Basic Instructions
Godišnjak publishes papers in the fields of theology and religious studies, philosophy, and cultural studies, as well as other humanities and social sciences that explore certain theological issues. Authors should fulfill all requirements for publishing and technical instructions defined by Godišnjak’s Editorial Board. If the submitted paper does not fulfill these requirements, Editorial Board will return the paper to the author after a preliminary check and inform them about necessary corrections. If the paper does not correspond to the journal’s aims and scope, if it does not contain any contribution to the topic, and if it shows signs of plagiarism and hate speech, it will be rejected. The authors whose paper shows signs of plagiarism and hate speech will be forbidden to publish in Godišnjak for the next three years.
Godišnjak publishes papers in various languages, primarily in Serbian and English. Every paper should contain a summary in the English language, as described in the Basic instructions for authors.
When submitting the paper to our journal, the author is required to provide a signed Declaration of Authorship. By signing this Declaration, the author confirms that the paper is their original work that does not infringe any copyright, it was not previously published, is not submitted to other journals, and does not contain inaccurate or illegal claims.
The papers might have a maximum of three authors, all of which contributed significantly to the process of research and writing. Names, affiliations, and contact information of all authors must be noted. All authors should confirm their contributions by signing the Declaration of Authorship.
Godišnjak accepts papers during the whole year and publishes them after they were positively assessed by two experts (double-blind peer review). Reviewers cannot work in the same institution as the author and they cannot be members of the Editorial Board. Peer review is conducted in the span of one month. The authors are required to implement the reviewers’ suggestions.
Complaints against the Peer Review Process and Members of the Editorial Board
If the author discovers a potential conflict of interest during the peer review process (if the imperative of anonymity was violated, if the reviewer’s comments are insulting, and if there is a justified suspicion that the reviewer has negatively assessed the paper for personal reasons), Editorial Board should be informed. The case will be investigated within a week after the complaint was received. If the author’s complaint is justified the paper will be forwarded to another reviewer, but if the complaint is unjustified Editorial Board will confirm the review and make the final decision.
If the author suspects that the members of the Editorial Board violated the norms of academic ethics during preliminary check or in the process of publishing (unjustified rejection of paper or significant changing of paper’s content that does not include grammar or spelling corrections), they are allowed to complain to the dean of Faculty of Orthodox Theology “Saint Basil of Ostrog”, i.e. to the journal’s publisher. The dean will investigate the case and, if the complaint is reasonable, form an ethical committee comprised of faculty members, none of whom is a member of the Editorial Board, with the task of reviewing the paper and determining whether Editorial Board members violated the norms of professional ethics. If the complaint is justified, the ethical committee will determine the way for correcting the mistake (accepting unreasonably rejected paper or announcing the mistake and correction in the next issue of Godišnjak and on its website). In the case of a more serious violation of the author’s rights by members of the Editorial Board, the ethical committee will suggest to the dean and to the Faculty Council to replace the member in question. If the ethical committee determines that the Editorial Board member’s decision was justified, i.e. if the paper does not correspond to the journal’s aims and scope, does not present any original contribution, or if it shows signs of plagiarism or hate speech, previous Editorial Board’s decision will be confirmed.
Post-Publication Scientific Discussion
Godišnjak’s Editorial Board encourages public discussion about all its published material. The platform for public discussion is Godišnjak’s website, where critiques or responses to papers might be published.
Basic Instructions for Authors
Paper Template
Declaration of Authorship