Author Guidelines
Prepare Your Manuscript
Language Editing- Include a few of your article's keywords in the title of the paper;
- Do not use long article titles;
- Pick 3 to 5 keywords using a mix of generic and more specific terms on the article subject(s);
- Use the maximum amount of keywords in the first two sentences of the abstract;
- Use some of the keywords in level 1 headings.
- Titles that are a mere question without answering.
- Unambitious titles, for example, starting with "Towards", "A description of", "A characterization of", "Preliminary study on".
- Vague titles, for example, starting with "Role of...", "Link between...", "Effect of..." that do not specify the role, link, or effect.
- Include terms that are out of place, for example, the taxonomic affiliation apart from the species name.
- Background of study
- Aims and scope of the paper
- Methods
- Summary of result or findings
- Conclusions
- Begin the Introduction by providing a concise background account of the problem studied.
- State the objective of the investigation. Your research objective is the most essential part of the introduction.
- Establish the significance of your work: Why was there a need to conduct the study?
- Introduce the reader to the pertinent literature. Do not give a complete history of the topic. Only quote previous work having a direct bearing on the present problem. (State-of-the-art, relevant research to justify the novelty of the manuscript.)
- State the gap analysis or novelty statement.
- Clearly state your hypothesis and the variables investigated, and concisely summarize the methods used.
- Define any abbreviations or specialized/regional terms.
- Define the population and the methods of sampling;
- Describe the instrumentation;
- Describe the procedures and, if relevant, the time frame;
- Describe the analysis plan;
- Describe any approaches to ensure validity and reliability;
- Describe statistical tests and the comparisons made; ordinary statistical methods should be used without comment; advanced or unusual methods may require a literature citation;
- Describe the scope and/or limitations of the methodology you used.
- State the Major Findings of the Study;
- Explain the Meaning of the Findings and Why the Findings Are Important;
- Support the answers with the results. Explain how your results relate to expectations and to the literature, clearly stating why they are acceptable and how they are consistent or fit in with previously published knowledge on the topic;
- Relate the Findings to Those of Similar Studies;
- Consider Alternative Explanations of the Findings;
- Implications of the study;
- Acknowledge the Study's Limitations and;
-
Make Suggestions for Further Research.
- The graphic should be simple but informative;
- The use of colour is encouraged;
- The graphic should uphold the standards of a scholarly, professional publication;
- The graphic must be entirely original, unpublished artwork created by one of the co-authors;
- The graphic should not include a photograph, drawing, or caricature of any person, living or deceased;
- Do not include postage stamps or currency from any country, or trademarked items (company logos, images, and products), and;
- Avoid choosing a graphic that already appears within the text of the manuscript.
Tips:
- State your conclusions clearly and concisely. Be brief and stick to the point;
- Explain why your study is essential to the reader. You should instil in the reader a sense of relevance;
- Prove to the reader, and the scientific community, that your findings are worthy of note. This means setting your paper in the context of previous work. The implications of your findings should be discussed within a realistic framework, and;
Reference Examples
Please pay attention to punctuation (comma, dot, etc.), italics and spaces.
Books:
Author's Last Name, First Initial. Second Initial if Given. (Year of Publication). Title of book in italic (edition if given and is not the first edition). Publisher Name.
Anwar, S. (2022). Human caring science: A theory of nursing (2nd ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Book chapters:
Author's Last Name, First Initial. Second Initial if Given. (Year of Publication). Title of chapter. In Editor's First Initial. Second Initial if Given. Editor's Last Name (Ed. or Eds.), book title in italic (edition if given and is not the first edition, pp. first-page number-last page number). Publisher Name
Punjabi, R. (2022). How lay theories (or mindsets) shape the confrontation of prejudice. In R. K. Mallett & M. J. Monteith (Eds.), Confronting prejudice and discrimination: The science of changing minds and behaviours (pp. 121-140). Academic Press.
Journal Articles:
Author's Last Name, First Initial. Second Initial if Given. (Year of Publication). Title of article. Name of Journal in italic, Volume Number in italic(Issue Number), first-page number-last page number. https://doi number
Radja, N. R. (2021). Evolutionary models of extended phenotypes. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 21(2), 261-269. https://doi.org/10.1037/rev0000126
Blog posts:
Author's Last Name, First Initial. Second Initial if Given. (Year, Month Day). Title of post. Website name in italic. URL.
Scoville, H. (2021, July 14). What Is Evolution? A Brief Overview of the History and Concepts of Evolution. ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/what-is-evolution-1224603
Online documents (reports, etc.):
Author's Last Name, First Initial. Second Initial if Given. (Year). Title of the document in italic. Organization if given. URL.
Ngurahrai, G. (2013). A duty of care to children and young people in Western Australia: Report on the quality assurance and review of unsubstantiated allegations of abuse in care. Western Australia Department of Child Protection. http://www.community.wa.gov.au/NR/rdonlyres/851183A4-.pdf
Footnotes
Footnotes can be used only to give additional information. Don’t use them for citation purposes. It is recommended to limit the number of footnotes per page.
Figures and Table Guidelines
- Include scale bars
- Consider labelling important items
- Indicate the meaning of different colours and symbols used
- Clear and concise legend/caption
- Data divided into categories for clarity
- Sufficient spacing between columns and rows
- Units are a provided font type, and sizes are legible