African Journals Online
Journal of Social Development in Africa

Instructions to authors…./ Instructions aux auteurs….

How to communicate with the editor

All postal correspondence should be sent to the editor, Journal of Social Development in Africa, School of Social Work, P/Bag 66022 Kopje Harare Zimbabwe.

E-mail correspondence should be set to the editor, Journal of Social Development in Africa at [email protected] where it will be speedily dealt with. Authors must make every effort to remain in e-mail contact with the editor at all times and, if they know their server is down or they will be absent from their desk, to let the editor know of alternative e-mail addresses. At certain stages of the editorial process the editor needs to be in daily contact with the author and the email system appears to be the most effective communication system throughout much of Africa.

The scope of the journal

The journal publishes analyses, findings and recommendations of scholars relating to problems of social development in Africa, including both theoretical and empirical and descriptive works and scholarly discussions of ethics related to social development.

SUBMITTING THE MANUSCRIPT

Contributions that further the aims of the journal are welcome. Manuscripts should ideally be submitted by e-mail or on a PC disk (in Word, Wordperfect or similar) together with a typed copy on single-sided A4 paper, double-spaced with large margins all round. Every effort should be made to ensure that such a document does not contain a computer virus. Large files should be zipped.

1.      Covering page

A covering page should be provided giving the author's name, affiliation and address (including e-mail address and fax number). These details should not appear on the ms to help anonymity in the refereeing process. The covering letter should state that the work has not been published or submitted for publication elsewhere and will not be so submitted unless it is withdrawn for consideration from the journal or rejected by the journal editor. Please note that submission of the ms gives the journal exclusive right to publish, to copyright and to deny or allow reproduction of it in whole and in part.

2.      Abstract

An abstract of around 200 words, which will be used by abstract indexing services, should be prepared. This states (in past tense) the principle objectives and scope of the research, briefly describes the methods employed, summarizes the results and states the main conclusions.

STRUCTURE OF ARTICLE

The following parts should appear in the article:

• Introduction,
• Material and methods,
• Results,
• Discussion, conclusion.

A brief literature survey and a theoretical discussion is useful for certain types of work. If used, these should be integrated into the work and argued for or against in the conclusion.

Authors should not hesitate to submit articles that have a strongly descriptive, empirical component, whether they follow the traditional format above or not. It is the view of the editor and most reviewers that well-designed empirical studies on various aspects of social life in Africa have a place in this journal.

3.      References within the text

Within the body of the text use the Harvard or author: date style as follows:

We find that Makola (1982a:67) argues the view taken by Nkomo (1981). Another study (Makola 1982b:21­–26), however…

4.      Bibliographical references

A list of references (of only those works cited in the body of the text) should be provided at the end. These should be listed alphabetically and chronologically by author and date as follows:

For books: surname, initial. date. title, place, publisher. For journals, author, initial. date. title. journal name, (or collection or book in which this is a chapter), page numbers. More detailed examples can be posted or e-mailed on request. Studying the references in a recent issue of this journal may also be of assistance. Authors receive two copies of the relevant issue.

5.      Footnotes

Essential footnotes should be typed consecutively at the end of the article.

6.      Tables and figures

Tables and figures will be placed at the top of the page closest to the descriptive and analytical text referring to such material. As such tables often have to be redrawn for design reasons, the raw data in the appropriate spreadsheet should be sent separately. Figures always present a special problem and should always be accompanied by datasheets so they can be redrawn. The author is responsible for the factual accuracy of all such material and for the validity of all statistical inferences drawn from it. Articles are expected to be between 5000 and 7000 words long.

7.      Language

The editor is aware that many contributors to this journal are not writing in their mother tongue and is therefore prepared and willing to work with authors to achieve academically-acceptable standards of English usage. Authors should, however, note that reviewers (whose mother-tongue is also often not English) often comment on the author’s lack of elementary proof-reading before submitting work, resulting in sub-standard typing, spelling and grammatical mistakes. Such lack of care may prejudice an otherwise favourable review.

CONTENT

The reviewers and editor welcome material that displays the following characteristics:

• The content is technically competent and professional in format;
• It displays originality and is presented logically;
• Mathematical and statistical material, where used, is complete, wellorganized and interpreted for the non-specialist;
• Writing style is clear and unpretentious;
• The illustrative material is adequate;
• The literature review is adequate and the bibliography is up-to-date ;
• The theoretical underpinnings are adequate and are well integrated with the discussion and argument;
• The methodological approach is clear and adequate;
• The article contributes significantly to the thinking or the development of the subject

Having said all this, the editor is more than prepared to work with scholars to achieve their goals and many of our reviewers are most generously in helping to provide detailed and constructive advice on the first draft.

Carole Pearce

Editor