Systematic Review

Publishing your Systematic Review 

Finding the best journal to publish your work Identifying the best journal to submit your research to can be difficult. Authors, beware of predatory journals! To help you make the choice of where to submit, Think. Check. Submit. has produced a video that includes a checklist for authors to use to find the right journal.

Using a journal matching technology based on your manuscript title and abstract, the following tools can help you find journals that could be best suited for publishing your systematic review article. You will also need to consult the journal’s aims and scope for further guidance. Insert your title and abstract, and select the appropriate field of research for the best results.

Journal Finder Tools

1. Search the UMD SciFree tool to find journals with open-access agreements that waive author fees for UMD faculty and students.

2. Try finding journals by entering your manuscript’s title or abstract.

Author Rights

Protect your intellectual work with SPARC Addendum!

"The SPARC Author Addendum is a legal instrument that modifies the publisher’s agreement and allows you to keep key rights to your articles. The Author Addendum is a free resource developed by SPARC in partnership with Creative Commons and Science Commons, established non-profit organizations that offer a range of copyright options for many different creative endeavors."

For more information, visit SPARC's website.

Equitable Citation Practice

Introduction

Citation Practice has broad implications for who gets a voice in academia. Much of the tenure practice is based on "impact" produced by citations. Academia has been excruciatingly slow at incorporating different metrics of impact. So, who is being cited results in who gets promoted, who conducts research, and the voices that speak in our classrooms.

“Citation behavior is the product of institutional structures and individual habits. Imbalances in citation behavior, therefore, are produced by both institutional biases and individual biases. By bias, we mean discriminatory (or, conversely, preferential) values, practices, or mechanisms, typically resulting in material, psychological, or physical harms.”

Source: Dworkin, J., Zurn, P., & Bassett, D. S. (2020). (In) citing action to realize an equitable future. Neuron, 106(6), 890-894. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2020.05.011

• Research Equity (PowerPoint slides)
• Include a diversity statement for citations in your manuscript

Resources to help with critical citation practice

• Black Authors
  • BIPOC Scientists Citation (Rockefeller University) - Resources for identifying BIPOC scientists
  • Cite Black Authors - A database of self-identified Black scholars to cite in a wide variety of fields and subjects.
• Neuroscientists
  • Women in Neuroscience
  • Anne's List
  • BiasWatchNeuro
• Gender Bias Tools
  • Gender Citation Balance Index tool
  • Gender Balance Assessment Tool (GBAT)
• Humanities Research - check these resources for inclusive and equitable research.

Platform for Responsible Editorial Policies

"PREP is an online platform contributing to the responsible organisation of editorial procedures by scholarly journals. It enables journal editors to be transparent about their editorial procedures, advises journal editors and publishers on potential improvements to their peer review procedures, and presents integrated information on the variety of review procedures currently in use. PREP also maintains a database of journals’ current peer review formats and provides information and tools for journals to use journal metrics in a responsible way."