Editorial Policies and Standards

Editorial Policies and Guidelines
Hombre y Desierto. Una perspectiva intercultural (Print ISSN: 0716-5897 / Online ISSN: 2810-7195), a journal published by the Institute of Anthropological Research, Universidad de Antofagasta, since 1987.

SCOPE AND EDITORIAL POLICY

1.1 Objectives

Hombre y Desierto is an academic journal dedicated to the study of the relationship between human beings and the desert, with an emphasis on northern Chile, from the social sciences, humanities, and related disciplines such as anthropology, archaeology, and history. It publishes original articles, essays, and reviews that integrate diverse theoretical and methodological approaches, inviting the academic community to submit work of regional or global relevance. The journal accepts submissions in Spanish, Portuguese, and English, and uses a double-blind peer-review system.

1.2 Publication types
• Research articles: Original works presenting empirical or theoretical findings.
• Reflection articles: Critical, theoretical, and/or methodological analyses of the human/desert relationship.
• Interviews: Dialogues with individuals whose contributions have been relevant to desert-related topics.
• Book reviews: Critical evaluations of recent publications.

1.3 Periodicity
Continuous publication, with the possibility of themed special issues.

1.4 Languages
Manuscripts are accepted in Spanish, English, and Portuguese. All articles must include the title, abstract, and keywords in Spanish, English, and Portuguese.

OPEN ACCESS AND LICENSING

2.1 Access model
Hombre y Desierto provides immediate and full public access to all its content, free of charge. The journal does not charge submission, processing, or publication fees (Article Processing Charges – APC).

2.2 Creative Commons license
The journal uses the Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 license, which permits:
• Share: copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format
• Adapt: remix, transform, and build upon the material
• Commercial and non-commercial use permitted
• Attribution to the original author required

2.3 Copyright

Authors retain copyright and grant the journal the right of first publication. Authors may deposit the article in institutional repositories, citing the original source.

EDITORIAL PROCESS AND EVALUATION

3.1 Receipt and initial evaluation

The publication process begins with an assessment by the editor to verify compliance with editorial guidelines, thematic relevance, and originality, as well as plagiarism detection using specialized software. This stage will last up to 15 calendar days. If the initial review is satisfactory, the work will be forwarded to the editorial committee, which will coordinate peer review.

3.2 Peer review

Manuscripts that pass the initial stage will be sent to at least two external reviewers, specialists in the corresponding disciplinary area, who will evaluate the content without knowing the identity of the author(s). Likewise, reviewers will remain anonymous to the authors.

Evaluation criteria:
• Originality and relevance
• Methodological rigor and coherence
• Quality of writing and structure
• Appropriateness of references
• Contribution to disciplinary knowledge

The estimated time for this evaluation is up to 30 days, extendable to 45 days if additional reviews are required.

3.3 Editorial decisions
Possible outcomes for manuscripts are:
a) Accepted without modifications
b) Accepted with minor modifications
c) Re-evaluation after major revisions
d) Rejected

The final decision rests with the editor and will be based on the reviewers’ reports and, when necessary, the editorial committee. Authors will have a maximum of 10 calendar days to submit the requested corrections.

AUTHOR GUIDELINES

4.1 Manuscript preparation
4.1.1 General format
• Software: Microsoft Word or compatible, .docx format
• Font: Times New Roman, 12-point size
• Line spacing: 1.5
• Margins: 2.5 cm on all sides
• Page size: Letter (21.59 × 27.94 cm)
• Pagination: pages numbered consecutively

4.1.2 Length by manuscript type
• Research articles: maximum 10,000 words (including all sections except references)
• Reflection articles: maximum 8,000 words (including all sections except references)
• Interviews: maximum 3,000 words (only one per issue)
• Reviews: maximum 1,500 words (only one per issue)

4.2 Manuscript structure
4.2.1 Sections of the manuscript:
Manuscripts should be organized following the IMRaD scheme, in the following order:
• Title, authors, and affiliation
• Abstract
• Keywords
• Main text (IMRaD or similar)
• Acknowledgements
• References
• Notes
• Figures
• Tables

4.2.2 Title page
• Article title (maximum 15 words; sentence case)
• Title in Spanish, English, and Portuguese
• Full names of the authors
• Full institutional affiliation
• ORCID for each author
• Corresponding author’s mailing address

4.2.3 Abstracts and keywords
• Abstract in Spanish: maximum 200 words
• Abstract in English: maximum 200 words
• Resumo in Portuguese: maximum 200 words
• Palabras clave: 4–6 terms in Spanish
• Keywords: 4–6 terms in English
• Palavras-chave: 4–6 terms in Portuguese
• Use specialized thesauri to generate keywords (UNESCO, CSIC)

4.3 In-text citations and references — APA 7
4.3.1 In-text citations
• Short direct quotations (fewer than 40 words): in quotation marks, with (Author, year, p. #)
• Long direct quotations (40 words or more): in an indented, standalone paragraph, without quotation marks
• Paraphrases: (Author, year) or Author (year)
• Multiple authors:
Two authors: (García & López, 2023)
Three or more authors: (García et al., 2023)

4.3.2 Reference list
Organized alphabetically, per APA 7:
Books:
Author, A. A. (Year). Book title. Publisher.
Book chapters:
Author, A. A. (Year). Chapter title. In B. B. Editor (Ed.), Book title (pp. xx–xx). Publisher.
Journal articles:
Author, A. A. (Year). Article title. Journal Title, Volume(Issue), pages. https://doi.org/xxx
Web resources:
Author, A. A. (Year, Month day). Page title. Website name. URL

4.4 Tables and figures
4.4.1 Tables
• Numbered consecutively (Table 1, Table 2, …)
• Descriptive title above
• Explanatory notes below
• Format according to the American Psychological Association (APA), 7th edition.

4.4.2 Figures
• Numbered consecutively (Figure 1, Figure 2, …)
• Descriptive caption below
• Minimum resolution 300 dpi
• Accepted formats: JPEG, PNG, TIFF
• Submitted separately as individual files

EDITORIAL ETHICS

5.1 Ethical principles
• Originality: Authors declare that manuscripts submitted for review are unpublished and original.
• Authorship: Only those who have contributed substantially to the text may be listed as authors.
• Conflicts of interest: Any conflicts of interest must be explicitly declared.
• Plagiarism: Anti-plagiarism software will be applied to verify originality. In cases of plagiarism, self-plagiarism, data duplication, and similar issues, the manuscript may be rejected.
• Research with human participants: Approval by an ethics committee is required or, where appropriate, the use of informed consent must be stated. Likewise, the protection of personal data must be ensured in reporting results.

5.3 Good practices
• Transparency: Clearly described methodologies
• Reproducibility: Data and materials available when possible
• Responsible citation: Appropriate acknowledgment of sources
• Collaboration: Promotion of academic exchange

MANUSCRIPT SUBMISSION

6.1 OJS platform
All submissions are made exclusively through the Open Journal Systems (OJS) platform:
• Prior user registration
• Upload of the manuscript in Word format
• Supplementary documents in separate files
• Online tracking of the editorial process

6.2 Required documents
• Main manuscript: without author identification
• Title page: separate file with full author details
• Originality letter: signed by all authors
• Conflict of interest declaration: signed as applicable
• Figures and tables: in separate files, where applicable

6.3 Checklist
Before submission, verify:
• ☐ Compliance with the maximum length
• ☐ Formatting according to editorial guidelines
• ☐ References in APA 7 format
• ☐ Abstracts and keywords in Spanish, English, and Portuguese
• ☐ Author data, including ORCID
• ☐ Complete supplementary documents

POST-ACCEPTANCE PROCESS

7.1 Copyediting
• Review of style and spelling
• Formatting and structural corrections
• Reference verification

7.2 Layout
• Application of the editorial template
• Inclusion of graphic elements
• Final layout review

7.3 Publication
• DOI assignment
• Publication on the journal’s website
• Submission to databases and indexers
• Dissemination on academic social networks

INDEXING AND VISIBILITY
8.1 In its print version, Hombre y Desierto is included in the Latindex Directory and 1.0 Catalog.

EDITORIAL CONTACT

9.1 Communications
• General correspondence: editor@hombreydesierto.cl
• Editor-in-chief: editor@hombreydesierto.cl

9.2 Response times
• Receipt confirmation: 48 hours
• Initial evaluation: 15 days
• Review process: 30–45 days
• Response to revisions: 10 days

9.3 Authorship rights
Copyright
The contents of the articles are the sole responsibility of their authors and do not necessarily represent the journal’s position. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted by electronic, mechanical, or any other means, including photocopying, recording, or information storage and retrieval systems, without written authorization from the Editor.

Note: These editorial policies and guidelines will be reviewed periodically to ensure their updating and continuous improvement, in line with international standards of editorial quality.

Last updated: October 2025.