Submissions

Author Guidelines

Studies and Scientific Researches. Economics Edition (SCECO) is committed to publishing high-quality, original contributions that advance knowledge in economics, business, public policy, and related interdisciplinary fields, with a focus on emerging and transition economies and, in particular, Central and Eastern Europe. We encourage submissions that demonstrate conceptual clarity, methodological rigor, and relevance to both academic and practical audiences.

This section provides detailed guidance for prospective authors. Please read it carefully before preparing and submitting your manuscript.

1. Submission Requirements

All manuscripts must be submitted via the journal's Open Journal Systems (OJS) submission platform. Submissions must be:

• Original: The manuscript must not have been previously published or be under simultaneous consideration by another journal.
• Anonymized: To facilitate double-blind peer review, the main manuscript must not include author names or institutional affiliations.
• Ethically compliant: All authors must disclose potential conflicts of interest and confirm adherence to ethical research practices.

Authors are responsible for ensuring the manuscript meets all formal criteria outlined below. Submissions that do not conform may be returned without review.

2. Article Types and Length

SCECO accepts several manuscript types, each tailored to a different academic purpose:

• Original Research Articles (6,000–8,500 words): Comprehensive studies presenting new empirical findings or theoretical insights.
• Review Articles (7,000–10,000 words): Critical overviews of a well-defined body of literature, identifying gaps and future research directions.
• Policy Papers (4,000–6,500 words): Evidence-based analyses with clear implications for policy-making.
• Case Studies (5,000–7,000 words): In-depth examination of single or comparative cases, particularly from emerging and transition economies and Central and Eastern Europe.
• Short Communications (up to 3,000 words): Brief, focused contributions, including conceptual notes or preliminary findings.

All word limits exclude references and appendices.

3. Manuscript Structure

Authors are encouraged to organize their manuscripts using the following structure:

• Title: Concise, informative, and accurately reflecting the content of the paper.
• Abstract: Maximum 250 words, structured to include background, objectives, methods, key findings, and implications.
• Keywords: Between 4 and 6 terms reflecting the core content of the article.
• JEL classification codes: Authors are encouraged to include relevant JEL codes.

Main body sections:

• Introduction: Define the research problem, objectives, and relevance.
• Literature Review: Synthesize previous research and position the study.
• Methodology: Describe data sources, analytical techniques, and research design, with full reporting of specifications and diagnostic tests where applicable.
• Results and Discussion: Present findings clearly and interpret them in context.
• Conclusion and Policy Implications: Summarize contributions and suggest practical or theoretical applications.

References should follow APA (7th edition), applied consistently throughout.

Figures and Tables must be clearly numbered and titled, with sources noted. They should be placed within the text, close to the first mention, and must be legible and internally consistent with the values reported in the text.

Data tables must be provided as editable text, created in the word processor or pasted as text — not as images or screenshots. Output from statistical software (e.g., EViews, Stata, SPSS, R) must be re-entered as editable tables rather than pasted as pictures. This is essential: image tables cannot be verified for numerical consistency during review, cannot be corrected at copy-editing, and cannot be typeset. Manuscripts whose results tables are submitted as images may be returned for reformatting before review. Figures, charts, and diagrams may be supplied as images.

4. Formatting Guidelines

To ensure a smooth review and typesetting process, all submissions must comply with the following:

• Format: MS Word (.docx)
• Page size: A4
• Margins: Top 2 cm, Bottom 2 cm, Left/Right 3 cm
• Font: Garamond
• Language: English (British or American spelling, used consistently)

All of these settings are provided in the journal template (Journal Template file). Manuscripts not meeting these requirements may be returned to authors for correction prior to review.

5. Disclosure on AI Tool Usage

If any artificial intelligence tools (e.g., for grammar correction, translation, coding assistance, or data analysis) were used in preparing the manuscript, authors must disclose this in the Acknowledgements or Methodology section.

AI tools cannot be listed as authors. The corresponding author remains fully responsible for the integrity, originality, and ethical compliance of the content.

For transparency, authors should note that the journal itself may use AI-assisted tools to support editorial screening, under human supervision and subject to confidentiality safeguards, as described on the peer review and privacy pages.

6. Plagiarism and Research Ethics

All submissions are screened using plagiarism-detection software. Manuscripts found to contain plagiarized or previously published content will be rejected. In cases of suspected research or publication misconduct, the journal follows COPE guidelines, which may include contacting the authors' institutions where warranted.

Authors must:

• Properly attribute all sources
• Use accurate data and disclose limitations
• Ensure the ethical treatment of human subjects or datasets, where applicable
• Declare all authors who meet authorship criteria, and disclose any change of authorship between versions of a submission

7. Peer Review Process

SCECO follows a double-blind peer review process to ensure fairness and academic integrity. The identities of both reviewers and authors are kept confidential throughout the review period.

Each manuscript is reviewed by two independent experts who assess:

• Originality and relevance
• Theoretical and empirical contribution
• Methodological soundness
• Clarity and organization
• Coherence of conclusions and implications

The review process typically takes 4 to 6 weeks, depending on reviewer availability and manuscript complexity. Editorial decisions may be acceptance, minor revision, major revision, or rejection, and are accompanied by reviewer comments. All editorial decisions are made by human editors.

8. Copyright and Licensing

SCECO operates under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) license. Authors:

• Retain copyright to their published work
• Grant the journal non-exclusive publishing rights
• Allow others to use, share, and adapt their work, provided appropriate credit is given

This approach ensures wide dissemination and supports the principles of open science.

9. Submission Checklist

Before submitting, please ensure you have:

✓ A fully anonymized manuscript in .docx format

✓ A separate title page with full author names, affiliations, ORCID iDs, and contact details

✓ An abstract (max 250 words), 4–6 keywords, and relevant JEL codes

✓ References formatted in APA 7th edition

✓ A statement of any potential conflicts of interest

✓ AI disclosure (if applicable)

Submissions that are incomplete or improperly formatted may be delayed in processing.

For submission questions or clarification, contact the editorial team at sceco@ub.ro.