Understanding the Review Process (jms-review-process)

When to trigger

• Before submitting, to calibrate expectations about timeline, desk-reject odds, and decision types
• A decision letter arrived and you need to interpret it (R&R vs. reject; major vs. minor)
• You are unsure how much weight reviewers vs. the handling editor carry
• You want to plan a revision strategy before drafting the response (then go to jms-rebuttal)

Editorial structure, named editors, and exact turnaround change; verify the current team and policies on the official Wiley/SAMS pages. As of 检索于 2026-06；以官网为准: JMS uses double-blind review; the editorial office is at Durham University; the General Editors/Editor-in-Chief and exact timelines are 待核实 unless quoted from an official page at submission time. The norms below are durable.

How JMS review works (durable norms)

1. Submission & routing. A fully anonymised manuscript enters via ScholarOne (mc.manuscriptcentral.com/jmstudies). A General Editor (or an Associate/handling Editor) screens it and, if it passes, routes it to a handling editor in the relevant area.
2. Desk decision. Manuscripts that are off-fit, that lack a clear theoretical contribution, that are out of scope, or that are not engaged with a management/organization conversation may be desk-rejected without external review. The most common desk-reject reason is "no clear contribution to theory."
3. External peer review. Typically two or more reviewers in the focal conversation evaluate the theoretical contribution and the rigor of the method — held to the same bar whether the paper is quantitative or qualitative.
4. Editor synthesis. The handling editor weighs the reviews, forms an independent judgment, and writes the decision letter. The editor's letter — not a vote count — drives the outcome.
5. Decision. Common outcomes: reject; reject with possible resubmission as new; major revision (R&R); minor revision; (rarely) accept. A first-round acceptance is essentially unheard of.