Special Issue Policies

Special Issue Policy

The Editor-in-Chief or the editorial board can invite experts or scholars (from universities or international projects, i.e. COST) as Issue Editors for Special Issues on emerging topics regarding the scope of the journal.

All Special Issues are subject to the same standards of editorial quality, research integrity, and peer review as regular issues of the journal.

The final decision regarding the approval of a Special Issue rests jointly with the Editor-in-Chief and the Editorial Board.

Qualifications of Guest Editors

The Editor-in-Chief retains overall responsibility for editorial integrity, ethical compliance, publication decisions, and adherence to journal policies.
Guest Editors / Special Issue Editors are expected to possess expertise in the proposed field as well as prior editorial, reviewing, or academic experience;

The Editorial Board may review the progress of any Special Issue and may intervene when necessary to ensure compliance with journal standards.

Peer Review Process

All manuscripts submitted to a Special Issue undergo the same editorial screening, plagiarism checks, ethical assessment, and double-anonymized peer review procedures applied to regular submissions. Each manuscript is evaluated by at least two independent reviewers with relevant expertise, avoiding any issues regarding conflicts of interest.

Acceptance standards for Special Issue submissions are identical to those applied to regular issues. Guest Editors may not bypass or modify the journal's established peer review procedures. Guest Editor Authorship is subject to the same double-anonymised peer review process as all other manuscripts. The Guest Editor is excluded from all editorial decisions and reviewer selection in case of any conflict of interest.