sponsors, institutional partners, funding bodies, and other external parties may not interfere with manuscript evaluation, peer review, reviewer recommendations, editorial judgments, or decisions concerning acceptance or rejection.

This separation between editorial responsibility and commercial or institutional interests is fundamental to the scientific integrity of The Scholarship of Research.

Direct Marketing

Any direct marketing or promotional communication undertaken on behalf of The Scholarship of Research, including calls for papers, invitations to submit manuscripts, thematic collection announcements, and other editorial communications, must be truthful, professional, appropriately targeted, and unobtrusive.

The Journal does not engage in misleading, persistent, or indiscriminate solicitation. Promotional communications must accurately represent the Journal's aims and scope, peer-review procedures, continuous publication model, publication fees, indexing status, and editorial services.

An invitation to submit a manuscript does not guarantee acceptance, expedited publication, or preferential editorial treatment. All submissions are evaluated according to the Journal's established editorial and peer-review procedures.

Recipients may request not to receive further promotional communications. Personal information used for journal communications is processed in accordance with the Journal's Privacy Policy and applicable data-protection legislation.

No Advertising Policy

The Scholarship of Research does not accept, publish, or display paid commercial advertisements within scholarly articles, published content, or the Journal website.

Calls for papers, journal announcements, thematic collection notices, conference information, and communications concerning the Journal's own scholarly, scientific, or editorial activities are not considered commercial advertising.

The absence of commercial advertising helps preserve a clear separation between scholarly content and commercial interests. Editorial decisions are based exclusively on scientific and scholarly quality, methodological or conceptual rigor, ethical compliance, originality, and relevance to the Journal's scope.

Publication Ethics

The Scholarship of Research is committed to maintaining the integrity, transparency, accountability, and reliability of the scholarly record.

The responsibilities of editors, reviewers, and authors regarding publication ethics, research integrity, authorship, competing interests, data integrity, research misconduct, duplicate publication, plagiarism, peer-review ethics, citation integrity, research transparency, and other aspects of responsible scholarly publishing are defined in the Journal's Editorial Policies.

Given the Journal's particular interest in artificial intelligence and emerging research technologies, the use of generative artificial intelligence and AI-assisted technologies in research, analysis, authorship, peer review, and scholarly communication is additionally governed by the Journal's Artificial Intelligence Policy.

Corrections and Retractions

The Scholarship of Research is committed to preserving the accuracy and integrity of the scholarly record. Published Versions of Record should remain permanent, accessible, and unaltered to the greatest extent possible.

When significant errors, concerns, or evidence of research or publication misconduct arise following publication, the Journal may publish corrections, expressions of concern, retractions, or other appropriate notices in accordance with internationally recognized standards of scholarly publishing.

Corrections

When an error materially affects the interpretation, evaluation, accuracy, or scholarly understanding of a published article without invalidating the work as a whole, The Scholarship of Research may publish a formal correction.

The correction notice will be published as a separate scholarly record, permanently linked to the original article, and will clearly describe the nature of the correction while preserving the integrity and traceability of the published record.

Retractions

The Scholarship of Research may retract a published article when there is clear evidence that:

  • the findings, analyses, or conclusions are unreliable because of misconduct or major error;
  • the article contains fabricated, falsified, or materially manipulated data or evidence;
  • the work constitutes plagiarism;
  • the article substantially duplicates previously published work without appropriate justification or disclosure;
  • the research was conducted or reported in serious violation of applicable ethical standards;
  • authorship, peer review, or publication processes were materially compromised; or
  • other circumstances substantially undermine the reliability or integrity of the published record.

Retractions are accompanied by a clearly identifiable retraction notice permanently linked to the affected article. Where an investigation is ongoing and significant concerns remain unresolved, the Journal may publish an expression of concern pending the outcome of the investigation.

Abstracting, Indexing, and Scholarly Visibility

The Scholarship of Research is a newly established scientific journal. As part of its development, the Editorial Office is progressively building the Journal's scholarly infrastructure, discoverability, metadata dissemination, and long-term visibility within the international research community.

The Journal will pursue registration, inclusion, abstracting, and indexing in appropriate scholarly discovery services, bibliographic databases, library catalogues, research infrastructures, and disciplinary or multidisciplinary indexing systems as the relevant technical, editorial, publication-history, and eligibility requirements are met.

This process will be undertaken progressively and in accordance with the independent evaluation criteria and timelines established by each service. No inclusion or indexing status will be claimed by the Journal until it has been formally confirmed by the relevant organization or database.

In parallel, the Journal is developing the technical and editorial standards required to support reliable metadata exchange, persistent identification, citation discovery, interoperability, preservation, and international dissemination of its continuously published content.

Verified abstracting, indexing, registration, and discovery services will be listed on this page as they become formally available.

Archiving

The Scholarship of Research is committed to the long-term preservation, accessibility, and integrity of its scholarly content.

The Journal adopts recognized digital preservation and archiving practices and supports the responsible deposit and dissemination of published articles through appropriate repositories and scholarly infrastructures.

Under the Journal's continuous publication model, each Version of Record is preserved as part of the permanent scholarly record following publication.

Detailed information concerning digital preservation, self-archiving, repository deposit, and long-term access is provided in the Journal's Archiving Policy.