Guidelines for authors

Download guidelines for authors (Spanish)

Legal Requirements for Article Submission

RSAYB does not issue or receive payments for the submission, processing, and publication of texts. Documents submitted for possible publication in the journal must include the complete documentation and the final version of the article through the OJS platform:

* Declaration of originality, this letter must be filled in with the details of the main author with the express authorization of all co-authors, confirming that they all agree with this declaration.

* Copyright agreement and conflict of interest declaration, must be filled in and signed with the details of the author(s) of the article.

* In the case of previously published material and whose content is subject to copyright – graphics, images, photographs, artwork, etc., whether by the author(s) themselves or third parties – a copy of the reproduction authorization by the copyright holder must be provided.

No changes will be accepted once the process has started.

Technical Requirements for Article Submission

The following criteria must be considered when submitting the material:

* Submit the text in an electronic format for word processing (PDF files will not be accepted). Use the submission template for submitting your manuscript.

* We do not accept tables as images; they must come directly from a program like Excel or be created in Word itself, included in the text. The table title must be concise and directly related to its content.

* Figures (diagrams, graphs, photographs, drawings, maps, among others) must be in JPG format (or compatible), with proportional width and height. Figures that do not meet these characteristics will be returned to the author, and the article cannot be submitted for evaluation. Figures authored by someone other than the article’s author must indicate the source they come from.

* Both tables and figures must be embedded in the text, numbered in Arabic numerals, and inline with the text.

We will send the article for editorial review once it meets the submission requirements.

Editorial Review

Authors submitting a contribution for possible publication in RSAYB must submit – complete and in its final version – the documentation indicated in the Legal Requirements section. Once the editorial team certifies that the submission meets all the submission requirements, the text will be sent for editorial review, which includes the following stages:

* We will assess that the text is original and unpublished.

* We will verify that the submitted text is related to the Focus and Scope of the journal.

* Certify a review under the tool approved by the Editorial Committee for plagiarism detection (Turnitin); only after this will it be possible to proceed with the next stages of the editorial review.

* We will review that the bibliography used is pertinent, updated, and properly standardized in APA 7th edition format.

* We will check that the text complies with each of the formatting guidelines outlined in the article submission requirements and author guidelines.

* According to the editorial policy guidelines approved by the Editorial Committee, we will prioritize texts where the bibliography is submitted electronically with active hyperlinks to the respective DOIs, when applicable.

Once the submitted contribution has passed the editorial review, we will formally notify the corresponding author of the registration and initiation of the academic review process.

Responsibility for Content

By submitting the manuscript, we assume that each author has had full access to all the study data and assumes full and public responsibility for the integrity and accuracy of the data analysis. Therefore, RSAYB declines any responsibility for possible conflicts arising from the authorship of the works published in it.

Anonymity of Author Identity

RSAYB will ensure that no information revealing the identity of the authors is included in the body of the article to ensure an anonymous evaluation by the academic peers conducting the review. Once the manuscript is accepted, all identifying information will be included on the first page.

Submission Sequence and Article Structure

Articles should be divided into sections in the following order: title in Spanish, title in English, full names of the authors (first and last name or as normally written in their publications) ordered according to the importance of the contribution to the research or article preparation and not alphabetically or hierarchically; ORCID ID digital identifier of the authors; email specifying the corresponding author; abstract; keywords; abstract in English; keywords in English; Introduction; Materials and Methods; Results and Discussion; Conclusions; Acknowledgments (optional); Conflict of Interest; Author Contribution; Source of Funding; Data Availability Statement; References and Annexes (optional).

Title: It should be brief, explanatory, and indicate the essence of the work in less than 20 words. It should not contain the scientific and common names of the organisms mentioned. It should not include abbreviations or acronyms unless well-known to the entire scientific community. It should not begin with a grammatical article, verb, or action. Avoid phrases such as: Aspects of, Comments on, Research on, Studies of, Preliminary studies on, Notes on, Comments on, as well as ambiguities, dates, localisms, and formulas. Titles must be included in both Spanish and English.

Abstract: It should contain between 150 to 200 words (100 for short communications and scientific notes), including: justification (brief introduction), objective, materials and methods, results, and conclusions (main ones). It must be written in a single paragraph. The abstract must be written in the past tense. At the end of the abstract, five keywords must be listed in alphabetical order, separated by commas, that are not included in the title and that identify the article's content. Abstracts must be included in both Spanish and English.

Introduction: It should include the research problem, its relevance or justification, a brief review of the current literature on the topic and/or supporting theories (background of the problem), the scientific gap, and should conclude with the purpose of the research. Argue the problem with reliable sources, preferably scientific articles less than 5 years old, and avoid the use of gray literature. The introduction should be written in the present tense. We recommend no more than 10 paragraphs, with fewer than eight lines each.

In review articles, the body of the text may contain easily understandable subtitles.

Materials and Methods: Indicate the geographic area or controlled space where the study was conducted. Specify the type, level, and design of the research, population, sample, and sampling method. Study variables. Describe unusual or novel methods and techniques, as well as modifications used. Also mention the data collection techniques and instruments, as well as the instruments designed; where applicable, describe the validation and reliability process. Statistical analysis methods and software used in the research should also be mentioned.

This section should be written sequentially and in the past tense so that the methodology can be repeated. References to tables, figures, and diagrams may be made.

In review articles, this section will be called "Methodology" and should generally indicate the bibliographic review protocol.

Results and Discussion: Present the new knowledge obtained from the original research, providing the information clearly, objectively, and impartially, without interpretive elements. Include the results obtained in the research that answer the objective of the work. The most statistically significant results should be briefly described. Tables and figures may be included to expand the results without duplicating or repeating the data and the content in the text.

As the results are presented, they are interpreted and analyzed; these are discussed, supported by other previously published studies or using a well-founded criterion. The results should be discussed with the authors cited in the introduction; other reliable sources may also be used to expand the analysis. They should be written in the past tense.

In review articles, this section will be called "Review Results" and should be written in the present tense. It is necessary to clarify the evidence supporting any key statements contained in the review, as well as the strength of the evidence (published trials, systematic reviews, observational studies, expert opinions). In topics where evidence is poor or of low quality, this should be indicated. The body of the text may contain easily understandable subtitles, and these may be written as questions.

Conclusions: These constitute the main point for future research, and they should be written briefly, precisely, and in line with the objectives established. They should also include recommendations for future research and the benefits of their results. Do not use bullets or numbering to separate them; write the conclusions in running text in a single paragraph.

Acknowledgments (optional): Mention people and institutions that advised the research.

Conflict of Interest: Authors must declare any possible conflicts of interest related to their work through a letter (Legal Requirements). Authors who have no conflicts of interest related to the subject matter of the work should also declare that “There is no conflict of interest related to the subject matter of the work.”

Source of Funding: Articles derived from funded projects must indicate the funding entity, including contract number, agreement, resolution, etc. Otherwise, indicate, “The authors did not receive any sponsorship to conduct this study/article.”

Author Contribution: RSAYB adopts the CRediT Taxonomy (Contributor Roles Taxonomy), which distributes participation roles into 14 types through which an author can be recognized in the publication.

Data Availability Statement: It must be mentioned that data have been deposited in a repository, providing a description of the type of data, the name and URL of the repository, the identifier code, and the licensing data for use and distribution (more information can be found in the RSAYB data availability policy). If not applicable, the authors should declare “Not applicable.”

References: A minimum of 20 references for original articles and 40 for review articles. All publications cited in the text must be listed in the References section in APA 7th edition format, and vice versa. An important point to note here is that at least 80% of the references must be scientific articles from the last 5 years. Minimize the use of books, theses, and/or websites. Include DOI numbers or URLs in the references if possible. The use of bibliographic managers such as Mendeley, Zotero, or EndNote is recommended. Comunicar® has developed a style manual with examples of the correct way to reference this standard, which can be found at https://bit.ly/2S3MflT.

Annexes (optional): Supplementary material strictly and directly related to the research.

Units: Only SI units and abbreviations should be used. Abbreviations referenced in the SI and/or non-standard abbreviations must be explained when they first appear in the text. No periods should be used in abbreviations.

Updated: November 2024