Peer review process

We rely on a double-blind external review process (authors and reviewers do not know each other's identities at the time of review). Each academic article submitted to the journal is evaluated by at least two independent reviewers whose affiliations differ from those of the authors.

The rules applicable to authors, editors and reviewers are set out in the Publication Ethics and Open Access Statement. If a text is submitted by editors of Widok, they are fully excluded from all stages of the review process.

The review process described below applies to academic research articles. Texts that are only evaluated internally are published in the  following sections of the journal Snapshots, Viewpoint and Perspectives. The entire process, from submission to editorial decision, takes approximately 12 weeks, but may be extended for reasons beyond the editorial team's control. Information about the subsequent stages is communicated to the authors by email. The reviewers include Polish and foreign scholars, eminent specialists in various fields of visual culture and contemporary art research. They are required to notify the editorial board in the event of any conflict of interest.

Articles submitted for publication should be consistent with the thematic scope of the journal and meet formal and ethical requirements.

The criteria for article evaluation are outlined in the review form with the following structure:

    1. Does the article introduce new qualities to the research in the given field? If yes, how?
      • In defining its thematic scope
      • In the way the issues are presented
      • In the proposed interpretation
      • Methodologically
      • Other
    2. What are the virtues of the article?
    3. What are the shortcomings of the article?
    4. Is the article well constructed? Does it have any stylistic errors?
    5. Could the article be cut down without compromising the analysis? If yes, where?
    6. Does the article make good use of other research on the topic?
    7. Are the illustrations (if there are any) well chosen and appropriately placed?
    8. Other remarks.

    If the reviewers' suggestions and recommendations are contradictory, the editorial team may refer the text for a third review or consult the Academic Board. The editorial team forwards the reviewers' comments and suggestions to the author, ensuring anonymity. It also provides its own comments on the submitted texts. The final decision on whether to accept a text for publication, refer it for revision or reject it is made by the editorial team on the basis of:

    • the quality of the text and the research presented therein;
    • the significance of the work for the scientific community;
    • the opinions of the reviewers;
    • the applicable legal requirements regarding defamation, copyright infringement and plagiarism.

    The editorial team reserves the right to reject articles without submitting them for review (desk rejection).