Publication Policy

On 1st March 2026, the Seshadripuram Research Foundation (SRF) and the Seshadripuram Journal of Social Sciences (SJSS) formally expressed their commitment to the principles of the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA). By supporting this initiative, the institution affirms its dedication to responsible and transparent research evaluation practices. SJSS emphasizes the quality, originality, and scholarly contribution of research rather than relying solely on journal-based metrics. The journal encourages fair and ethical peer-review processes that recognize diverse forms of academic output. Through this commitment, SRF aims to foster a research culture that values integrity, academic merit, and meaningful societal impact. This initiative reflects the institution’s ongoing efforts to strengthen responsible research assessment and scholarly communication.

• The Editorial Board is responsible for upholding the academic quality and ethical standards of the journal.
• Members review and evaluate submitted manuscripts for originality, relevance, and clarity.
• The board ensures all submissions go through a fair and timely peer review process.
• Editors maintain confidentiality and avoid any bias or conflict of interest.
• Authors may be guided with constructive feedback to improve their work.
• Board members must promote academic integrity and help prevent plagiarism or unethical practices.
• The Editorial Board includes a mix of experienced academicians and researchers from relevant disciplines.
• Subject experts may be invited as Guest Editors for special editions or thematic issues.
• Members are appointed for a renewable term of two years.
• The structure and performance of the board are reviewed periodically by the publisher.
• All members are expected to actively contribute to the journal’s growth and reputation.

• Reviewers are selected based on relevant academic qualifications and research experience.
• All manuscripts are reviewed through a standard peer review process.
• Reviewers must maintain confidentiality of the manuscript content at all times.
• Reviews must be impartial, focused on the quality and originality of the manuscript.
• Any reviewer with a conflict of interest must inform the editorial board and step aside.
• Reviews should be submitted within the given timeframe to ensure timely publication.
• Any suspected ethical issues such as plagiarism must be reported to the editor immediately.
• Reviewers should give clear, constructive, and respectful feedback to help improve the work.
• Manuscripts may be re-reviewed after revisions, based on editorial decision.
• Reviewers are encouraged to follow ethical standards and maintain academic integrity.
• Confidential information in manuscripts must not be used by reviewers for personal gain.
• Consistently contributing reviewers may be acknowledged in the journal.

• All submitted manuscripts undergo an initial editorial screening to assess their suitability for the journal's scope, formatting requirements, and publication policies.
• Manuscripts are screened for plagiarism, AI-generated content, originality, and compliance with ethical publication standards before being considered for review.
• SJSS follows a Double-Blind Peer Review process, ensuring that the identities of both authors and reviewers remain confidential throughout the review process.
• Each manuscript is generally reviewed by two independent subject experts with expertise relevant to the manuscript's discipline.
• Reviewers evaluate manuscripts based on originality, relevance, methodological rigor, literature review, data analysis, quality of writing, ethical compliance, and overall scholarly contribution.
• Based on the reviewers' recommendations, the Editorial Board may decide to accept the manuscript, request minor or major revisions, or reject the submission.
• Authors are required to submit a revised manuscript and a point-by-point response to reviewers' comments within the prescribed timeline whenever revisions are requested.
• The Editor-in-Chief reserves the right to make the final publication decision after considering the reviewers' recommendations and the journal's editorial policies.
• All reviewers are expected to maintain strict confidentiality and declare any actual or potential conflicts of interest before accepting a review assignment.
• Editorial decisions are made solely on the basis of academic merit, originality, and ethical compliance, without discrimination based on nationality, gender, institutional affiliation, or personal beliefs.
• The journal does not tolerate plagiarism, duplicate publication, data fabrication, data falsification, citation manipulation, or any other form of research misconduct.
• The peer review process is intended to ensure the publication of high-quality, original, ethical, and academically significant research that contributes to the advancement of knowledge.

No Article Processing Charge (APC) Statement

The Seshadripuram Journal of Social Sciences (SJSS) does not levy any Article Processing Charge (APC) for the submission, peer review, editorial processing, or publication of manuscripts. Authors are not required to pay any fees at any stage of the publication process. SJSS is committed to promoting equitable access to scholarly publishing by providing a transparent, ethical, and fully open-access publication platform without financial barriers for authors. Any optional services offered separately by the publisher or institution are independent of the journal's editorial and publication process and do not influence editorial decisions or manuscript acceptance.

Repository Statement

The Seshadripuram Journal of Social Sciences (SJSS) is committed to ensuring the long-term preservation, accessibility, and dissemination of published research. All published articles may be archived in recognized institutional, national, and international repositories, indexing databases, digital libraries, and reference management platforms to enhance their visibility, accessibility, and citation potential.

Authors are permitted to deposit the published version of their articles in institutional repositories, subject repositories, personal websites, and non-commercial academic networking platforms, provided that appropriate acknowledgment is given to SJSS as the original source of publication and the official DOI (where applicable) is included. Repository archiving supports the journal's commitment to open access, permanent scholarly preservation, and global dissemination of research outputs.