Rules and Submission Guide for Publication in the Public Administration Journal
Overview:
The Journal receives contributions from Arab writers and researchers and publishes their intellectual output, including scholarly research, studies, articles, dissertation summaries, papers presented at symposia and conferences and their summaries and book reviews according to the rules and requirements set by the Journal as follows:
- The Journal is a professional peer-reviewed periodical where only papers that prove to be of a high level of scholarly approach and substantive quality will be considered.
- The Journal publishes works addressing public administration-related issues. The works must not have been published or submitted for publishing elsewhere.
- All works submitted for publishing shall be presented to the editorial board.
- The works that meet the standards shall be confidentially sent to specialized reviewers.
- Authors will be notified of the acceptance of their papers by the editorial secretary who shall notify them about the date of publication. Authors shall receive two complementary issues of the Journal in addition to ten copies of their manuscripts.
- Public Administration Journal has copyrights of all published works.
- The published works shall not be re-published in any form or language by another publisher without a prior written consent of the editor-in-chief.
- In case of using data collection tools, authors should give mention to them in his work.
- Published works express the opinions of their writers themselves, not the IPA.
Correspondence should be directed to:
Research and Studies Center, Institute of Public Administration. P. O. Box 205, Riyadh 11141, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Editor-in-chief, Public Administration Journal, Tel.: 0096611 4745903
E-mail: alshehriam@ipa.edu.sa
Editorial secretary, Tel.: 00966114745086/ Fax: 00966114745541
Website: www.ipa.edu.sa/ e-mail: journal@ipa.edu.sa
Evaluation and peer-review process:
Works published by the Journal, including research, studies and scientific articles, are evaluated and reviewed in a double-blind review process by specialized professors either in Saudi Arabia or abroad. This process is carried out according to the standards set forth below:
1. Originality and scholarly contribution.
2. Practical and scientific outcome.
3. Method of presentation and organization.
4. Research methodology:
- Clarity of the research problem.
- Appropriateness of the study population and sampling accuracy.
- Identification and clarity of the research questions and hypotheses.
- Validity and reliability of the data collection tool.
5. Reviewing the related theories and studies.
6. Correct selection and application of data analysis methods.
7. Accuracy and objectivity of the results and recommendations.
8. Updated and comprehensive references.
Rules for publishing scholarly works in the Public Administration Journal:
First: scholarly papers:
Works submitted to the Journal must be original and authentic. They must be written in a good, refined and coherent Arabic style. They must be:
1. Sent in an electronic format.
2. Of no more than (60) pages length including references and appendices.
3. Follow the below order (Research Paper Sample):
- Cover page: includes research title, author name (Arabic & English), academic rank or position, and affiliation.
- First page: marks the beginning of the text or content and begins with number (1).
- Pagination: the work must be numbered consecutively.
4. Authors must submit two abstracts for each work, one in Arabic and one in English. Each abstract should not exceed (300) words in length and should state the research objectives, problem, methodology, results, and keywords.
5. A brief resume must be attached to the work.
6. Referencing style:
The below formatting style must be adopted for quotations, citations and references:
Quotation:
| Rule | Example |
| When quoting general information, the source/s should be acknowledged next to the quoted idea by writing the author/s last name, and the year of publication between parentheses. | (Deming, 2013) |
| When the reference is preceded by the exact quotation or findings' presentation, the author's name must be written first, and then the year of publication is written between parentheses. | Deming (2013) |
| If the author's name is written in the same paragraph where no confusion is made between him/her and other studies, it would be sufficient to write the name of the author only. | Deming has found also that…… |
| When quoting or referring to a huge range of references, the authors' names and years of publication must be written between parentheses. | (Selye, 2012; Deming, 2013; Sallis, 2014) |
| When quoting or referring to more than one reference by one author in the same year, the references must be written alphabetically, so that the alphabet letters immediately follow the year of publication. | (Jones, 2013a, Jones, 2013b) |
When quoting more than one author, the last names are mentioned only once for the first time for all authors followed by the year of publication between parentheses. In cases that follow, the last name of the first author must be written followed by the abbreviation "et al.", then the year of publication is to be written between parentheses. | Williams, Jones, Smith, and Bradner (2013) Williams et al. (2013) |
| When quoting a text, the page number/s must be written immediately after the year of publication. | (Deming, 2013: 9) |
List of references:
1. References mentioned in the text must be included in the list of references.
2. References must be written in a single list regardless of their sources: periodicals, books, official publications, journals…etc. The Arabic references must be included in a separate page and followed by foreign references in another page. References shall be arranged alphabetically as per the author's last name, year of publication, book or research title, and country of publication as follows:
| Rule | Example |
| Research and studies: | Wolf, R. (2013). "Organizational Innovation: Review, Critique and Suggested Research Directions." Journal of Management Studies, 31: 405-43 |
| Books: | Schein, E. H. (1992). Organizational Culture and Leadership, San Francisco: Jossey – Bass |
| Chapter in a book: | Al Khalid, Omar (1435H). Administrative Development, in Al Radi Mohammad et al., Administrative Organization. Riyadh: Institute of Public Administration. pp: 145-174. |
| Official publications and documents: | Annual Statistics Report (1435H). Riyadh: Ministry of Finance and National Economy. Rules of Association of the Institute of Public Administration, Royal Decree # (R/49), 2/8/1426H Resolution of the Council of Ministers # (520) 5/7/1383H on forming a Higher Committee for Administrative Reform, and a Preparatory Administrative Committee. |
| Dissertations: | Alganem, S. H. (2013). Doctoral Dissertation, ……………. |
Annexes: They must be added in a stand-alone format immediately after the references.
Citing an electronic reference:
| Rule | Example |
Periodicals: Articles written in a paper format and published on the Internet: When browsing an online article, parentheses must be added following the title, as shown in the example, if there is a difference between the original format and the electronic one. | VendenBos, G., Knapp, S., & Doe, J. Role of reference elements. (2001) In the Selection of resources by Psychology undergraduates [Electronic Version]. Journal of Bibliographic Research, 5, 117123-. VendenBos, G., Knapp, S., & Doe, J. Role of reference elements. (2001) In the Selection of resources by Psychology undergraduates [Electronic Version]. Journal of Bibliographic Research, 5,117123- Retrieved October 13 2001, From http://jbr.org/article.html |
| An article published in an online periodical only. | Frecrichson, B.L. (2000, March7) Cultivating Positive Emotions to Optimize Health and Well-being. Prevention & Treatment, 3 Articles 0001a. Retrieved November 20, 2000, from http://journals.apa.org/prevention/volume3/pre0030001a.html |
| An electronic format of an article written by three to five authors in a periodical retrieved from a database. | Broman, W. C., Hanson, M.A., Oppler, S.H., Pulakos, E.d., & White, L.A. (2012). Role of Early Supervisor y Experience in Supervisor Performance Journal of Applied Psychology, 78, 443- 449 Retrieved October 23.2000, from PsycARTICLES database. |
Non-periodical documents published on the Internet:
| Standard | Example |
| Articles published in an online newsletter only. | Glueckauf, R.L., Whitton, J., Baxter, J., Kain, J., Vogelgesang, Hudson, M., et al. (2012, July). Videocounseling for Families for Rural Teens with Epilepsy-- Project Update. Telehealth News, 2(2) Retrieved form http://www.telehealth.net/subscribe/newsletter4a.html |
| One document where no reference is made to the author or date of publication. | GYUth WWW user survery. (n.d.). Retrieved http://www.cc.gates.edu.gvu/usersurvey/survey |
| Documents of university programs or departments published on their websites. | Chou,L.,McClintock, R., Moretti, F., &Nix, D.H. (1993). Technology Bottles: Choosing past and imagining educational future. Retrieved August24,2000, form Colombia University, Institute for Learning Technologies Web sihttp://www.ilt.columbia.edu/publications/papers.newwinel. htm te: |
7. After modifications are made and the work is accepted by the Journal, it shall be sent electronically to the Research Center.
Second- Publishing rules for works proposed for translation:
Articles submitted for translation must observe the rules set forth below:
1. They must be recent publications (no more than one-year back).
2. They must be referred to in related research papers and articles.
3. They must be in the field of administration and its related areas.
4. They must be published in a peer-reviewed scientific periodical or journal.
5. Their content and subject shall not violate the Saudi and Arab culture.
Third- Publishing rules for doctoral dissertation reviews:
Reviews of doctoral dissertations must be up to date and only two years old as of its award. They must address issues of public administration or other related topics. The review must not be more than (22) pages length. Researchers must submit the following:
1. An introduction to state the significance of dissertation.
2. A summary of the research problem (i.e. subject) and how it is determined.
3. A summary of the research/study methodology.
4. A summary of the research/study' main findings and recommendations.
5. A list of references cited in the dissertation review.
Fourth: Book reviews
a. General conditions:
- The book must be a recently published reference book.
- An original copy of the book must be provided along with the review.
- The critique writer must be specialized in the same scientific field of the book.
- The book must address one of the fields of public administration or other related areas.
- The critique must not have been published or submitted for publishing elsewhere.
b. Critique contents:
1. Book information:
- Title
- Author
- Publisher and address
- Date of publication, ISBN, pages.
2. Introduction:
- Book significance
- target audience
- Rationale behind choosing this book
- What is special about the book that singles it out from other similar books?
3. Contents presentation:
Describing a book and defining its objectives, and presenting the topics addressed in every chapter in briefly, while taking into account the balance between this part and the part that follows (i.e., the book critique).
4. Book critique:
Analyzing and criticizing the major issues and ideas addressed in the book, while providing some examples and quotations, when necessary, to support a certain viewpoint. This includes:
- The professional treatment of the topics (methodology used in addressing the topics, how data and sources are used, work organization and method of presentation…etc.).
- Substantive quality of the book.
- Author's ability to explain what he/she introduces in an easy-going and refined Arabic style.
- Scientific contributions provided by the book (whether the book provides innovative ideas or addresses present disciplines in a novel way that helps achieve better use?)
- Discuss the negative sides (if any) of the work, in a scientific and objective manner without criticizing the author, taking into account the objectives of the author.
- Any suggestions to be made to the book in case of reprinting to enrich the contents and topics of the book.
5. Conclusion: Summarizes the major points presented in the critique and showcase the contributions made by the author.
6. List of key references: includes the references cited in the book, in addition to any other important references (if any), that may benefit the reader.
Fifth: Publishing rules for the comments made on the Journal regulations and bylaws:
Comments on the regulations and bylaws related to the Journal should take the points below into consideration:
1. The comment must not be more than (40) pages in length.
2. The regulation must be a recent or amended one and no comments has been made to it before.
3. The amendments (if any) made to the regulation and the executive rules must be taken into consideration.
4. The comment must include a conclusion highlighting the writer's viewpoints on the regulation.
Technical specifications
First: Body Text:
1. The body text should be (12.50 cm width x 17.5 cm height) + 1cm for pagination to make a total of 18.5cm height.
2. The body text should be prepared in Normal Arial font size (14) on Windows or Normal Muna font size (14) on Macintosh.
3. Paragraph indentation should be (0.6 cm).
4. Vertical space between paragraphs should be (1.5).
5. Foreign words in the body text should be written in Normal Times New Roman font size (12).
6. Arabic footnotes (if any) should be written in Normal Arial font size (12) on Windows or in Normal Muna font size (12) on Macintosh.
7. In numbered items a dash (-) should be added between the item and the number.
8. In numbered items containing more than one line, the second line and what follows should start with the body text, not with the number, e.g.:
1. The first step in hierarchical analysis: It is the breaking down of the problem and setting it in a hierarchical form by defining the criteria affecting decision-making and the alternatives to be compared.
Second: Headings:
1. The main heading should be written in Arial Black font size (16) on Windows or in Muna Black font size (16) on Macintosh.
2. The subheading should be written in Arial Black font size (14) on Windows or in Muna Black font size (14) on Macintosh.
3. The first subheading should be written in Arial Black font size (14) on Windows or Muna Black font size (14) on Macintosh.
4. The second subheading and what follows should be written in Bold Arial Black on Windows or in Bold Muna font size (14) on Macintosh.
Third – Tables and figures:
1. Captions of tables or figures should be written in Arial Black font size (12) on Windows or in Muna Black font size (12) on Macintosh.
2. Table headings should be written in Arial Black font size (10) on Windows or in Muna Black font size (10) on Macintosh.
3. Table items should be written in Normal Arial font size (12) on Windows or in Normal Muna font size (12) on Macintosh.
4. If the table ends with a total value, it should be written in Arial Black (12) on Windows or in Muna Black (12) on Macintosh.
Fourth: References:
1. Arabic references should be written at the end of the research or article in Normal Arial font size (12) on Windows or in Muna font size (12) on Macintosh.
2. Foreign references should be written at the end of the research or article in Normal Times New Roman font size (10).
