Guidelines for Authors

About These Guidelines

Studi Economici e Sociali: Rivista di vita economica is a peer-reviewed, open-access scholarly journal published by Centro Studi G. Toniolo. The journal welcomes rigorous theoretical, empirical, methodological, historical, comparative, and policy-oriented contributions in economics, finance, accounting, business and management, public administration, public policy, political economy, development studies, sociology, law and economics, sustainability, and related interdisciplinary fields.

Submission of a manuscript implies that all authors have approved the submitted version, agree with its contents, and authorise the corresponding author to communicate with the journal on their behalf.

By submitting a manuscript, the authors confirm that:

• the work is original and has not been formally published elsewhere;

• the manuscript is not simultaneously under consideration by another journal;

• all listed authors have made an appropriate contribution and approved the submission;

• the manuscript does not infringe copyright, privacy, contractual, or other legal rights;

• permission has been obtained for any copyrighted material reproduced in the manuscript;

• the research complies with applicable ethical and institutional requirements;

• all funding sources, conflicts of interest, and relevant relationships have been disclosed;

• the data, methods, results, and references are presented honestly and accurately.

A manuscript previously circulated as a conference abstract, academic presentation, working paper, dissertation chapter, or non-peer-reviewed preprint may be considered, provided that the authors disclose this information during submission and that the submitted manuscript constitutes a substantial scholarly contribution.

Types of Contributions

The journal publishes the following types of manuscripts.

Research Articles

Research articles present original theoretical, empirical, methodological, historical, comparative, or policy-oriented research. They must define a clear research problem, engage with relevant literature, apply an appropriate methodology, present transparent results, and explain the scholarly or policy contribution.

Recommended length: 6,000–9,000 words, excluding references, appendices, tables, and figures.

Research articles may address, among other fields:

• economics and econometrics;

• finance, banking, insurance, and financial markets;

• accounting, auditing, and taxation;

• business, management, entrepreneurship, and innovation;

• marketing and consumer behaviour;

• corporate governance and corporate social responsibility;

• public administration and public policy;

• development, inequality, employment, and social inclusion;

• international economics and political economy;

• environmental, energy, agricultural, food, and tourism economics;

• sustainability and climate policy;

• law and economics;

• economic sociology and institutional analysis;

• economic and business history;

• digital transformation, data science, and responsible artificial intelligence.

Review Articles

Review articles critically examine and synthesise existing scholarship. They must go beyond a descriptive summary by identifying theoretical developments, methodological limitations, research gaps, unresolved debates, and priorities for future research.

The journal considers:

• narrative reviews;

• systematic literature reviews;

• scoping reviews;

• bibliometric reviews;

• meta-analyses;

• integrative and interdisciplinary reviews.

Systematic reviews and meta-analyses must clearly describe the search strategy, databases, eligibility criteria, screening process, analytical method, and limitations.

Recommended length: 7,000–10,000 words.

Conceptual and Methodological Articles

Conceptual articles develop or refine theoretical arguments, analytical frameworks, classifications, or models. Methodological articles introduce or critically evaluate methods relevant to economics, business, public policy, or the social sciences.

Purely technical contributions must explain their substantive relevance and demonstrate how the proposed framework or method advances research or practice.

Recommended length: 5,000–8,000 words.

Policy Analyses and Institutional Perspectives

These contributions analyse public policies, institutional reforms, regulatory developments, economic programmes, or major social and economic challenges.

They must be evidence-based, analytically rigorous, and relevant beyond a purely descriptive account of a single decision or institution.

Recommended length: 3,500–6,000 words.

Research Notes and Short Communications

Research notes report concise but original findings, preliminary results of substantial relevance, replication studies, extensions of previous research, methodological observations, or focused empirical analyses.

Short communications must still contain a clearly stated contribution, appropriate evidence, and a reasoned interpretation.

Recommended length: 2,500–4,000 words.

Notes and Commentaries

Notes and commentaries provide academically grounded analysis of contemporary economic and social debates, official reports, legislative developments, institutional decisions, conferences, or major policy initiatives.

They should not be opinion pieces without evidence or scholarly context.

Recommended length: 2,000–3,500 words.

Book Reviews

Book reviews evaluate recent scholarly books relevant to the journal’s aims and scope. A review should identify the book’s argument, contribution, methodology, strengths, limitations, and significance for the field.

Recommended length: 1,000–2,000 words.

Submission Procedure

Manuscripts may be submitted through one of the following methods.

Online Submission

Submission through the journal’s editorial portal is the preferred method. Authors complete the required metadata and upload all manuscript files. A private access code is issued for status tracking.

Login or Register to make a submission.

The online platform allows authors to:

• submit and update manuscript files;

• follow the status of the manuscript;

• receive editorial decisions;

• submit revisions;

• upload responses to reviewers;

• communicate with the Editorial Office.

Submission by Email

Authors may alternatively submit their manuscript by email to:

editorial@economiciesocialijournal.org

The email subject line should be:

Manuscript Submission — [Short Manuscript Title]

The email must include:

• the manuscript title;

• the article type;

• the corresponding author’s full name;

• institutional affiliation;

• institutional email address;

• telephone number;

• confirmation that the manuscript is not under consideration elsewhere;

• all required manuscript files.

The online submission system remains the preferred method because it provides a complete and traceable editorial record.

Registration

Authors submitting through the journal portal must provide accurate information, including:

• full name;

• institutional affiliation;

• country;

• institutional email address;

• ORCID identifier, where available;

• subject expertise;

• contact information.

One author must be designated as the corresponding author. The corresponding author is responsible for communication with the journal and for ensuring that all co-authors approve the submission, revisions, declarations, and final published version.

Authors are responsible for maintaining accurate profile information throughout the editorial process.

Files Required at Initial Submission

To protect the double-anonymous peer-review process, identifying information must not appear in the anonymous manuscript.

Authors must upload the following files separately.

File 1: Anonymous Manuscript

The anonymous manuscript must include:

• manuscript title;

• abstract;

• keywords;

• JEL classification codes, where applicable;

• main text;

• tables and figures placed near their first citation;

• references;

• anonymised appendices, where applicable.

It must not contain:

• author names;

• affiliations;

• email addresses;

• acknowledgements identifying individuals or institutions;

• author biographies;

• references to the authors written in a way that reveals identity;

• document metadata identifying the authors.

Self-citations should be written neutrally and should not reveal authorship.

File 2: Title Page

The title page must include:

• complete manuscript title;

• article type;

• full name of each author;

• institutional affiliation of each author;

• department, institution, city, and country;

• institutional email address of each author;

• ORCID identifier, where available;

• identification of the corresponding author;

• corresponding author’s postal address and telephone number;

• acknowledgements;

• funding statement;

• conflict-of-interest statement;

• author-contribution statement;

• data-availability statement;

• ethical-approval information, where applicable.

File 3: Cover Letter

The cover letter should briefly explain:

• why the manuscript fits the journal;

• the principal contribution of the research;

• confirmation of originality;

• confirmation that the manuscript is not under consideration elsewhere;

• disclosure of related manuscripts, preprints, working papers, or conference versions;

• any relevant information for the Editor.

File 4: Tables

Editable tables should be uploaded in Microsoft Word or Excel format when requested.

File 5: Figures

Figures should be uploaded in an appropriate editable or high-resolution format.

File 6: Supplementary Material

Supplementary files may include:

• datasets;

• code;

• questionnaires;

• interview protocols;

• robustness tests;

• technical appendices;

• additional tables and figures;

• replication documentation.

Language

Manuscripts may be submitted in English or Italian.

Manuscripts written in Italian must include:

• an English title;

• an English abstract;

• English keywords;

• complete English bibliographic metadata.

Authors are responsible for ensuring that the language is clear, accurate, and suitable for academic publication. Manuscripts with language problems that materially affect comprehension may be returned before peer review.

British or American English may be used, but usage must remain consistent throughout the manuscript.

Manuscript Format

Manuscripts should be submitted in:

• Microsoft Word .doc or .docx;

• OpenDocument .odt;

• Rich Text Format .rtf.

The manuscript should use:

• A4 page size;

• 2.5 cm margins;

• 12-point readable serif font;

• single line spacing;

• page numbers;

• continuous line numbering;

• left-aligned text;

• numbered headings and subheadings;

• italics rather than underlining, except in URLs.

Authors must use the journal manuscript template when it becomes available.

Download Manuscript Template — Coming Soon

Title

The title should be concise, informative, and accurately reflect the manuscript’s central subject and contribution.

Titles should:

• avoid unnecessary abbreviations;

• avoid vague expressions;

• include important searchable concepts;

• not overstate causality or generalisability;

• normally contain no more than 18–20 words.

A subtitle may be used when it improves clarity.

Abstract

The abstract must contain 150–250 words and should be understandable without consulting the full manuscript.

For research articles, the abstract should briefly state:

• the background or research problem;

• the objective;

• the data or methodology;

• the principal results;

• the main conclusion or implication;

• the contribution of the study.

The abstract should not contain:

• citations;

• footnotes;

• unexplained abbreviations;

• equations;

• unsupported claims;

• information not presented in the manuscript.

Keywords

Authors must provide four to seven keywords that accurately represent the manuscript’s subject, method, geographical context, and principal concepts.

Keywords should not simply repeat all words appearing in the title.

JEL Classification

Manuscripts in economics, finance, business, public policy, or closely related fields should include two to five JEL classification codes.

Authors should select the most precise relevant codes from the Journal of Economic Literature classification system.

JEL codes appear immediately after the keywords.

Recommended Structure for Research Articles

Research articles should normally follow this structure.

Introduction

The Introduction should:

• establish the context and importance of the study;

• define the research problem;

• identify the relevant gap;

• state the research question or objective;

• explain the contribution;

• briefly indicate the method and structure of the paper.

The Introduction should not contain an excessive general review of the literature.

Literature Review and Conceptual Framework

This section should:

• critically review relevant scholarship;

• identify theoretical or empirical gaps;

• establish the conceptual framework;

• formulate hypotheses or propositions, where appropriate;

• demonstrate how the study extends existing knowledge.

A purely descriptive list of previous studies is insufficient.

Methodology

The Methodology section must provide enough detail to permit evaluation and, where possible, replication.

It should explain:

• research design;

• study population or sample;

• data sources;

• period and geographical coverage;

• variable construction;

• measurement instruments;

• analytical or econometric method;

• identification strategy, where applicable;

• robustness and diagnostic procedures;

• ethical approval, where required;

• methodological limitations.

Methodological choices must be justified with reference to the research question and relevant literature.

Results

The Results section should present the findings clearly and systematically.

Authors should:

• distinguish descriptive and inferential results;

• report units, effect sizes, uncertainty measures, and significance levels where relevant;

• avoid repeating every value from tables in the text;

• interpret the economic, managerial, policy, or social meaning of the findings;

• report unexpected and non-significant results honestly.

Discussion

The Discussion should:

• interpret the findings in relation to the research question;

• compare them with existing scholarship;

• explain theoretical, methodological, managerial, or policy implications;

• distinguish evidence from speculation;

• discuss the study’s limitations;

• explain the conditions under which the findings may be generalised.

Results and Discussion may be combined when appropriate.

Conclusion

The Conclusion should:

• answer the research question;

• state the principal contribution;

• summarise the main implications;

• identify relevant limitations;

• indicate justified directions for future research.

It should not merely repeat the abstract or Results section.

Declarations

The manuscript should conclude with the relevant declarations:

• acknowledgements;

• funding;

• conflicts of interest;

• author contributions;

• data availability;

• ethical approval;

• informed consent, where relevant;

• artificial-intelligence disclosure, where applicable.

References

Only sources cited in the text should appear in the reference list, and every source in the reference list must be cited in the manuscript.

Appendices

Detailed instruments, derivations, questionnaires, supplementary analyses, or technical material may be included in appendices or uploaded as supplementary files.

Review Articles

Review articles must define:

• the review question or objective;

• the scope of the literature;

• the search or selection method;

• the analytical framework;

• the principal themes or findings;

• limitations of the existing evidence;

• implications for research, practice, or policy;

• priorities for future scholarship.

Systematic reviews should include a transparent search strategy and selection process. Use of an appropriate reporting framework is encouraged.

Review articles that merely summarise publications without critical synthesis will not be considered.

References and Citation Style

The journal uses the APA 7th edition author–date system.

In-Text Citations

One author:

(Rossi, 2024)

Two authors:

(Rossi & Bianchi, 2024)

Three or more authors:

(Rossi et al., 2024)

Direct quotation:

(Rossi, 2024, p. 25)

Multiple sources:

(Bianchi, 2022; Rossi, 2024; Smith, 2023)

Journal Article

Rossi, M., & Bianchi, L. (2024). Economic institutions and regional development. Studi Economici e Sociali, 60(1), 1–22. https://doi.org/xxxxx

Book

North, D. C. (1990). Institutions, institutional change and economic performance. Cambridge University Press.

Chapter in an Edited Book

Author, A. A. (2024). Title of chapter. In B. B. Editor (Ed.), Title of book (pp. 25–48). Publisher.

Report

Organisation Name. (2024). Title of report. Publisher. URL

Web Source

Author or Organisation. (2024, June 10). Title of webpage. Website Name. URL

Authors should provide DOI links wherever available.

References should rely primarily on relevant scholarly and authoritative sources. Excessive self-citation, irrelevant citation, citation manipulation, or references included solely to influence metrics are prohibited.

Tables

Tables must:

• be numbered consecutively;

• have a concise and informative title;

• be cited in numerical order in the text;

• identify units of measurement;

• define abbreviations;

• include explanatory notes where necessary;

• identify the data source;

• remain editable.

Example:

Table 1. Descriptive statistics

Statistical significance symbols, when used, must be defined in the table note.

Tables should not duplicate information already presented in figures or the main text.

Figures, Graphs, and Illustrations

Figures must:

• be numbered consecutively;

• contain a clear caption;

• be cited in the text;

• use legible labels and axis titles;

• identify units and sources;

• remain understandable when printed in greyscale;

• avoid unnecessary backgrounds, borders, shadows, or decorative effects.

Images should normally have a minimum resolution of:

• 300 dpi for photographs;

• 600 dpi for line drawings and diagrams.

Authors must obtain written permission for third-party copyrighted material.

Mathematical Expressions

Equations should be created using an editable equation editor.

Displayed equations should be numbered consecutively on the right when they are referred to in the text.

Symbols must be defined at first use. Authors should avoid using images for equations.

Footnotes

Footnotes should be used sparingly and only for necessary explanatory information.

They must be numbered consecutively using superscript Arabic numerals.

Bibliographic references should normally appear in the reference list rather than in footnotes.

Data Availability and Reproducibility

Authors must include a data-availability statement.

Where ethically and legally possible, authors are encouraged to provide:

• the dataset;

• data-construction documentation;

• questionnaires or instruments;

• statistical or programming code;

• variable definitions;

• replication instructions.

When data cannot be shared, the statement should explain the reason, such as confidentiality, contractual restriction, personal-data protection, or third-party ownership.

Data and code must not contain information that compromises participant confidentiality.

Research Ethics

Research involving human participants, personal data, organisations, or confidential information must comply with applicable ethical and legal requirements.

Where relevant, authors must state:

• the name of the approving ethics committee;

• approval or protocol number;

• informed-consent procedure;

• data-protection safeguards.

Fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, duplicate publication, manipulated citation, undisclosed conflict of interest, and inappropriate authorship are prohibited.

Use of Artificial Intelligence

Generative artificial-intelligence systems cannot be listed as authors because they cannot assume responsibility for the work.

Authors remain fully responsible for:

• accuracy;

• originality;

• references;

• analysis;

• interpretation;

• confidentiality;

• compliance with copyright and research ethics.

Material use of generative AI in drafting, analysis, coding, image production, or translation must be disclosed in the manuscript. Routine spelling and grammar correction does not normally require detailed disclosure.

Authors must not upload confidential, personal, proprietary, or copyrighted research material to external AI systems without appropriate authority and safeguards.

Peer-Review Procedure

The journal applies a double-anonymous peer-review process.

After the initial technical check, the Editor assesses:

• fit with the journal’s scope;

• originality;

• scholarly contribution;

• methodological credibility;

• ethical compliance;

• presentation quality.

Manuscripts that pass editorial screening are normally sent to at least two independent reviewers.

Possible decisions are:

• accept;

• minor revision;

• major revision;

• reject and resubmit;

• reject.

The Editor is responsible for the final decision.

Response to Reviewers

Authors invited to revise must submit:

1. a clean revised manuscript;

2. a version with changes highlighted, when requested;

3. a detailed point-by-point response;

4. any updated supplementary files.

The response document should reproduce each editorial or reviewer comment, followed by:

Author Response:

The response must explain:

• what change was made;

• where it appears in the revised manuscript;

• the relevant page, paragraph, or line numbers.

When the authors do not accept a suggestion, they must provide a respectful and academically reasoned explanation.

Example:

Reviewer Comment 1: The identification strategy requires further justification.
Author Response: We agree and have expanded the discussion in Section 3.2, pages 9–10, lines 214–246. The revised text now explains the identifying assumptions and adds two robustness tests.

After Acceptance

Proofs

A PDF proof will be sent to the corresponding author.

Proofs are intended to verify:

• typesetting;

• author names and affiliations;

• completeness;

• tables and figures;

• references;

• minor linguistic or production errors.

Substantial changes to the accepted manuscript are not normally permitted at proof stage without editorial approval.

Authors should return all corrections in one communication within 72 hours.

Publication Metadata

The corresponding author must verify:

• title;

• author order;

• affiliations;

• ORCID identifiers;

• abstract;

• keywords;

• funding;

• licence;

• references.

Published Article

Copyright and Open Access

Authors retain copyright and grant the journal the right of first publication.

Unless otherwise stated, articles are published under:

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International — CC BY 4.0

The licence permits sharing and adaptation, including commercial reuse, provided that appropriate attribution is given and changes are identified.

Final Submission Checklist

Before submission, authors should confirm that:

• the manuscript is original and not under consideration elsewhere;

• all authors have approved the submission;

• one corresponding author has been identified;

• the anonymous manuscript contains no identifying information;

• the title page has been uploaded separately;

• the abstract contains 150–250 words;

• four to seven keywords are included;

• JEL codes are included where appropriate;

• all tables and figures are numbered and cited;

• all files are editable and complete;

• references follow APA 7th edition;

• every reference is cited in the text and vice versa;

• DOI links are included where available;

• funding and conflicts of interest are disclosed;

• a data-availability statement is included;

• ethical approval is reported where applicable;

• the manuscript has been checked for language and formatting;

• permissions have been obtained for third-party material.

Editorial Contact

Editorial Office
Studi Economici e Sociali: Rivista di vita economica
Centro Studi G. Toniolo

Email: editorial@economiciesocialijournal.org
Journal website: economiciesocialijournal.org