Peer review guidelines

Educational content on the OSU Extension website shows an insignia when the content is peer-reviewed. This means the material has been reviewed by qualified, independent subject-matter experts. OSU Extension educational content undergoes one of two peer-review processes: double-blind or nonblind.

Peer review applies to OSU Extension educational content and some multimedia. Limited-use and time-dated resources such as podcast episodes, newsletter issues and webinar recordings are not peer reviewed.

The majority of authors on peer-reviewed Extension content are Extension professionals from Oregon State University, with the exception of Pacific Northwest publications, which are produced cooperatively by the three land-grant universities (Oregon State University, Washington State University, and the University of Idaho).

Peer review process

The purpose of peer review is to bring intellectual rigor to Extension content, and to ensure content is accurate and effective for the intended audience. Peer-reviewed Extension content typically focuses on practical applications of research or other science- and evidence-based recommendations and practices. The commitment by authors, reviewers and administrators to the rigorous and qualified review of Extension educational resources is no less than that brought to academic journal articles.

Reviewers are fluent in the subject of the content and familiar with the intended audience. Peer reviewers are asked to review the material and include specific, objective suggestions to help authors improve the content. Authors have the responsibility to incorporate or reject suggestions and to revise the content to the satisfaction of reviewers and their Extension program leader.

Peer reviews are documented and managed by the Extension program leaders or people they designate, who confirm completion to Extension Communications before publishing. If content receives a substantial change in interpretation or relevance of the content in a future revision, another peer review occurs unless a confirmation from the Extension program leader states it is not needed.

When complete, content is marked as peer-reviewed and displays the specific peer-review track's insignia when it is published on the website.

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