Basic Information
The Fórum Társadalomtudományi Szemle (in English: ‘Forum Social Science Review’, hereinafter FTSZ) is a Hungarian-language scholarly journal on social sciences published in Slovakia, European Union. It basically deals with social issues of ethnic minorities, carries out research in the fields of linguistics, history, ethnology, folklore, sociology, demography and political science. FTSZ is published four times a year, in its issues it mainly presents studies, but it also provides space for other scientific publications and discussions, conference materials and book reviews.
The FTSZ journal is published by the Forum Minority Research Institute based in Å amorÃn, Slovakia. The journal is drawn up by the Executive Editor and the Editorial Board headed by Editor-in-Chief. The members of the Editorial Board are acknowledged domestic and foreign scholars engaged in specific disciplines of social sciences. The Editorial Board retains responsibility for compliance with ethical standards of the approved contents for publishing. Publishing possibility in the FTSZ is free, no financial compensation can be required from authors.
The contents of the individual FTSZ issues and samples from the published articles are available on the official website of the journal. Complete printed issues or their portable document format (PDF) can be purchased via electronic channels in the e-shop of the Forum Minority Research Institute.
Originality of Articles
FTSZ exclusively publishes original papers. The professional quality of submissions is assessed by the Editorial Board, with the assistance of external reviewers—internationally recognized experts. The peer review process is anonymous. Editors do not accept manuscripts which do not meet the quality requirements.
Editors´ Obligations
The Editorial Board ensures that the published articles correspond to the internationally agreed ethical principles and academic conventions. The editors commit themselves to constantly improving the quality of the journal, to promoting freedom of expression, to ensuring the independence of editors, authors, and of the scientific discourse, and they protect intellectual property. The Editorial Board has the right to decline submissions which do not correspond with the thematic profile of the journal. Considering the standpoint of the Editorial Board and of the external reviewers, the Executive Editor has the competency to decide whether an article will be published or not. An external reviewer´s opinion is only needed in the case of studies; other contributions and book reviews are published according to the decision of the Editorial Board. The Executive Editor, the Editorial Board and the external reviewers assess the quality of articles regardless of age, gender, race, sexual orientation, religion, ethnic origin, nationality or political views of the author.
Authors´ Obligations,
The Editorial Board invites authors to submit their contributions for publication in the journal, or authors can also offer their articles for publication to the Editorial Board. The condition for publication of a text is that the Editorial Board accepts it for publication. In case of studies, their author is obliged to consider the assessment of the external reviewer, and if required, to accordingly incorporate the recommendations in his/her article. Every person who participated in writing of a text must be listed as co-author. Authors of studies are required to comply with the formal and structural editorial standards of FTSZ. Further information on the issue is to be found under the menu item Authors´ Guide. All studies must be complemented by keywords and a short resume. By submitting his/her contribution, the author endorses the journal´s ethical code.
The Peer Review Process and the Reviewers´ Obligations
The peer review process is objective, anonymous and confidential. Each study is peer reviewed by external scholars, their report is exclusively based on technical examination. The reviewers critically assess all relevant aspects of the study—such as compliance with the profile of the journal, originality of text, relevance of content, quality and methods of presentation, quality of language, scientific grounding, etc. A third party has no access to the peer review report. Reviewers cannot be in a conflict of interests or conflict with the author, nor with the content of the submitted study. Reviewers selected according to their subject-specific academic competence, are invited to peer review submissions by the Editorial Board.
Any contentious issues which are not regulated in these ethical standards will be dealt with by the Editorial Board according to standard international procedures, in accordance with the guidance from the Committee on Publication Ethics.