Reviewers’ views on the editorial review processes of the Canadian Medical Education Journal

Background: Peer review is an integral part of the scientific process, ongoing efforts are needed to improve this process for both the reviewer and the scientific journal conducting peer review. This work describes the Canadian Medical Education Journal (CMEJ) peer reviewers’ experiences in accepti...

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Main Authors: Larisa Lotoski, Jennifer O’Brien, Marcel F D’Eon
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Canadian Medical Education Journal 2025-01-01
Series:Canadian Medical Education Journal
Online Access:https://journalhosting.ucalgary.ca/index.php/cmej/article/view/77193
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author Larisa Lotoski
Jennifer O’Brien
Marcel F D’Eon
author_facet Larisa Lotoski
Jennifer O’Brien
Marcel F D’Eon
author_sort Larisa Lotoski
collection DOAJ
description Background: Peer review is an integral part of the scientific process, ongoing efforts are needed to improve this process for both the reviewer and the scientific journal conducting peer review. This work describes the Canadian Medical Education Journal (CMEJ) peer reviewers’ experiences in accepting or declining invitations to review. Methods: We deployed questionnaires between December 2020 and May 2022. We calculated descriptive statistics for each response group (accepted or declined invitations). We analyzed open-ended comments using conventional content analysis. Results: CMEJ Reviewers described their experiences within three broad categories of factors: individual, contextual, and journal. Participants strongly agreed or agreed to review an article (n = 95) because the article was: within their area of expertise (84/95 = 88.4%); within a topic of interest (n = 83, 87.4%); an appropriate length (n = 79, 83.2%); relevant to their work and/or interests (n = 77, 81.1%); of sufficient quality (n = 75, 78.9%); educational (n = 72, 75.8%); and provided the opportunity to remain up-to-date on current research (n = 69, 72.6%). Participants’ (n = 17) most cited reason for declining their invitation to review for CMEJ was competing workloads (n = 14, 82.4%). Reviewers appreciated reviewer instructions, knowing the article’s outcome, and seeing what other reviewers had to say. Conclusion: This work describes the enablers and barriers of CMEJ reviewers and highlights the need to acknowledge peer reviewers' work, while challenging institutions and journals to support peer review activities.
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spelling doaj-art-eb610b89c947459987a1c9220cb65c1e2025-01-30T16:37:12ZengCanadian Medical Education JournalCanadian Medical Education Journal1923-12022025-01-0110.36834/cmej.77193Reviewers’ views on the editorial review processes of the Canadian Medical Education JournalLarisa Lotoski0Jennifer O’Brien1Marcel F D’Eon2Children’s Hospital Research Institute of ManitobaUniversity of SaskatchewanUniversity of Saskatchewan Background: Peer review is an integral part of the scientific process, ongoing efforts are needed to improve this process for both the reviewer and the scientific journal conducting peer review. This work describes the Canadian Medical Education Journal (CMEJ) peer reviewers’ experiences in accepting or declining invitations to review. Methods: We deployed questionnaires between December 2020 and May 2022. We calculated descriptive statistics for each response group (accepted or declined invitations). We analyzed open-ended comments using conventional content analysis. Results: CMEJ Reviewers described their experiences within three broad categories of factors: individual, contextual, and journal. Participants strongly agreed or agreed to review an article (n = 95) because the article was: within their area of expertise (84/95 = 88.4%); within a topic of interest (n = 83, 87.4%); an appropriate length (n = 79, 83.2%); relevant to their work and/or interests (n = 77, 81.1%); of sufficient quality (n = 75, 78.9%); educational (n = 72, 75.8%); and provided the opportunity to remain up-to-date on current research (n = 69, 72.6%). Participants’ (n = 17) most cited reason for declining their invitation to review for CMEJ was competing workloads (n = 14, 82.4%). Reviewers appreciated reviewer instructions, knowing the article’s outcome, and seeing what other reviewers had to say. Conclusion: This work describes the enablers and barriers of CMEJ reviewers and highlights the need to acknowledge peer reviewers' work, while challenging institutions and journals to support peer review activities. https://journalhosting.ucalgary.ca/index.php/cmej/article/view/77193
spellingShingle Larisa Lotoski
Jennifer O’Brien
Marcel F D’Eon
Reviewers’ views on the editorial review processes of the Canadian Medical Education Journal
Canadian Medical Education Journal
title Reviewers’ views on the editorial review processes of the Canadian Medical Education Journal
title_full Reviewers’ views on the editorial review processes of the Canadian Medical Education Journal
title_fullStr Reviewers’ views on the editorial review processes of the Canadian Medical Education Journal
title_full_unstemmed Reviewers’ views on the editorial review processes of the Canadian Medical Education Journal
title_short Reviewers’ views on the editorial review processes of the Canadian Medical Education Journal
title_sort reviewers views on the editorial review processes of the canadian medical education journal
url https://journalhosting.ucalgary.ca/index.php/cmej/article/view/77193
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AT marcelfdeon reviewersviewsontheeditorialreviewprocessesofthecanadianmedicaleducationjournal