Articles

Review process for original and unpublished manuscripts

All submissions undergo rigorous scrutiny, review, and evaluation. This process consists of five stages:

1. All manuscripts are checked using the specialized anti-plagiarism software iThenticate.

2. All manuscripts are examined by our editorial office to ensure they comply with the journal’s author guidelines and are impeccably written. The following is evaluated:

Each submission must be accompanied by a free-form letter in which the author(s) explicitly state that the manuscript is original, unpublished, and not currently under review, adjudication, or editorial processing elsewhere. The letter must be signed by the author(s) (the signature must be handwritten). Additionally, each author’s contact information and ORCID must be included.
The manuscript file must be in .docx (Word) format and must be completely anonymized. If there are self-citations, these must not be included in the “References” section and, in the main text, must be cited as: “(XXXX year page).” If the manuscript passes all reviews, the self-citations will be included in the final version.
For the “Articles” section: title, subtitle, abstract, and keywords in the original language and their translation into English or Spanish, as applicable.
For the “Reviews” section: title and subtitle in the original language and their translation into English or Spanish, as applicable.
Strict word limit for the manuscript. This is 10,000 words for the “Articles” section and 5,000 words for the “Reviews” section, including the title, subtitle, main text, tables, diagrams, photo captions, and references.
Strict word limits for the title (15), subtitle (15), abstract (150–200), and keywords (3–5).
Strict control over the content of the abstract.
Strict control over the translation of the title, subtitle, abstract, and keywords.
Strict consistency and adherence to the citation system. Espacialidades uses the Chicago style (author-date).

3. Manuscripts that comply with the journal’s author guidelines and are impeccably written are sent to the Editorial Committee (composed of experts, academics, and researchers external to the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana) to evaluate their relevance, quality, and scientific rigor. The following are evaluated:

The suitability of the manuscript in accordance with the call for submissions.
The solid, logical, and coherent development of the argumentation, instruments, and method across the different sections (title, subtitle, problem statement, justification, objectives, background, hypothesis, method, results, discussion, and conclusion; as well as any others required by the problem addressed). Espacialidades selects for double-blind peer review only those texts that demonstrate they have been produced under the strictest criteria regarding writing quality and scientific rigor.

4. Manuscripts that successfully pass the first three stages are submitted to a double-blind peer-review process. Espacialidades works with external specialists, academics, and researchers who are not affiliated with the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana. Each manuscript is evaluated by at least two reviewers with demonstrated expertise in the relevant field. The evaluation focuses on the following criteria:

The relevance and significance of the problem within the specific field or branch of knowledge.
Originality and novelty in the approach, findings, discussion, and conclusions.
The soundness of the referential, theoretical, conceptual, and methodological frameworks.
Quality of the arguments and clarity of the writing.
The soundness of the sources.
Any other aspects that the reviewer considers relevant.

5. Manuscripts that reach the double-blind peer review stage receive one of the following four decisions:

Accepted without changes.
Accepted with suggestions.
Accepted subject to revisions.
Rejected. Not publishable.

6. Metadata Policy. The metadata included in each published item is used to feed search engines and is included in the DOI (https://www.doi.org/) protocol. This includes:

Title of the product in Spanish and English
Full first and last names of authors and co-authors in order of appearance
ORCID identifiers of authors and co-authors in order of appearance and citation
Affiliation
Location of the institution of origin
Acronym of the originating institution
Abstract
Publication date
Final page range of the item within the published issue
DOI of the item
Product URL
Journal title
Publisher
ISSN
DOI request date

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Results

Espacialidades receives and processes the reviews:

If the manuscript receives two “Accepted without changes” reviews, it proceeds to style editing, layout, and publication.
If the manuscript receives two reviews stating “Accepted with suggestions” or one of these and another stating “Accepted without changes,” it is returned to the author(s) for their consideration and, in any case, to incorporate the suggestions. The manuscript must be returned to Espacialidades for verification of the final version, after which it proceeds to the editing, typesetting, and publication stages.
If the manuscript receives two reviews stating “Accepted subject to changes” or one of these and another stating “Accepted with suggestions,” or even one stating “Accepted without changes,” it is returned to the author(s) so they may incorporate all changes and, if applicable, evaluate the suggestions. The “Accepted with revisions” decision means that each and every change is mandatory in order to proceed with the process. The author(s) is/are free to reject the changes and withdraw their manuscript from the process. Manuscripts with all required changes incorporated and, if applicable, with the suggestions addressed will be returned to Espacialidades for review of the final version and to proceed with style editing, typesetting, and publication.
Manuscripts that receive two “Rejected. Not publishable” reviews are definitively rejected.
In the first three cases, if there is a “Rejected. Not publishable” decision, the manuscript is sent to a third reviewer.

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Guidelines for Authors

For the “Articles” section, manuscripts selected for review are the result of scientific research, as well as other original contributions significant to the journal’s profile, field of knowledge, and disciplinary branches.

For the “Reviews” section, manuscripts selected for evaluation are the result of in-depth analytical, critical, and bibliographic work on the volume under consideration. Reviews must be structured such that each detail, piece of data, and aspect discussed is developed consistently in accordance with the line of argument the author wishes to highlight, evaluate, or scrutinize.

Espacialidades limits publications by members of the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana. For each issue, no more than 30% of the content will come from contributors affiliated with the UAM. Seventy percent of the published articles and reviews come from researchers outside the UAM.

Espacialidades accepts for review only original and unpublished manuscripts. Submissions must strictly comply with the following requirements:

The file must be submitted in .docx (Word) format.
Manuscripts for the “Articles” section must include the following sections: title, subtitle, abstract, keywords, main body of the research, and references.
Manuscripts for the “Reviews” section must include a title, subtitle, review body, and references.
Manuscripts for the “Articles” section must not exceed 10,000 (ten thousand) words, including references, tables, and notes.
Manuscripts for the “Reviews” section must not exceed 5,000 (five thousand) words, including references, tables, and notes.
The title, subtitle, abstract, and keywords must be translated into English and/or Spanish, as applicable. The translation must be accurate and legible. If the manuscript is in Spanish, the translations are into English; if the manuscript is in English, the translations are into Spanish; if the manuscript is in Portuguese, the translations are into English and Spanish.
The abstract and its translation must be between 150 (one hundred fifty) and 200 (two hundred) words in length. The translation must be accurate and legible.
The author must include 3 (three) to 5 (five) keywords in the original language and in their translations, as applicable.
The abstract and its translation(s) must respect the general structure of the main body of the text, its expository sequence, and terminology. It must contain, where applicable, an explicit statement of: problem statement, objectives, background, hypothesis, method, results, discussion, and conclusion; as well as any other elements required by the topic addressed.
Regarding the main text of manuscripts for the “Articles” section, it is recommended to divide it into, at least (and if applicable to the type of research):

Introduction.
Definition or statement of the problem, subjects, or objects of study.
Justification.
State of the art, state of the issue, or epistemic situation of the subject of study.
Theoretical-conceptual-referential framework.
Contextual or situational framework specific to the problem or subject of study.
Explicit statement of a hypothesis.
Method and methodological development.
Presentation of analytical, quantitative, qualitative, or mixed instruments and approaches.
Presentation and discussion of results, and evaluation of the arguments.
Conclusions.
Bibliographic and periodical references, and any others required by the topic addressed.
These sections may be adapted to the nature of the topic addressed. Sections may include numbered subheadings.

11. The body of manuscripts for the “Reviews” section should, as far as possible, not contain subsections; however, if they do, the sections must exhibit strong coherence and a logical, consistent flow of argumentation.

12. The document must have the following format:

Font: 12-point Times New Roman.
Double spacing (2.0).
Margins: 3 cm on the left, right, top, and bottom.
Alignment of the entire document: Left.
Page numbers at the bottom of the page, centered and in 12-point Times New Roman font.
Direct quotations longer than 5 lines must be in a separate paragraph with narrower margins, without quotation marks, and in 10-point Times New Roman font.
Footnotes should be in 10-point Times New Roman font, left-aligned.
Captions, diagrams, and tables should be aligned with their respective elements and set in 10-point Times New Roman font.

13. The citation format must be Chicago (author-date). If the author uses a reference manager, they must ensure that the “References” section and each citation in the body of the work are converted to “Static Text.”

14. If the manuscript includes tables, graphs, or images, these must be submitted in duplicate in .jpeg format with a minimum resolution of 300 dpi.

15. Manuscripts for both sections must be completely anonymized.

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Citation System

All manuscripts submitted for review must use the Chicago-style citation system (author-date). We suggest consulting the Brief Guide to Citations and Bibliographic References in the Chicago Manual of Style.