Editorial Performance Metrics

Key Information

• Submission to First Decision and Submission to Acceptance are reported using median calendar days.
• Acceptance to Online Publication is reported using average calendar days.
• Acceptance Rate is based on final accepted and declined editorial decisions.
• Desk rejections are included in the declined submissions used for Acceptance Rate.
• Article usage statistics are collected through the journal platform.
• Citation counts are supplied by external scholarly indexing services.

1. Overview

Editorial Performance Metrics are intended to improve transparency in scholarly publishing by providing information about the journal's editorial workflow, publication timelines, article usage, and citation activity.

Different statistical methods are applied according to the nature of each metric. Median values are used for editorial processing times where appropriate, while the average is used for the period between acceptance and online publication.

The eligibility criteria are not identical across all metrics. Editorial processing statistics, acceptance statistics, article usage, and citation counts are calculated from their respective data sources and rules.

2. Editorial Speed Metrics

2.1. Submission to First Decision

The median number of calendar days between initial manuscript submission and the earliest recorded Stage 1 editorial decision. First decisions may include acceptance, revisions required, decline, or initial decline (desk rejection).

Only completed submissions with valid submission and decision dates are included. The median is rounded up to the nearest whole day.

2.2. Submission to Acceptance

The median number of calendar days from initial submission to the latest recorded ACCEPT decision for each submission with valid dates.

The median is rounded up to the nearest whole day. This metric measures the time until the final recorded acceptance decision, not the time until online publication.

2.3. Acceptance to Online Publication

The average number of calendar days between the latest recorded editorial acceptance decision and the article's online publication date.

Only currently published articles with valid dates are included. The average is rounded up to the nearest whole day. The publication date of the journal issue is not used.

3. Acceptance Rate

Acceptance Rate represents the percentage of submissions with an accepted final editorial outcome among all submissions with an accepted or declined final editorial outcome.

Accepted decisions include acceptance, acceptance without external review, and decisions to send a submission to production. Declined decisions include initial decline (desk rejection) and decline.

Calculation Formula

Acceptance Rate =

Accepted Submissions ÷ (Accepted Submissions + Declined Submissions) × 100

Incomplete and imported submissions are excluded according to PKP editorial statistics rules. Submissions without a final accepted or declined outcome are not included in the calculation.

Important: Acceptance Rate reflects the proportion of final editorial outcomes that are accepted. It should not be interpreted as a direct measure of journal quality, scientific impact, or publication difficulty.

4. Article Metrics

Article Metrics describe how readers access published articles through the journal platform. The available indicators depend on the publication formats provided for each article.

Usage statistics indicate readership and access to published content. They should not be regarded as direct measures of research quality, scholarly influence, or citation impact.

5. Citation Metrics

5.1. Crossref Cited-by

Crossref Cited-by displays citation relationships deposited by participating Crossref members. Citation counts may increase as additional publishers register references and citation relationships with Crossref.

5.2. Dimensions

Dimensions provides citation counts and broader scholarly research indicators based on its indexed publications and related research outputs.

Citation counts may differ between scholarly databases because each service applies different indexing policies, source coverage, update schedules, and citation-matching methods.

6. Data Updates

Editorial Performance Metrics are refreshed automatically through a 24-hour cache cycle. Consequently, changes to editorial records may not be reflected immediately on the public page.

Article usage statistics are collected through activity recorded by the journal platform. Their displayed values depend on the platform's statistics processing and counting rules.

Citation Metrics depend on data deposited, indexed, and updated by external scholarly services. These values may therefore differ between services and may not be synchronized with the journal's internal statistics.

7. Methodology

The journal applies metric-specific calculation rules to maintain consistency between reported statistics and the underlying editorial and publication records.

1. First Decision: earliest recorded Stage 1 editorial decision; completed submissions with valid dates; median calendar days, rounded up.
2. Submission to Acceptance: latest recorded ACCEPT decision for each submission; median calendar days, rounded up.
3. Acceptance to Online Publication: latest ACCEPT decision to the article's online publication date; currently published articles; average calendar days, rounded up.
4. Acceptance Rate: accepted submissions divided by accepted plus declined submissions, multiplied by 100; calculated using PKP editorial statistics rules.
5. Article Metrics: usage data recorded through the journal platform.
6. Citation Metrics: citation data supplied by external scholarly indexing services.

Calculation note: Calendar-day durations are calculated from recorded editorial and publication dates. Each metric applies its own eligibility criteria; the same submission population is not necessarily used for every metric.

8. Transparency Statement

The journal is committed to maintaining transparent, consistent, and reproducible editorial statistics. Editorial Performance Metrics are generated automatically from records maintained within Open Journal Systems (OJS), using the calculation rules described on this page.

The journal applies defined eligibility criteria and statistical methods when processing editorial records. These criteria may result in certain records being excluded from specific metrics, as explained in the relevant methodology sections.

These statistics are intended to support transparency in scholarly publishing and help authors and readers understand the journal's editorial processes.