Guide to referees

Reviewer Responsibilities

Contribution to editorial decisions
Peer review helps the editor in making editorial decisions, and through editorial links with the author can also help the author to improve the work.

Urgency
Any reviewer who assumes that he does not have the right to review the submitted manuscript or knows that its quick review is not possible should notify the editor and free himself from the review process.

Confidentiality
Any manuscripts received for review should be treated as confidential documents. These documents may not be shown or discussed with anyone other than with the permission of the editor.

Objectivity
Reviews should be conducted objectively. Personal criticism of the author(s) is inappropriate. Reviewers must articulate their views with supporting evidence.

Sources Confirmation
Reviewers should identify relevant published works that have not been cited by the authors. Any statement that has previously been reported about an observation, conclusion or argument must be accompanied by a reference. The reviewer should also draw the attention of the editor to any significant similarity or coincidence between the manuscript in question and any other published article that he knows personally.

Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest
The privileged information or ideas obtained during the review must be kept confidential and not used for personal purposes. Reviewers should not review manuscripts in which they encounter a conflict of interest as a result of competitive, collaborative or other relationships or relationships with any of the authors, companies or institutions.