Call for Papers

Interested in making a new Call for Papers in SJPA? Keep reading!

Instructions for Guest editors of Special Issues

Scandinavian Journal of Public Administration invites proposals for Special Issues that falls within the aims and scope of the journal. These instructions have been developed in order to help potential Guest Editors to prepare a call for papers, and the SJPA Editorial Team to evaluate them. Proposals should be sent to eren.firtin@spa.gu.se

Call for papers should contain the following:

1. A provisional title of the Special Issue
2. A motivation of The Special Issue's wider objective or aim
3. The Special Issue's scope; including potential themes and/or references to be addressed in the Special Issue
4. Examples of research questions that would meet the objective of the Special Issue
5. Name and affiliation of the proposed Guest Editors
6. Contact details
7. A deadline for submission of papers

• Guest Editors should make an effort to attract contributors from multiple countries. This will help enhance the Special Issue content by providing a variety of theoretical and methodological perspectives. Note that in cases where the special issue is a continuation of, for example, a conference track, a call should be made public to attract authors who did not attend the conference.
• Guest Editors are required to adhere to SJPA’s editorial processes and turnaround times. These editorial procedures include a rigorous peer-review process that ensures only the highest quality manuscripts are selected for inclusion in the Special Issue.
• Guest Editors should normally select up to six papers to be included in the Special Issue and also write an introduction to the Special Issue. The editorial introduction is typically around 6,000 words.
• Guest editors propose which articles they wish to have published, but the editorial team holds the final decision regarding publication.
• If too few papers meet the required high standard for publication, the Editorial Team may publish a themed issue also containing regular papers or publish the articles in a regular issue.

Standards and criteria for Special Issues:

SJPA adheres to the standards and criteria outlined by DOAJ for special issues:

• The Editor-in-Chief is responsible for the content of the entire journal, including all special issues, which must fall within the scope of SJPA,
• Special issue articles adhere to the same editorial criteria as regular papers, including external peer review,
• To ensure impartiality and maintain the quality of the peer-review process, guest editors are required to nominate external referees who are experts without affiliations to the author(s), not close colleagues, and not engaged in the same projects. The Editor-in-Chief reserves the ultimate authority to appoint, alter, or reject the selection of reviewers made by the guest editors,
• SJPA holds the right to review and approve the credentials of guest editors and oversee the guest editorial activities,
• Papers submitted to a special issue by the guest editor(s) of the same special issue are subject to an independent review process under the oversight of the Editor-in-Chief,
• Papers submitted to a special issue by the guest editor(s) of the same special issue should not constitute more than 25% of that special issue's total.