Submissions

Author Guidelines

The Latin American Journal of Social Science Methodology (ReLMeCS) is a scholarly journal that publishes original and unpublished articles and critical reviews. It focuses on a wide range of topics: epistemology of the social sciences; methodology, methods, and techniques of social research (theoretical and conceptual developments and applications); history of social research methods and techniques; and the teaching of social science methodology, among others.

Contributions are expected to address a broad spectrum of problems facing social science research. Special emphasis is placed on articles that contribute to the development of the field through systematic presentations that clarify and help organize existing knowledge around ongoing and emerging epistemological and methodological problems.

It is published electronically and biannually by the Latin American Network of Social Science Methodology (RedMet), whose permanent secretariat is based at the Interdisciplinary Center for Social Science Methodology (CIMeCS), Institute of Research in Humanities and Social Sciences (IdIHCS), Faculty of Humanities and Education Sciences, National University of La Plata (FaHCE) - National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET).

Calls for papers are issued twice a year and are announced in the "Announcements" tab. Submitted works will be accepted for publication after undergoing double-blind peer review.

This open-access journal is funded by an academic institution, charges no fees to authors or readers, and its content is shared under open licenses without registration, thus fostering greater global knowledge exchange.

The Latin American Journal of Social Science Methodology (ReLMeCS) is a scholarly journal that publishes original and unpublished articles and critical reviews. It focuses on a wide range of topics: epistemology of the social sciences; methodology, methods, and techniques of social research (theoretical and conceptual developments and applications); history of social research methods and techniques; and the teaching of social science methodology, among others.

Contributions are expected to address a broad spectrum of problems facing social science research. Special emphasis is placed on articles that contribute to the development of the field through systematic presentations that clarify and help organize existing knowledge around ongoing and emerging epistemological and methodological problems.

It is published electronically and biannually by the Latin American Network of Social Science Methodology (RedMet), whose permanent secretariat is based at the Interdisciplinary Center for Social Science Methodology (CIMeCS), Institute of Research in Humanities and Social Sciences (IdIHCS), Faculty of Humanities and Education Sciences, National University of La Plata (FaHCE) - National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET).

Calls for papers are issued twice a year and are announced in the "Announcements" tab. Submitted works will be accepted for publication after undergoing double-blind peer review.

This open-access journal is funded by an academic institution, charges no fees to authors or readers, and its content is shared under open licenses without registration, thus fostering greater global knowledge exchange.

1. Manuscript Submission

ReLMeCS accepts unpublished works in Spanish, English, and Portuguese. All manuscripts must be uploaded to the OJS platform as a Word file, A4 size, with 2.5 cm margins, Times New Roman 12-point font, and 1.5 line spacing.

The maximum length is 20 pages for original, unpublished research articles and working papers, and up to 5 pages for book reviews and critiques.

Submissions are made through this platform, and it is mandatory to attach two documents: one version titled FirstAuthor's Last Name ORIGINAL and another anonymized version titled FirstAuthor's Last Name ANONYMIZED. This anonymization process involves removing "author information" from the word processor, deleting all personal identification of the authors and participating institutions from titles, data, footnotes, and bibliography. If texts written by the authors are mentioned in the body of the work, they will be replaced by “AUTHOR, 2021” and the reference will be removed from the bibliographic references section.

2. Cover Page
2.a. Title

Title in the language of the text, followed by the English title. It should be representative of the content and a maximum of 10 words. Subtitles should be avoided; they may be included in the text but not in the title for the table of contents. [In reviews, the full Author's Name and Title should include all the publishing information of the reviewed book.] Titles cannot include footnotes or periods.

2.b. Author(s)' names and surnames.

2.c. Author Information

Below each author, the following information should be written in full (not acronyms): a: the name of the institution where the author conducted the research that produced the article; b: the country of the institution; c: the author's institutional email address; d: the author's ORCID. In the case of multiple authors, repeat these lines as many times as necessary and indicate a Declaration of Collaborative Roles.

Clarifications regarding the workplace, institutional affiliation, or institutional affiliation of each author: The full name of the institution where they work (place of employment) should be indicated, along with the country. Use a comma between each piece of information.

2.d. Suggested Reviewers

Indicate up to five potential reviewers for the article with whom you do not share a workplace or have not published jointly in the last 5 years. Along with the full name and institution, provide the contact email address of the suggested reviewer.

2.e. Declaration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) Use

Indicate whether you have used generative AI for writing, proofreading, academic editing, or any other applicable use.

2.f. Title, Abstract, and Keywords in Spanish, English, and Portuguese

An abstract of up to 200 words in the language of the text should be written in one paragraph. For original research articles, research notes, and case studies, the abstract should include the objective, methodology, results, and conclusions. For essays, review articles, or state-of-the-art articles, the abstract should include the main aspects covered in the text.

At the end of the abstract, list up to five keywords, each beginning with a capital letter and separated by commas. Write the keywords you would use in a search.

The abstract and keywords are then presented in English, and then in Portuguese.

3. Body of the Text
Body

The body of the text can have any structure the author desires. It must adhere to the following format (Times New Roman 12-point font, 1.5 line spacing) and follow these guidelines. Use clear subheading formatting, distinguishing between numbering, bold, and italics to differentiate sections from subsections (e.g., 2.a, 2.b). Follow the APA 7th edition citation and quotation format (established in the following section).

Notes

Notes should always be placed at the end of the text (not as footnotes). Use the word processor's reference system and select "insert endnote." Notes cannot be included in titles or subtitles, as these are metadata of the scientific article and must always be referenced within the text.

Abbreviations

Abbreviations should be clarified the first time they are used in the text, for example: United Nations (UN). After this clarification, only the abbreviation should be used. It is recommended not to overuse them.

Figures, Tables, Graphs, or Images

For figures, tables, graphs, or images, identify them with numbers and always reference or mention them in the text. Title them at the top and indicate the source at the bottom. Consider the publication format when creating a table: keep the reader in mind, and to ensure the visibility of the data presented, do not design tables with more columns than can be seen on a vertical A4 sheet. For the publication of extensive, systematized datasets that serve as the basis for the article, the UNLP Research Data Repository should be used. In the case of tables with a special design, they can be included as images rather than as tables. Landscape tables (those exceeding the page width, portrait orientation) are not acceptable, nor are tables longer than one page (see page format and margins in section 1. Manuscript Presentation).

Image Size

It is essential that figures be submitted as JPG image files for web with no more than 96 dpi, a maximum width of 600px, and a maximum height of 800px. Image editors allow you to resize images. Landscape images (those exceeding the page width, portrait orientation) are not acceptable.

 

4. Citation and Reference Guidelines

Review your text before submitting it for evaluation and confirm that all citations are correctly referenced in the bibliography. Also, confirm that the list does not include any references not mentioned in the text. Do not include references that are not fundamental to your argument.

4.a In-text quotations
Quotations of up to 40 words should be enclosed in quotation marks. Quotations longer than 40 words should be set off in a separate paragraph, indented from the left margin, without quotation marks, and separated from the preceding and following text by a space.
Include the author, year of publication, and page number. Example: (López, 1996, p. 125). If the author's last name is mentioned in the text, only the year and page number may be included. and number: Example: López states in his book (1996, p. 125).

If a work has two authors, both names are cited each time the reference occurs.

If there are more than two authors, the first time they are mentioned, all surnames must be included. From the second time onward, (Surname et al.) can be used.
Never use footnotes or endnotes solely to indicate a bibliographic reference.
It is recommended to avoid excessive use of direct quotations or critical reference citations.

4.b Citations of bibliographic references in the text
Do not overuse reference citations. Only include sources that are fundamental to supporting the article's argument. This will be considered in the evaluation.
The author's surname, or the acronym of the institutional author, will be indicated in parentheses, followed by a comma and the year of publication. For example: (Mannino, 2005; AAHE, 2006).

For seven or more authors, all surnames should be listed the first time, followed by the first author's surname and then by et al. (Golubic et al., 2008).

When citing two or more works, they should be separated by semicolons (Kaplan, 2008; Neuberger and Counsell, 2002; Buela Casal et al., 2006).

When the author and year are the same, a letter should be used to distinguish them (Zeng and Zummer, 2009a; 2009b).

4.c Documentary or Oral Sources Without Complete Reference Data

If unpublished primary sources are used, or if it is not possible to reference them in a standard way, or if it is not necessary for the scientific metric of the article, a section entitled “Documentary Sources Used” should be added before the bibliographic references. All available information for identifying the source should be included there. Example: Author, A. A. (Day, Month, Year). Title of the material. [Description of the material]. Name of the compilation (classification number, box number, file number or name, etc.). Name and location of the repository.

4.d List of Bibliographic References

All cited references will comprise the list of Bibliographic References, a section located at the end of the work under that title. Only those used in the development of the article should be included, in accordance with the APA 7th Edition guidelines (available at https://normas-apa.org). Under this subheading, all bibliographic sources cited in the article, and only those, should be listed. Please check the consistency of surnames and dates before submitting your manuscript.

The list must follow alphabetical order. If several works by the same author are referenced, the surnames should be repeated (avoid using hyphens), and the entries should be ordered by year of publication, from oldest to most recent.

In cases where the surname and year are repeated, differentiate one entry from another by adding lowercase letters (a, b, c, etc.) immediately after the year and within the same parentheses. This indication will correspond to the citation included in the article text.

4.e Other Text Subheadings

All must precede the References.

Authorship Declaration or Collaboration Roles:

This must be included when the work has more than one author. The collaboration of each member, that is, their participation in the article's authorship, must be indicated. If the "Writing, Review, and Editing" is shared, the role must be written once, followed by the authors. For other roles, refer to the description provided by CAICYT. Example: Writing, Review, and Editing: César Milstein and Beatriz Sarlo.

Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence:

This is mandatory. Indicate whether or not it was used. If algorithms were used, the tools employed and the type of intervention performed must be indicated. Proper referencing of the sources used (algorithm author, year, model, etc.) is also mandatory.

Acknowledgments:

Acknowledgments are not mandatory. If necessary, they should be included at the end of the text, before the bibliography, and should be brief. Authors are responsible for obtaining the necessary permissions to mention the names of individuals or organizations.

5.

Editorial Process and Evaluation System

Manuscripts must be submitted through the OJS platform and will undergo a double-blind peer review process based on criteria of academic quality, thematic relevance, and scientific excellence.

The editorial process is as follows:

5.a Manuscript Receipt

Once the manuscript is received, a confirmation email will be sent to the author via OJS.

5.b Initial Formal Review

The editorial team will verify that the manuscript complies with the journal's submission guidelines (format, APA style, anonymization, etc.). If any non-compliance is detected, the manuscript will be returned to the author for correction and resubmission within the indicated deadline.

5.c Preliminary Editorial Evaluation

Manuscripts that meet the formal requirements will be evaluated by the editorial team and/or members of the Editorial Board, who will analyze their thematic relevance and adherence to the journal's academic standards. At this stage, a decision may be made to continue with the evaluation process or to reject the manuscript.

5.d Double-Blind External Peer Review

Manuscripts approved in the preliminary stage will be sent to external reviewers specializing in the subject matter. Both authors and reviewers will remain anonymous throughout the process. The evaluation criteria used are as follows: 1. Fulfillment of the stated purpose; 2. Thematic relevance; 3. Methodological rigor; 4. Style, terminology, and clarity of exposition; 5. Up-to-date bibliography.

5.e Editorial Decision and Communication to Authors

Based on the evaluation reports, the editorial committee will make a decision and notify the author by email. The decision may be:

Acceptance;
Acceptance with minor changes;
Request for revisions and resubmission;
Rejection. 5.f Manuscript Revision and Resubmission

If modifications are requested, the author must indicate whether they agree to the revision within the specified timeframe.

5.g Re-evaluation and Final Decision

The revised version will be evaluated by the editorial team and, when appropriate, again by external reviewers. The editorial committee will then make the final decision regarding the acceptance or rejection of the manuscript.

5.h Editing and Publication

Accepted manuscripts will undergo a copyediting, editing, and formatting stage, during which minor adjustments may be requested. Finally, the article will be assigned to an issue of the journal, receive its DOI, and be published.

Updated July 2026