Policies

Doxa Communication follows preservation practices aimed at ensuring permanent accessibility to its digital resources and materials, following the recommendations established by the Digital Preservation Handbook:

• Local preservation on servers and our own storage. Preservation through the University CEU San Pablo  journal platform: Hosting of full texts in https://revistascientificas.uspceu.com/doxacomunicacion/index Through this repository, it is possible to access the entire Doxa Comunicación collection, including data from each issue and from each article. Performing backups and periodic monthly archiving in local mode on our server.
• Preservation through repositories and external services. Hosting of full texts in repositories, services and external systems such as Dialnet, including the data of each issue and each article.
• Digital preservation services: Preservation on third-party servers using the PKP PN  system by depositing the contents of the journal for preservation purposes. 

Doxa Comunicación also carries out the following processes to guarantee preservation and maintain the accessibility of its digital materials in the long term:

• Preservation metadata: The journal uses quality metadata through DCMI (Dublin Core Metadata Initiative), OpenURL and MARC
• Persistent identifiers: All articles in the journal, since its inception in 2003, each have a DOI (Digital Object Identifier) and a URN (Uniform Resource Names)
• Service and data infrastructures for interoperability: The journal uses the OAI-PMH protocol and is compatible with DRIVER (Available:https://revistascientificas.uspceu.com/doxacomunicacion/oai)
• In this link you can see the result of a specific article: https://bit.ly/4loGtY1
• Publication of metadata: The magazine's metadata is published in the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ)
• This journal is part of the LOCKSS Private Network of the Public Knowledge Project (PKN-PLN), which generates a decentralized archiving system, distributed among the collaborating libraries, in order to create permanent archives of the journal for the preservation of the original content and its restoration if necessary. The LOCKSS Editorial Manifesto on digital preservation is available at the following link
• File integrity monitoring: Periodic file integrity checks are performed through the tools available on the server where the journal is hosted.

Doxa Comunicación allows and encourages its authors to increase the visibility, scope and impact of their articles published in the journal by disseminating and self-archiving them in the following:

• Their personal web spaces (web, blog, social networks, scientific forums, etc.)
• Institutional open archives (university archives, Hispana, Europeana, etc.)
• Academic and scientific social networks such as ResearchGate and Academia.edu

In addition, these publications are required to include the details of all bibliographic data of the publication.

[Receipt, Review, Editing, Publication, and Dissemination Process]

1. Receipt of the Manuscript and Initial Evaluation
(This process takes approximately one to three months, depending on the meetings of the Editorial Board. Note that August is not considered a working month for deadlines)

• Upon receiving the manuscript, the scientific editor appointed by the editorial committee conducts a documentary review to ensure that the manuscript meets both the subject matter and the formal standards of the journal.
• The editorial team checks compliance with the submission guidelines and the ethical criteria established by the journal. Additionally, the manuscript is evaluated using Crossref's plagiarism detection software, Similarity Check.
• Once accepted, all author-identifying information is removed, and the article is forwarded to two expert reviewers who are not affiliated with the authors' home institution.

2. Anonymous Peer Review (Double-Blind)
(The peer review process lasts approximately two to four months, with August not counted as a working month for deadlines

• Following the initial review, the manuscript undergoes external review using a double-blind system, where both the authors' and reviewers' identities remain anonymous. Two recognized and independent external reviewers, who are experts in the relevant field, evaluate the manuscript. 

  Reviewers receive a request for evaluation with a suggested deadline of one month to ensure timely responses. They complete a review form that includes a reasoned recommendation for acceptance or rejection. Reviewers must avoid evaluating texts in which they have a conflict of interest. If the reviewers have differing opinions, a third reviewer will be consulted, and their decision will be final regarding acceptance or rejection.

  Reviewers are expected to adhere to Doxa Comunicación's code of good practice. The review report they complete will be shared with the authors for their understanding. Doxa Comunicación will publish an annual list of the scientific reviewers involved in manuscript evaluations.

Interactions:

• Editor-author interactions: acknowledgement of receipt of the text, transfer of rights and an ethical commitment; acceptance for submission for review; results of double evaluation; publication communication; invitation for dissemination in networks and other strategies.
• Editor-reviewer interactions: request for review with suggested deadline; acknowledgement of receipt of acceptance of review and submission of documentation and access to the electronic review platform; acknowledgement of receipt of the evaluation; if the editorial decision is “publication with major modifications”, resubmission of the corrected text to the same reviewer and request for a second report; certification of the collaboration.

Criteria for Acceptance or Rejection:

• Originality: The article must present original research that offers novel and significant conclusions within the specific fields of the journal, using a justified methodology and up-to-date references.
• Contribution to Knowledge: the article should contribute new insights, perspectives, or important discoveries in the area of study.
• Conceptual Rigor and Coherence: The manuscript should demonstrate theoretical soundness and internal coherence.
• Scientific Relevance and Timeliness: The work should add value and present novelty to the field of study.
• Suitability to the Journal’s Focus: The manuscript should address issues pertinent to the field of study and align with the journal's objectives.
• Compliance with Style Standards: The manuscript must adhere to the journal’s citation, formatting, and presentation standards.
• Adherence to Ethical Principles: The manuscript must follow established ethical principles regarding research integrity, data handling, and acknowledgment of contributions from other authors.
• Plagiarism or Lack of Originality: Manuscripts exhibiting signs of plagiarism or that lack originality will be rejected.
• Conflict of Interest: Any undisclosed conflicts of interest that may compromise the objectivity of the research may result in rejection.

More information about Instructions for Reviewers here

Editorial decision:

• After the reviews, the editorial board communicates the decision to the authors, detailing the reasons for acceptance or rejection, as well as the reviewers’ comments. 
  • Accepted or Accepted with Minor Corrections::
    • To publish an article in Doxa Comunicación, it must receive two favorable reports from external reviewers.
    • If the reviewers suggest only minor corrections, the author will be notified via email through the OJS platform. The author will have one week to revise the manuscript according to the reviewers' suggestions and resubmit it.
  • Accepted with Major Revisions:
    • If both reviewers accept the manuscript with major revisions, or if one reviewer accepts and the other suggests major revisions, the journal will not reject the submission. However, the author must rework the text, which will then be evaluated again by the same reviewers. They will determine its status in a second round of review.
    • The author will have one week to inform the journal whether they plan to withdraw the article or proceed with the revisions.
    • If the author chooses to revise the manuscript according to the reviewers’ suggestions, they will have a maximum of one month to submit the improved manuscript. The second round of review will be conducted as quickly as possible.
  • Rejected:
    • If the evaluation results in a double rejection or one rejection and one acceptance with major revisions, the article will not be published.
    • In cases of discordant evaluations—where one reviewer accepts and another rejects the article will be sent to a third reviewer, whose decision will be final regarding the manuscript's fate.
    • The author will be informed, and the final date of the review process will be documented.
    • If the author disagrees with the evaluation result, they may appeal by emailing the editor of the journal ([email protected])

3. Editing Process:
(The editing process takes one to two months (with the month of August considered non-working for deadline purposes)

• Once two positive reviews are received, the author is notified, and the article enters the formal review phase, followed by editing. This phase includes typesetting, galleys proof correction, and translation into English.
• Authors will participate in the galleys proof correction and must provide a high-quality English version of the manuscript as stated in the author guidelines.
• If the author is unable to translate themselves, Doxa Comunicación can facilitate contact with a professional native translator they regularly work with, with costs to be covered by the author.
• Once typesetting is complete, the article will be listed as "In Early Access Articles" until its final publication, which occurs on January 1st or July 1st of each year.
• “Early Access” articles: “Early Access” articles" articles in the miscellaneous, monographs and research notes sections are those that have been reviewed, accepted and are awaiting their final publication. They have obtained a favourable evaluation by the anonymous “double-blind” system, have a DOI, but do not yet have any pagination. They are published in PDF format, both in Spanish and English. The aim is that these articles can be read, shared and cited without having to wait for the publication of the full issue.
• The goal of this phase is to enable these articles to be read, shared, and cited before the final publication of the full issue, scheduled for January 1st or July 1st of each year.

4. Publication:
(The publication phase takes one to three weeks (with the month of August considered non-working for deadline purposes).

• Once the editing phase is completed, the manuscript enters the publication phase. Miscellaneous articles, special issues, and research notes will be published in both Spanish and English, available in three formats for reading and downloading: PDF, ePub, and HTML.
• Their DOI will be activated, pagination assigned, and the "CrossMark" badge granted for update tracking.

The full issue will be published on January 1st and July 1st of each year.

Once published, Doxa Comunicación ensures that all content is freely available without charge or embargo in national and international open-access databases and repositories where it is indexed.

Doxa Comunicación commits to making publication decisions promptly to maintain the relevance of the article. This editorial process aims to uphold the highest standards of quality and ethics in publications, ensuring that each article makes a significant contribution to knowledge in communication and social sciences.

5. Dissemination:
The article will be disseminated through social networks such as X (formerly Twitter), LinkedIn, and/or Instagram. To enhance visibility and reach, the authors will be asked to provide information about their profiles on these platforms.

Doxa Comunicación has a commitment to maintain the standards of content it publishes, to immediately register any modifications or updates that may occur in the journal, and to make the Crossmark button visible in the different versions that may be published by the journal.

What is Crossmark?

Crossmark is a service of the Crossref Agency that allows readers to know whether the texts published in Doxa Comunicación have undergone any modification, retraction or updating subsequent to their publication.

The aim is to provide readers with a simple way of recognising whether they are reading the latest version of the document, and whether it has undergone any changes since its publication. More information is available at the following link: https://www.crossref.org/services/crossmark/

Description of the procedure for changes, corrections or retractions

All articles published in Doxa Comunicación journal are assigned a DOI code and are permanently available for the final version that is evaluated by the double-blind peer review system. In order for readers to obtain access to the latest version of an article and to know whether it has been updated, as well as any history of changes, corrections or retractions, each article published from Issue 28 (January-June 2019) onward includes the “Crossmark" button.

Following the recommendations of the best practice guidelines for publication ethics of COPE (Committee On Publication Ethics), the change policy will be applied in the following circumstances:

Changes and/or corrections to the article

Changes and/or corrections will be contingent upon the seriousness of errors discovered after publication that could possibly mislead readers.

Retraction

Articles may be retracted for the following reasons:

• Unintentional errors reported by the authors (e.g. errors related to data, instruments or analyses used).
• Ethical non-compliance (fraudulent use of data, plagiarism, unethical research, duplication of publication or overlap, falsification or manipulation of images, and the fabrication of data, among others).

Authors, as well as any institution or researcher that/who detects any reason for retraction set forth in the Code of Ethics approved by Doxa Comunicación, may request retraction of an article when an unintentional error has occurred.

For any retracted article, both the cause and the requester shall be indicated in the Retraction Notice to be published together with the withdrawn article. This note will appear with a watermark, and will clearly indicate that the article has been retracted, and the note will continue to be published until the investigation of the article has been resolved.

The retraction procedure will follow the standards recommended in the guidelines of COPE (Committee On Publication Ethics).

Editor’s note

In the event of a problem with an article, an editor’s note will be published to alert readers that the article is subject to a review process, and the editor’s note will continue to be published until the investigation of the article has been resolved.

In line with international recommendations established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and its standards of conduct ,  Doxa Comunicación follows a rigorous procedure in the control of originals received in order to avoid poor quality scientific practice, endorsing editorial standards established by the World Conference on Research Integrity.

Code of Good Practice

Doxa Comunicación believes that it is necessary and important to promote ethical publishing throughout the editorial process; the criteria of conduct and good practice governing the activity of its Editorial Board, as well as the commitment by authors and external reviewers, are described below.

I. Commitment of the Editorial board  

• Doxa Comunicación ensures the confidentiality of the authors of manuscripts received and of the external reviewers related to the external review process.
• Doxa Comunicación will decide whether or not to publish originals, but always in a timely manner so as not to lower their current value.
• Doxa Comunicación will ensure that all originals received are submitted to a double, external, anonymous review by experts in the topic area. To achieve this aim, we will use reference terms and glossaries included in the manuscripts.
• In the case of conflicting evaluations, Doxa Comunicación will commit to sending the manuscript to a third reviewer whose verdict will be final in the acceptance or denial of the original.
• Doxa Comunicación will keep the authors informed about the phase of the evaluation process in which the originals are located.
• The list of external reviewers will be revised and updated periodically and made public the year after their collaboration.
• Acceptance of originals will be based on criteria of conceptual rigor, rational coherence, scientific relevance of the topics of the publication, and the absence of infringement on institutional ideology of respect for people’s dignity.
• Doxa Comunicación will keep a suggestion box permanently open by way of the e-mail address [email protected] and all complaints and suggestions will be answered one by one.

 II. Commitment of publication by the authors 

• Authors of the manuscripts will guarantee that the manuscripts submitted to Doxa Comunicación are originals, and are not published (and are not, or have not been, published) partially or completely in any other journal.
• Co-authorship

• In the case of co-authorship, the authors will inform Doxa Comunicación about the criteria chosen to decide the order of authorship.
• The order of authors should take into account the specific contribution made by each of them to the published work, guaranteeing the inclusion in the article of those persons who have made a significant scientific and intellectual contribution in the conceptualisation and design of the work as well as in the collection and analysis of data, the methodology and interpretation of the results, the coordination of the activities, the drafting, revision and approval of versions of the work.
• In cases of authorship conflicts, the journal applies the COPE protocol.
• Authors will not discriminate based on ideological, commercial, or any other grounds, against the references and sources of authority used.
• Authors will agree to include an anonymous copy of the original in order to be used for an external peer-review.
• The authors agree to submit the manuscript following the publication guidelines of Doxa Comunicación.
• Authors will use the most current and accredited bibliography related to the topic of the article
• Authors will declare the direct or indirect sources of funding for the research that originated the manuscript. The funders had no role in the design of the study, the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data, in the writing of the manuscript; or in the decision to publish the results.
• The authors commit to collaborating effectively and quickly in the editing phase of the manuscript, which includes proofreading of galley proofs and translation into English. Authors declare no conflict of interest.

III. Commitment of external reviewers 

• Before the acceptance of a manuscript, the reviewers will indicate to the editor of the journal if the topic is adapted to their area of specialization, and they will warn about possible conflicts of interests.
• Reviewers will apply scientific, rational criteria in the deliberation of the texts to be revised.
• Reviewers will commit to elaborating an impartial report that specifically states the degree of contribution of the text, its current relevance, consistency, rigor, and the written clarity of the article.
• The reviewers will develop a report using the template provided by the journal. They will add their comments so that the editor will have a fair assessment of the manuscript sent, and the author will be able to rectify and improve the quality of the original.
• The reviewers will commit to complying with the time limits given by the editorial team of Doxa Comunicación in order to avoid possible delays in the publication of the texts.

In order to expedite the decision-making process in cases where unethical behaviour is detected or observed, Doxa Comunicación follows a protocol inspired by COPE's recommendations to promote integrity in research and its publications. The journal's editorial board thus follows the following flows:

• Authorship conflicts. Authors should be explicit regarding their individual contribution to the article has been (ghostwriting policy)
• Plagiarism
• Duplication, concurrent publications, or simultaneous submissions to several publications
• Appropriation of research results
• Fraud or research errors
• Infringement of research rules
• Undisclosed conflicts of interest. Authors must identify sources of funding for research
• Reviewer Bias

Good research practices and academic integrity

In those cases in which the work conducted includes research with human beings and/or their personal data such as observational, psychological or behavioural research on humans, participation of students pending evaluation by one of the researchers in the project, use of personal data or similar, the researchers must have favourable certification of good practice issued by the Research Ethics Committee, or a similar body, of the institution or institutions where the study was conducted.

In this regard, Doxa Comunicación follows the recommendations in the European Code of Conduct for Research Integrity of ALLEA (ALL European Academies), and endorses the provisions of research legislation regarding the duties of research personnel, which in Spain are defined within Law 14/2011, of June 1, related to Science, Technology and Innovation, Article 15.

Plagiarism constitutes unethical intellectual behaviour and is unacceptable. Authors shall ensure that they only submit their own original works. If they have used works and/or words from third parties, they must mention this specifically, and cite the sources appropriately.

Doxa Comunicación uses the software iThenticate (© 2021 Turnitin, LLC.) to detect possible plagiarism. All of the deliveries received by Doxa Comunicación will be submitted to the plagiarism detection process through this software.

Apart from the internal system of plagiarism detection used by Doxa Comunicación, authors and reviewers are informed of the existence of free access or licensed tools that can be of help in the supervision of originality and plagiarism control.

Procedure in the case of plagiarism

In the event that plagiarism is detected, authors will receive a matching report generated by the computer tool with the reference sources on which the comparison is based, so that they can submit a response before a decision on publication is made.  

Authors with a final accredited plagiarism report will not be allowed to republish in the journal within 5 years.

The authors retain their copyright and grant the journal the right of first publication of their work, which will be simultaneously subject to the Creative Commons License, Attribution-NonCommercial, International License (CC BY-NC 4.0). The scientific community is free to share, copy, and redistribute the material in any medium or format, and to remix, transform, and build upon that material under the following terms: Proper credit must be given (journal, authors, URL/DOI), and it is not used for commercial purposes.

Authors may adopt other non-exclusive licensing agreements for the distribution of the published version of the work (e.g., depositing the article in an institutional telematic archive or publishing the work in a monographic volume) provided that the initial publication in Doxa is indicated.

Authors are allowed and encouraged to disseminate their work through the Internet, which can produce interesting exchanges and increase citations of the published work. (See the effect of open access ).