Are you a referee evaluating academic papers? Test your knowledge on key questio...

Study Notes

Evaluating a Paper: Key Questions and Considerations for Referees

Referees should ask critical questions when evaluating a paper, in addition to those listed under “Critical reading” earlier in the chapter.
Questions to consider include the timeliness and relevance of the contribution to the likely audience.
The presence of a critical analysis is important, as authors should identify the strengths, weaknesses, and implications of their work.
Most papers have an explicit or implicit hypothesis and proposal or innovation; identifying these can help evaluate the paper’s pertinence and completeness.
The quality of a paper can be reflected in its bibliography, including the number of references and their relevance to the topic.
Referees should be wary of papers that are incomplete or show little effort to find relevant literature or proofread for errors.
Referees should search for errors in spelling, syntax, written expression, and consistency in variables, table layout, and formatting.
Errors in mathematics can be serious defects that make the paper unacceptable.
Poorly written papers can be accepted, but incompetence in presentation is grounds for rejection.
Excellence in presentation does not justify acceptance if the paper does not contribute novelty or innovation.
Referees should reject papers that do no more than reproduce existing work, even if well-written and developed with care.
Referees should aim to provide a thorough evaluation that helps authors improve their work and contribute to the field.

Description

Are you a referee evaluating academic papers? Test your knowledge on key questions and considerations to ask when evaluating a paper. From analyzing the hypothesis and proposal to checking for errors in presentation and mathematics, this quiz will help you provide a thorough evaluation and contribute to the field. Sharpen your skills and become a better referee with this quiz.