Getting published in the African Journal of Social Work - the top journal of social work on the continent
Based on Africa Journals Online and Scopus rankings, the AJSW has grown in the last 10 years to become the continent's premier journal in social work. The rankings prove global competitiveness of the journal. Publishing in the journey is no longer as easy as before to maintain these standards. If your manuscript does not meet these requirements it can be rejected straightaway, or the review process will be delayed.
1. There should be enough evidence that the manuscript was prepared for social work (e.g. family work, community work, environmental social work and spiritual social work), social development, and social services with implications for Africa – this is evidenced by author’s discipline or qualification, title, key words and implications and literature used.
2. Abstract must be 200 words maximum or very close to 200 – no references and subheadings in abstract. Abstract should ideally be a paragraph of six sentences covering the following: Social problem/issue followed by questions or hypothesis; Philosophy or philosophical approach that shaped the understanding of the problem and the approach to the study or thinking; Theory that shaped analysis and discussion; Methods used to bring out the data; Results/findings and conclusions; and Implications and recommendations. Please note: We openly, actively and proudly promote use of Africa philosophies and theories as a journal. We do this to revalue Africa knowledge that has for long been neglected or colonised. If Africa writers use Africa literature, theories and philosophies, this can be achieved easily.
3. Introduction – one paragraph only, no references, the final sentence must inform the reader what the article contains or how it is structured. About 10 lines of introduction required.
4. Using minimum of 75% African references/authors/sources (includes orature)/databases in the background, literature review, methodology, discussion; implications for social work. Literature from the Global South should be prioritised where African (or Global South) literature is not available.
5. Prioritizing African philosophy, theories, models and frameworks, and where these are not available, we request you to propose your own to guide your research or create your own after your research. Philosophies, theories, models and frameworks from the Global South should be prioritised where African (or Global South) ones are not available.
6. If you have done a literature review (scoping, systematic or meta synthesis), provide a list of your sources (e.g. databases, libraries etc) and list of authors with works used in the review. Use African libraries, sources and databases such as Africa Journals Online (AJOL).
7. Your conclusion must be one paragraph, no references.
8. Length of manuscript must be 5000 words maximum.
9. Follow ASWDNet formatting guide for headings, subheadings, citing and references.
10. Ensure that you read your paper more carefully before submission to get rid of minor errors.
11. Submit one document, do not put a separate cover page or letter.
12. Did you receive ethics clearance or advice for your research, if not, please apply for ethics advice here https://africasocialwork.net/african-independent-ethics-committee/ (AIEC). We accept any of these (1) ethics clearance number from an Ethics Board – this is provided before the research (2) ethics advice number from the AIEC – this advice is provided before or after the research (3) a personal statement about ethics that you use in your family or community and a reflection about how you applied these in the current research.
13. Quantitative manuscripts: we regret that we are unable to review all quantitative manuscripts because of a shortage of reviewers.
From: AJSW website. |
