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Taylor & Francis

Prepare your manuscript for International Journal of Social Research Methodology.

Review the checklist, choose your article type, and turn your draft into a cleaner submission package.

Checked 2026-08-01
Check readiness freePrepare this manuscript

Article types

Review
Research Article
Book Review
Editorial
Perspective
Commentary
Lectio
Review Article
Clinical Trial
Protocol
Systematic Review
Letter

Readiness requirements

Review the key details below, or download the complete checklist with every stored source-backed requirement.

Abstract length

  • Provide an author-written abstract of no more than 150 words.
  • * abstract (maximum 150 words): provides a summary of the entire article, outlining the methodological issues or debates addressed, and the paper’s main arguments or conclusions.
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  • Please do not embed it in the manuscript file but save it as a separate file, labelled GraphicalAbstract1.Taylor & Francis Editing Services provides a graphical abstract creation service for a fee.You can opt to include a video abstract with your article.
  • The abstract should not include authors’ names or any other identifying information.
  • There are no strict formatting requirements, but all manuscripts must contain the essential elements needed to evaluate a manuscript: abstract, author affiliation, figures, tables, funder information, references.

Keywords

  • Provide up to 3 keywords chosen by the author.
  • * keywords (minimum of 3 and maximum of 5 words): making your article more discoverable, including information on choosing a title and search engine optimization.

Reference style

  • Articlo formats your supplied references in Harvard style and checks that citations match the reference list; source validity is not verified.
  • For manuscripts submitted in LaTeX format a.bib reference file must be included.
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  • All bibliographic entries must contain a corresponding in-text citation.
  • Readers should be able to interpret the table without reference to the text.
  • If your manuscript is based on research with human participants (individuals, samples, or data), the non-anonymized version of the manuscript must provide details of the name of the ethics committee and reference/permit numbers where available.
  • Non-anonymous version of the manuscript must include the following information: name, address, phone, email, and institutional affiliation(s); disclosure statement and/or short biography (fewer than 100 words), statement providing details of the name of the ethics committee and reference/permit numbers where available, a summary of the main argument of the paper and the key methodological contributions it makes.
  • * The anonymous version should not contain personal identifying information e.g. self-citations (in-text and references in the bibliography), author names, institutional affiliation, and funding information. [Please replace in-text citations with “Author[s]” and do not include the date].
  • * NOTE: There are instances when authors may wish to not be fully anonymous: e.g., the paper is part of a series of publications that require self-citation; reviewers need access to a simulation, dataset, or code; or reviewers need to run a model or explore a piece of software.
  • A declaration must be included within the submission stating: Confirmation the authors take full responsibility for the integrity of the whole content, including accuracy of references.

Figure and table rules

  • Keep every figure and table numbered, captioned, and cited in the manuscript.
  • Figures should be high quality (1200 dpi for line art, 600 dpi for grayscale and 300 dpi for colour, at the correct size).
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  • * We require authors to insert tables into the word document or provide them in a separate word document; tables cannot be provided as an image.
  • Figures should be of sufficient resolution to enable refereeing.
  • Tables should present new information rather than duplicating what is in the text.
  • Figures should be supplied in one of our preferred file formats: PS, JPEG, TIFF, or Microsoft Word (DOC or DOCX) files are acceptable for figures that have been drawn in Word.

Funding statement

  • You should declare only the acquired funds and grants that are directly relevant to the work reported in your article; for example, This work was supported by the [Funding Agency #1] under Grant [number xxxx]; [Funding Agency #2] under Grant [number xxxx]; and [Funding Agency #3] under Grant [number xxxx].

Competing interests

  • Include or confirm the competing interests required by the journal. Articlo checks this item and flags anything that still needs author input.

Ethics statement

  • Add or confirm the author-written Ethics statement; Articlo flags it if author input is still needed.

Cover letter

  • You must obtain the necessary permission to reuse third-party material in your article.
  • Review: The use of short extracts of text and some other types of material is usually permitted, on a limited basis, for the purposes of criticism and review without securing formal permission.
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  • If you wish to include any material in your paper for which you do not hold copyright, and which is not covered by this informal agreement, you will need to obtain written permission from the copyright owner prior to submission.

Author contributions

  • Submitting authors should be prepared to submit CRediT roles for themselves and their co-authors (where applicable) as part of the submission process.

Supplementary files

  • Include every cited supplementary file and use matching labels in the manuscript.
  • Review: Embed or attach the author-supplied supplementary material so Articlo can extract and label it for the package.
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  • Review: Please upload these separately to your manuscript labelled as “supplementary material - for review”.

Title page and author information

  • Review: Proposers of reviews should submit a proposal of around 200 words describing their review and listing the publication(s), and, where appropriate, the names and affiliations of other reviewers.
  • All authors of a manuscript should include their full name and affiliation on the cover page of the manuscript.
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  • Non-anonymous version of the manuscript must include the following information: name, address, phone, email, and institutional affiliation(s); disclosure statement and/or short biography (fewer than 100 words), plus a summary of the main argument of the paper and the key methodological contributions it makes.
  • One author will need to be identified as the corresponding author, with their email address normally displayed in the article PDF (depending on the journal) and the online article.

Article structure and word limits

  • Review: We are open to consideration of other formats, but in any event a review forum or article should not exceed 6000 words.
  • This could be adapted from your departmental website or academic networking profile and should be relatively brief (e.g. no more than 200 words).
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  • Minimum number of peer reviews: 2.
  • It should be a maximum width of 525 pixels.
  • Review: These instructions will ensure we have everything required so your paper can move through peer review, production and publication smoothly.
  • Data and case studies should only be used to supply supporting evidence for your argument.
  • Authors should aim to make papers accessible to an audience with a general methodological interest.
  • Submissions should fit the Journal’s aims and scopes as follows: does not just describe a research process or research project.
  • Submissions should fit the Journal’s aims and scopes as follows: critically engages with methodological issues and concerns.
  • Submissions should fit the Journal’s aims and scopes as follows: can be appreciated by readers who may not be experts in a particular methodological approach or concept.
  • Submissions should fit the Journal’s aims and scopes as follows: has not been published or submitted for publication elsewhere.
  • Your research funder or your institution may require you to publish your article open access.
  • Use our APC finder to view the APC for this journal.
  • Your arguments should be substantiated with well-reasoned supporting evidence.
  • It should also refer to the specific substantive contents if appropriate.
  • Review / Editorial: Article Commentaries/Debates may appear in a standard or special issue and at a minimum go through internal Editorial review.
  • Article commentaries/debates must be submitted through the online ScholarOne Manuscript portal.
  • Review: Submissions are subject to the relevant peer review required for the paper submission type.
  • Note that, regardless of the file format of the original submission, an editable version of the article must be supplied at the revision stage.
  • Should you have any queries, please visit our Author Services website or contact us here.
  • A declaration must be included within the submission stating: Originality and accuracy of content has been confirmed by the authors.
  • Authors must provide full methodological details and adhere to relevant reporting guidelines where applicable.
  • Authors must retain the original and revised versions which must be shared upon request.
  • The PLSP guidelines for authors must be followed at all times.
  • Please use SI units (non-italicized).
  • All information and files must be submitted through the online ScholarOne Manuscript portal following guided steps and associated instructions.
  • Research Article: You will be guided to enter the following information and files: All short research articles must contain the following information: * article title: the topic of the article must be clearly identified in the first clause of the article title.
  • Review / Review Article: Review articles can take various forms, for example multiple reviews of a single publication (or two or three publications) by at least two reviewers, or a review article authored by a single reviewer of several publications (usually no more than four).
  • Image descriptions are typically used by systems such as pronouncing screen readers to make images accessible to people that cannot read or see the object due to a visual disability.

Reporting guidelines

  • Include or confirm the reporting guidelines required by the journal. Articlo checks this item and flags anything that still needs author input.

Artificial intelligence disclosure

  • Add or confirm the author-written Artificial intelligence statement; Articlo flags it if author input is still needed.
  • Please include a statement disclosing whether and how generative AI has been used in the research and manuscript preparation process.
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  • Use of AI tools as part of ethical research studies is permitted.
  • A declaration must be included within the submission stating: The name and version number of the AI tool used.
  • Systematic Review: Use of AI tools as part of ethically conducted literature reviews, systematic reviews, meta-analysis and bibliometrics studies is permitted.
  • Use of AI tool assisted plain language summaries (PLS) of authors own work is permitted.
  • Please read our guidance on using AI tools in your research and manuscript preparation to understand scenarios where their use may be permissible, and the required information that must be disclosed.
  • A declaration must be included within the submission stating: Confirmation the authors have checked terms of use for the specific AI tool used, and therefore confirm suitability for publication.

Manuscript structure

  • The focus of your paper must be substantially in the area of methods and/or methodology.
  • Submissions should fit the Journal’s aims and scopes as follows: specifically discusses methods and methodology and is not solely rooted in a substantive disciplinary context.
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  • Authors must retain full records of the methods undertaken, including full descriptions and records of the prompts used, which must be shared with the journal upon request.
  • We publish articles at the cutting edge of debates about methods and methodology that are not limited to a specific substantive topic, context, or discipline and go beyond the description of the research process of a particular project.

Blinded manuscript

  • Review: Anonymous version of the manuscript is required for double anonymous peer review.
  • Review: Anonymous version of the manuscript is required for manuscripts that go through double anonymous peer review.
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  • All contributions published in this journal undergo initial editor screening and unless otherwise indicated anonymized refereeing by at least two anonymous referees (see Preparing Your Paper, below).

Article type and manuscript length

  • Research Article: Word count limit: short research articles are normally a minimum of 1500 words and maximum of 3000 words.
  • * Graphs, diagrams, and images DO NOT COUNT in the total word count.
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  • Where graphs, diagrams, and images are approved to be included, they DO NOT COUNT in the total word count.

Language and text style

  • Review: The book(s) included in your review must have been published - either originally or in a translated edition - in English.

Study reporting guidelines

  • Authors must provide full methodological details and adhere to relevant reporting guidelines where applicable (e.g. CONSORT-AI, STARD-AI, GAMER, TRIPOD-AI, etc).
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What your package checks

Abstract: 150 words
Paper: 3,000 words
Keywords: Up to 3 keywords
References: Harvard
Declarations: Ethics, Artificial intelligence

Source transparency

This preparation guide uses published journal-specific author requirements. Journal instructions can change, so authors should complete a final review before submission.

Open official guideline source