Submissions – Journal of Comments and Replications in Economics

Authors wishing to submit their work to JCRE should read the General Information for Submissions below. Detailed guidelines for comments and replications can be found by clicking the links below.

(i) Guidelines for Comments
(ii) Guidelines for Replications

JCRE does not levy submission fees or article processing charges (APCs).

General Information for Submissions to JCRE

Comments and replications should be submitted online here. By submitting a paper, authors implicitly accept the authors’ contract as set out below.

JCRE uses the Open Journal System (OJS) for the review process of submitted manuscripts and the ZBW Journal Data Archive (JDA) to store and publish your program code and data.

Before submitting a paper, you will first have to register at OJS. Upon registration, you will receive an email to register for the JDA in the next step. Please follow the instructions in this email.

All papers and supplemental material published in JCRE are copyrighted by the authors (unless otherwise noted) and are open-access and freely available. The use of papers published is licensed under the »Creative Commons License – Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0).

EconStor and RePEc (EconPapers and Ideas) collect and distribute published papers. Download statistics and related article information can be found at the respective sites.

Authors’ Contract

In submitting papers to the Journal of Comments and Replications in Economics (JCRE), the corresponding authors certify that they are authorized by their co-authors to enter into the following arrangements. They warrant, on behalf of themselves and their co-authors, that:

They are the sole authors of the article and have full authority to enter into this agreement and, in granting rights to economics, are not in breach of any other obligation. If the law requires that the paper be published in the public domain, they will notify JCRE at the time of submission.
The article is authentic, has not been formally published in any other peer-reviewed journal, is not under consideration by any other journal, and does not infringe upon any existing copyright or any other third-party rights.
They have made a substantial contribution to the paper and agree with the form and contents of the manuscript. Corresponding authors confirm that they hold the copyrights to their articles and the text and illustrations. For copyrighted material, the authors will obtain written permission from the copyright(s) holder(s) and submit it with the manuscript.
The article contains nothing unlawful, defamatory, or which would, if published, constitute a breach of contract or confidence or commitment given to secrecy; they have taken due care to ensure the integrity of the article. To their best—and currently accepted scientific—knowledge, all statements purporting to be facts are true, and any formula or instruction contained in the article will not, if followed accurately, cause any injury, illness, or damage to the user.
JCRE has the right to store the articles in its databases unlimitedly and distribute and reproduce them electronically.
The authors agree that JCRE will publish their accepted papers under a »Creative Commons License – Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0).

Guidelines for Comments in JCRE

JCRE will only consider comments that were first rejected by the journal in which the original study was published. The rejection letter must be submitted with the manuscript.
Comments of any length will be considered.
Comments should be submitted both as PDF and LaTex or Word documents. In addition, an anonymized PDF version of the manuscript must also be submitted.
Authors should submit all correspondence with the journal that published the original study (e.g., the editor’s rejection letter and reviewers’ comments) along with their manuscript.
If the comment involves empirical analysis, authors must also, at the time of submission, include data and code that allows push-button reproduction of their results. The program code should start from the raw data as it is publicly available and end with the final results. Only if the program code allows the immediate replication of your results can your submission be considered for publication.
For copyrighted material, authors must obtain written permission from the copyright holders and submit the manuscript.
The title page of the manuscript must contain each author’s name with corresponding information, the title of the article, and JEL classification numbers and keywords.
Authors should indicate on the title page whether the research reported in their paper resulted from a for-pay consulting relationship or if their employer has a financial interest in the paper’s topic, which might constitute a conflict of interest.
Displayed formulas should be numbered consecutively. Only numbers in parentheses should be used when referring to formulas in the text, e.g., (1). At the beginning of sentences, numbers in parentheses should be preceded by the word “equation,” e.g., Equation (1).
Tables should be of a reasonable number and size. Columns should be clearly designed, and explanations should be given in footnotes using letters below the table’s body. Avoid using square brackets within tables.
References for figures, tables, photographs, etc., should be given in the captions.
The reference list should appear at the end of the text. Datasets must be cited. Names and dates in the text should correspond strictly to the list of references. Please provide DOIs with references when available.
Manuscripts should be clear, concise, well organized, and written in English, with correct spelling and good sentence structure. Authors are responsible for the use of correct English.
In the spirit of constructive scientific discourse, authors are encouraged to maintain a professional and respectful tone in their manuscripts. Submissions should employ non-judgmental language and focus on factual interpretations rather than personal judgments. Authors must refrain from ascribing negative motivations or intentions to the authors of the original study. Additionally, when providing interpretations that extend beyond direct observations, authors should clearly indicate that these are subjective perspectives. This can be done by using language such as, “Our interpretation suggests that…” or “From our analysis, it appears that…” By doing so, authors acknowledge the inherent subjectivity in scientific analysis and contribute to a more open and respectful scholarly dialogue.
Submitted manuscripts will be subject to the standard blinded peer-reviewed referee process. One of the referees will normally be the original author; if this is the case, this information will be disclosed to the author.
Should the manuscript be accepted, the original author(s) will be given the opportunity to publish a reply in JCRE.

Guidelines for Replications in JCRE

JCRE defines replication as any study that directly addresses the reliability of a specific claim from a previously published study. This includes “reproductions,” “robustness checks,” “generalizations,” and a host of other types of analyses designed to assess the trustworthiness of a previously published result. JCRE publishes both successful and unsuccessful replications. What matters is the quality of the analysis, not the outcome of the results. Authors who wish to clarify whether their research fits the category of replication are encouraged to contact the editors directly.
The standard format for replication consists of 4 parts:(i) an introduction in which the importance of the original study is evidenced; (ii) a reproduction of the original study’s finding(s), with the original study’s results and the replicating study’s corresponding estimates placed side-by-side in a table; (iii) robustness checks in which one or more dimensions of the original study are extended or modified (e.g., the sample is updated with more recent data, alternative econometric procedures are employed, etc.); and (iv) a conclusion that summarizes which results from the original study have been confirmed/disconfirmed.
If the replicating study cannot reproduce the original study’s findings, the replicating authors must provide evidence upon submission that they have attempted to contact the original authors to resolve any discrepancies. The respective correspondence with the original authors must be submitted.
Replications should be submitted as both PDF and LaTex/Word documents. An anonymized PDF version of the manuscript must also be submitted.
At the time of submission, authors must also include data and code that allows push-button reproduction of their results. The program code should start from the raw data as it is publicly available and end with the final results. Only if the program code allows the immediate replication of your results can your submission be considered for publication.
For copyrighted material, authors must obtain written permission from the copyright holders and submit the manuscript.
The title page of the manuscript must contain each author’s name and corresponding information, as well as the title of the article, complemented by JEL classification numbers and keywords.
Authors should indicate on the title page whether the research reported in their paper resulted from a for-pay consulting relationship or if their employer has a financial interest in the paper’s topic, which might constitute a conflict of interest.
Displayed formulas should be numbered consecutively. Only numbers in parentheses should be used when referring to formulas in the text, e.g., (1). At the beginning of sentences, numbers in parentheses should be preceded by the word “equation,” e.g., Equation (1).
Tables should be of a reasonable number and size. Columns should be clearly designed, and explanations should be given in footnotes using letters below the table’s body. Avoid using square brackets within tables.
References for figures, tables, photographs, etc., should be given in the captions.
The reference list should appear at the end of the text. Datasets must be cited. We encourage the following format: Author’s Name (year of publication): Name of data set. Version: #. Place of publication (e.g., journal, institution, or repository). Dataset. DOI. Names and dates in the text should correspond strictly to the list of references. Please provide DOIs with references when available.
Manuscripts should be clear, concise, well organized, and written in English, with correct spelling and good sentence structure. Authors are responsible for the use of correct English.
In the spirit of constructive scientific discourse, authors are encouraged to maintain a professional and respectful tone in their manuscripts. Submissions should employ non-judgmental language and focus on factual interpretations rather than personal judgments. Authors must refrain from ascribing negative motivations or intentions to the authors of the original study. Additionally, when providing interpretations that extend beyond direct observations, authors should clearly indicate that these are subjective perspectives. This can be done by using language such as, “Our interpretation suggests that…” or “From our analysis, it appears that…” By doing so, authors acknowledge the inherent subjectivity in scientific analysis and contribute to a more open and respectful scholarly dialogue.
Submitted manuscripts will be subject to the standard blinded peer-reviewed referee process. One of the referees will normally be the original author; if this is the case, this information will be disclosed to the author.
Should the manuscript be accepted, the original author(s) will be given the opportunity to publish a reply in JCRE.