The editorial management process encompasses from the time a manuscript is received up to its potential publication. Here are some additional details in this respect:

Manuscript reception. The author sends his/her request for his/her paper to be published through the OJS-AMP system website. The system assigns a code for the material and inserts it in a schedule in order to undergo assessment by the Editorial Committee. The editorial assistant systematically assigns papers to fellow editors on a first come, first served basis. The system automatically establishes the ‘Submission’ (‘Envío’) status of the submitted material.

Average time for a response: Seven days for receiving a communication from the assistant editor.

Assessment by the Editorial Committee. The fellow editor in charge performs he first review of the manuscript. If formal requisites are complied with (format, word count, reference system, etc.), he/she will review the manuscript and he/she will present his/her views on it in the next ordinary meeting of the Editorial Committee. The system screen will display the words ‘Under review’ (‘Revisión’). If this is not the case, the submitted manuscript may be rejected and the reason for that will be stated (the system screen will display the word ‘Rejected’ (‘Rechazado’).

Afterwards, the Editorial Committee evaluates the manuscript and determines if it complies with AMP assessment criteria and requests an evaluation by external reviewers (peer review). In case of non-compliance, the manuscript is rejected.

Average time for a response: Seven to fifteen days for the evaluation by the Editorial Committee.

Peer review process: In this stage, external reviewers are invited for assessing the manuscript. They perform a specialized evaluation of its contents. They are selected on the basis of their competence in the particular topics to be reviewed.

External reviewers evaluate the manuscript according to its originality, pertinence, and relevance. The assessment may end suggesting accepting the manuscript, making some observations and requesting clarification, so the manuscript may be reassessed later, after having responded to the identified objections, or, otherwise, the material may be rejected.

This review stage has an established time period which may take from one week to one month, depending on the reviewer(s)’ availability. If there is an even number of reviewers, the opinion of an additional reviewer will be requested. The system screen will display the words ‘Under review’ (‘Revisión’).

Average time for a response: An initial 15-day time period will be established, although this may be extended up to 2 months, depending on how complex the topic may be or on the availability of specialized reviewers. This time period may be extended once again if a second review round is required.

Objection withdrawal stage: Observations by external reviewers and/or editors will be sent to the corresponding author of the manuscript (the one who submitted the paper), and he/she will be given a fixed time period for withdrawing these observations/objections. This may take up to 2 weeks, but it may be extended, depending on the manuscript author(s). The system screen will display the words ‘Under review’ (‘Revisión’).

After the response from the author(s), the fellow editor in charge verifies that the observations are correctly withdrawn (response letter properly filled, document with control change version, etc.) and submits this corrected version of the manuscript to the Editorial Committee. This stage may be repeated more than one time.

Average time for a response: Fifteen days as a minimum, but this may be extended if agreed so by the reviewer and the Editorial Committee. This time period may be extended once again if a second review round is required.

Final decision by the Editorial Committee: After having reviewed the corrected version of the manuscript, the Editorial Committee decides whether it is accepted or rejected. If accepted, the manuscript enters the edition stage (the system screen will display ‘Editorial’); if rejected, a letter supporting this decision will be sent to the author(s).

Average time for a response: Seven to fifteen days.

Paper edition: This is the stage where the text is edited in order to adapt it to AMP style or for improving its wording. If necessary, the fellow editor in charge may communicate with the author(s) in order to withdraw some observations.

Average time for a response: Fifteen to thirty days, depending on the amount of corrections necessary.

Design, layout and submission for prepress proofing: In this stage, the manuscript is given a format according to AMP style, and a prepress proofing final version is prepared. This document, which is in PDF format, is sent to the corresponding author so he/she may approve it. If there is no response to this communication, the Editorial Committee will assume it has been automatically approved, so no other changes will be made in the final version. The time for approving this prepress proofing is up to five days, but this may vary, with a prior communication, according to the discretion of the Editorial Committee.

Average time for a response: Seven days for submitting the prepress proofing version. This may take up to five days when waiting for the final response by the author(s).

Final version and publication of a new paper: This is the last phase of the editorial process. The paper is published in the OJS-AMP system and it becomes available in its complete version. Afterwards, other formats for the paper will be made available (XML; HTML, etc.) in order to submit the paper to databases where AMP is indexed and its profile may be improved.

Average time for a response: Fifteen days for the paper to appear in the OJS-AMP website.