Passerelle is committed to ensuring the academic integrity and quality of its publications through a rigorous, objective, and confidential peer-review process. Our policies adhere to the best practice guidelines set forth by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

I. Initial Manuscript Assessment

All manuscripts submitted to Passerelle first undergo an initial assessment by the journal's secretariat and Editorial Board. This internal review is to ensure the submission is suitable to send for external review. The editors will check the manuscript for:

• Scope: Alignment with the journal’s Aims and Scope or the specific Call for Papers.
• Originality: A preliminary assessment of the work's originality and importance.
• Guidelines: Adherence to the Author Guidelines regarding formatting, word count, and file anonymization.
• Plagiarism: An initial screening for plagiarism. (See our Plagiarism Policy).

Manuscripts that do not align with our scope, fail to meet the formatting requirements, or are found to lack sufficient originality will be returned to the author without external review (a "desk rejection").

II. Double-Blind Peer Review

Manuscripts that pass the initial assessment are sent for external review. Passerelle employs a double-blind peer-review process. In this model, the identities of the authors are concealed from the reviewers, and the identities of the reviewers are concealed from the authors throughout the entire process.

The integrity of this process is ensured in three ways:

• Author Anonymization: Authors are required to submit their complete manuscript using the official Journal Templates. The file must include all author information as requested on the first page (name, affiliation, etc.). Upon receipt, the journal's editorial office is solely responsible for the anonymization of the manuscript before sending it for peer review. This involves removing the entire title page, any headers or footers containing author names, and any other identifying information from the file that will be sent to reviewers. This "coded" file ensures the double-blind process is maintained.
• Editorial Mediation: The editorial office acts as the sole mediator. The submission platform ensures that reviewers do not have access to author information, and authors do not have access to reviewer information.
• Reviewer Anonymity: Reviewers are required to maintain their anonymity and must not include any identifying information in their reports or annotated files.

Each article is assigned to at least two expert reviewers. These reviewers are selected for their competence in the article's subject area and may be drawn from the journal's international Editorial Committee or be other qualified external experts. Potential reviewers must disclose any potential Conflict of Interest before accepting an invitation to review.

Reviewers are required to provide a comprehensive evaluation to justify their recommendation. This includes both a formal evaluation form and detailed feedback, often in the form of an annotated and commented version of the manuscript. This constructive feedback is then anonymized and forwarded to the author. (See our Reviewer Guidelines for more detail).

III. Editorial Decision and Revisions

Based on the reviewers' recommendations, the Editor will make a final decision. The decision will be one of the following:

• Acceptance
• Minor Revisions
• Major Revisions
• Rejection

In cases where the two reviewers' recommendations are in conflict (e.g., one reviewer recommends acceptance and the other recommends rejection), the manuscript will be mandatorily sent to a third expert reviewer to provide a casting evaluation to inform the Editor's final decision.

The Editor's decision, along with all anonymized reviewer comments and annotated files, is sent to the corresponding author.

IV. Acceptance and Copyright

Upon receiving a final notification of acceptance, the corresponding author will be required to complete, sign, and return the Originality and Copyright Declaration form. This form is available for download in the Author Guidelines section. The terms of this agreement are detailed in our Copyright Policy.

V. Confidentiality

All submitted manuscripts, correspondence, and reviewer reports are treated as strictly confidential documents. Editors, authors, and reviewers are required to respect the confidentiality of the peer-review process at all times. All data is handled in accordance with our Privacy Statement.