Author Guidelines

Author Guidelines

Please create an account by registering in this journal as an author (do not forget to tick the "Author" box during registration), then submit your paper. Manuscripts should be submitted through the journal's online submission system. For queries, contact the editorial office at jaimlnn@hmjournals.com.

Following submission, the editor sends a confirmation message to the corresponding author within 24 hours. If you do not receive this confirmation within 24 hours, please contact the editor.

All manuscripts must be prepared using the Journal's Paper Template (available in the Downloads section).

We only accept manuscripts in the English language. The main text must be no more than 5,000 words, exclusive of appendices and references.

The Journal operates a double-blind peer-review process; the identities of both reviewers and authors remain anonymous. Each manuscript is peer-reviewed by two independent external reviewers, and the Editor-in-Chief makes the final decision based on their reports. The review process is normally completed within 12–16 weeks. The outcome is e-mailed to the corresponding author, and accepted manuscripts are made available on the journal's website.

There are no article processing charges (APCs) or submission fees for publication in this journal.

Submission Preparation Checklist

As part of the submission process, authors are required to confirm their submission's compliance with all of the following items; submissions that do not adhere may be returned to the author.

  • The submission has not been previously published and is not before another journal for consideration (or an explanation has been provided in Comments to the Editor).
  • The submission file is in OpenOffice, Microsoft Word, or RTF format.
  • Where available, DOIs or URLs for the references have been provided.
  • The text is single-spaced; uses a 12-point font; employs italics rather than underlining (except for URLs); and all illustrations, figures, and tables are placed at the appropriate points within the text rather than at the end.
  • The instructions in "Ensuring a Blind Review" have been followed.
  • All references indicate their DOI numbers where available.

Article Structure

Sections. Divide your article into clearly defined and numbered sections. Subsections should be numbered 1.1 (then 1.1.1, 1.1.2), 1.2, etc. (the abstract is not included in section numbering). Use this numbering for internal cross-referencing; do not simply refer to "the text." Any subsection may be given a brief heading, and each heading should appear on its own line.

Introduction. State the objectives of the work and provide adequate background, avoiding a detailed literature survey or a summary of the results.

Material and Methods. Provide sufficient detail to allow the work to be reproduced by an independent researcher. Methods already published should be summarized and indicated by a reference. If quoting directly from a previously published method, use quotation marks and cite the source. Describe any modifications to existing methods.

Theory/Calculation. A theory section should extend, not repeat, the background already covered in the introduction and lay the foundation for further work. A calculation section represents a practical development from a theoretical basis.

Results. Results should be clear and concise.

Discussion. Explore the significance of the results; do not repeat them. A combined Results and Discussion section is often appropriate. Avoid extensive citation and discussion of published literature.

Conclusions. The main conclusions may be presented in a short Conclusions section, which may stand alone or form a subsection of the Discussion.

Appendices. If there is more than one appendix, identify them as A, B, etc. Give formulae and equations in appendices separate numbering: Eq. (A.1), Eq. (A.2); in a subsequent appendix, Eq. (B.1), and so on. Similarly for tables and figures: Table A.1, Fig. A.1.

Essential Title Page Information

  • Title. Concise and informative. Avoid abbreviations and formulae where possible.
  • Author names and affiliations. Clearly indicate the given name(s) and family name(s) of each author and check that all names are accurately spelled. Present each author's affiliation address (where the work was actually done) below the names, using a lower-case superscript letter to link each author to the appropriate affiliation. Provide the full postal address of each affiliation, including the country name and, where available, the e-mail address of each author.
  • Corresponding author. Clearly indicate who will handle correspondence at all stages of refereeing and publication, including post-publication. Ensure the e-mail address is provided and kept up to date.

Abstract. A concise, factual abstract is required. It should state the purpose of the research, the principal results, and the major conclusions, and must be able to stand alone. References should be avoided in the abstract; if essential, cite the author(s) and year. Non-standard abbreviations should be avoided or defined at first mention.

Keywords. Immediately after the abstract, provide a maximum of 10 keywords, avoiding general and plural terms and multiple concepts. Be sparing with abbreviations; only those firmly established in the field are acceptable. These keywords are used for indexing.

Abbreviations. Define abbreviations that are not standard in the field at their first mention. Ensure consistency throughout the article.

Acknowledgements. Collate acknowledgements in a separate section before the references. List individuals who provided help during the research (e.g., language help, writing assistance, or proofreading).

Funding Sources. List funding sources in a standard form, e.g.: "This work was supported by [Funder Name] [grant number xxxx]." If no funding was received, state: "This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors."

Math Formulae. Submit equations as editable text, not as images. Present simple formulae in line with the text where possible, using the solidus (/) for small fractional terms (e.g., X/Y). Present variables in italics. Number consecutively any equations that must be displayed separately from the text.

Figure Captions. Ensure each illustration has a caption supplied separately (not embedded in the figure). A caption should comprise a brief title and a description of the illustration. Keep text within illustrations to a minimum and explain all symbols and abbreviations.

Tables. Submit tables as editable text, not as images. Number tables consecutively in order of appearance and place any notes below the table body. Ensure the data do not duplicate results described elsewhere. Avoid vertical rules and cell shading.

Citation in Text. Ensure that every reference cited in the text is also present in the reference list, and vice versa. Any references cited in the abstract must be given in full. Unpublished results and personal communications are discouraged in the reference list but may be mentioned in the text. "In press" implies the item has been accepted for publication.

Reference Links. To enable links to abstracting and indexing services such as Scopus, Crossref, and PubMed, ensure the data provided in the references is correct. Incorrect surnames, journal/book titles, publication year, or pagination may prevent link creation. Use of the DOI is highly encouraged, as a DOI is a permanent link to an electronic article. Example: Author A.A., Author B.B. (Year). Title of the article. Journal Name, Volume(Issue), pages. https://doi.org/xx.xxxx/xxxxx

Web References. As a minimum, provide the full URL and the date the reference was last accessed. Add any further available information (DOI, author names, dates, source publication). Web references may be listed separately or within the reference list.

Data References. Cite underlying or relevant datasets in your text and include a data reference in your reference list, containing: author name(s), dataset title, data repository, version (where available), year, and a global persistent identifier. Add [dataset] immediately before the reference; this identifier will not appear in the published article.

Supplementary Material. Supplementary material (applications, images, sound clips) can be published with your article. Submitted items are published exactly as received. Supply a concise caption for each file and switch off "Track Changes" in Microsoft Office files before submission.

Data Statement. To foster transparency, state the availability of your data in your submission. If data are unavailable or unsuitable to post, you may indicate the reason during submission (for example, that the research data is confidential).

Retraction Policy

Retractions are considered by the editors in cases of unreliable data or findings, plagiarism, duplicate publication, or unethical research. All retraction notices explain why the article was retracted; a retraction notice is published in the next available issue and linked to the original article. Editors will consider retracting a publication if:

  • there is clear evidence that the findings are unreliable, whether from major error (e.g., miscalculation or experimental error) or from fabrication (e.g., of data) or falsification (e.g., image manipulation);
  • it constitutes plagiarism;
  • the findings have previously been published elsewhere without proper attribution, permission, or justification (i.e., redundant publication);
  • it contains material or data used without authorization;
  • copyright has been infringed or there is another serious legal issue (e.g., libel, privacy);
  • it reports unethical research;
  • it is based on a compromised or manipulated peer-review process; or
  • the author(s) failed to disclose a major competing interest that would have affected interpretation of the work or the recommendations of editors and reviewers.