GUIDELINES FOR AUTHORS

1. UNIFORM REQUIREMENTS

All Copyrights by License Faculty of Sport and Physical Education, Novi Sad, Serbia. All articles are open-access and distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY).

There is no charge for submissions and no page charge for accepted manuscripts.

EQOL Journal adopts a double-blind peer-review approach in which the reviewer's name is always concealed from the submitting authors as well as the author(s)'s name from the selected reviewers.

Authors should submit the manuscripts as one Microsoft Word (.docx) file.

Manuscripts must be provided either in standard UK or US English. English standards should be consistent throughout the manuscripts.

Format the manuscript in A4 paper size; margins are 1 inch or 2.5 cm all around.

Type the whole manuscript double-spaced, with justified alignment.

Use Times New Roman font, size eleven (11) points.

Number (Arabic numerals) the pages consecutively (cantering at the bottom of each page), beginning with the title page as page 1 and ending with the Figure legend page.

Include line numbers (continuous) for the convenience of the reviewers.

Apart from chapter headings and sub-headings avoid any kind of formatting in the main text of the manuscripts.

EQOL Journal publishes the following types of papers:

Original scientific papers are the results of empirically- or theoretically-based scientific research, which employ scientific methods, and report experimental or observational aspects of sports science and its sub-disciplines, which contribute to understanding the impact of physical activity on quality of life. Manuscripts concerning current issues in fields such as physical education, recreation, sports, health, sports psychology, sports management, pedagogy, and sociology are within the scope of the Journal. Descriptive analyses or data inferences should include rigorous methodological structure as well as sound theory. Your manuscript should include the following sections: Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion.

þ Open Submissions þ Indexed þ Peer Reviewed

Original scientific papers should be:

·         Up to 3000 words (excluding title, abstract, tables/figures, figure legends, Acknowledgements, Conflict of Interest, and References);

·         A structured abstract of less than 250 words;

·         Maximum number of references is 30;

·         Maximum combined total of 6 Tables/Figures.

Review papers should provide concise in-depth reviews of both established and new areas, based on a critical examination of the literature, analyzing the various approaches to a specific topic in all aspects of sports science and medicine, such as all clinical aspects of exercise, health, and sport; exercise physiology and biophysical investigation of sports performance; sports biomechanics; sports nutrition; rehabilitation, physiotherapy; sports psychology; sports pedagogy, sports history, sport philosophy, sport sociology, sport management; and all aspects of scientific support of the sports coaches from the natural, social and humanistic side.

þ Open Submissions þ Indexed þ Peer Reviewed

Review papers should be:

·         Up to 6000 words (excluding title, abstract, tables/figures, figure legends, Acknowledgements, Conflict of Interest, and References);

·         A structured abstract of less than 250 words;

·         Maximum number of references is 100.

Editorials are written or commissioned by the editors, but suggestions for possible topics and authors are welcome. It could be peer-reviewed by two reviewers who may be external or by the Editorial Board.

ý Open Submissions þ Indexed þ Peer Reviewed

Editorials should be:

·         Up to 1000 words (excluding title, abstract, tables/figures, figure legends, Acknowledgements, Conflict of Interest, and References);

·         A structured abstract of less than 250 words;

·         Maximum number of references is 10.

Short reports of experimental work, new methods, or a preliminary report can be accepted as two-page papers. Your manuscript should include the following sections: Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion.

þ Open Submissions þ Indexed þ Peer Reviewed

Short reports should be:

·         Up to 1500 words (excluding title, abstract, tables/figures, figure legends, Acknowledgements, Conflict of Interest, and References);

·         A structured abstract of less than 250 words;

·         Maximum number of references is 15.

Peer review - fair review provides authors who feel their paper has been unfairly rejected (at any journal) the opportunity to share reviewer comments, explain their concerns, and have their paper reviewed for possible publication in EQOL Journal.

þ Open Submissions þ Indexed ý Peer Reviewed

Peer review - fair review should be:

·         Up to 1500 words (excluding title, abstract, tables/figures, figure legends, Acknowledgements, Conflict of Interest, and References);

·         A structured abstract of less than 250 words;

·         Maximum number of references is 15.

Invited papers and award papers include invited papers from authors with outstanding scientific credentials. Nomination of invited authors is at the discretion of the EQOL Journal editorial board. EQOL Journal also publishes papers of the International Scientific Conference “Exercise and Quality of Life”, “Novelties in Sport Science” or other conferences organized by the Faculty of Sport and Physical Education.

ý Open Submissions þ Indexed ý Peer Reviewed

Invited papers and award papers should be:

·         Up to 3000 words (excluding title, abstract, tables/figures, figure legends, Acknowledgements, Conflict of Interest, and References);

·         A structured abstract of less than 250 words;

·         Maximum number of references is 30;

·         Maximum combined total of 6 Tables/Figures.

EQOL Journal exclusively accepts submissions through the electronic submission system available on its official website: www.eqoljournal.com.

Submitted material includes:

·         A manuscript prepared according to the Guidelines for the Authors;

·         A signed form that states the study was not previously published, nor has been submitted simultaneously for consideration of publication elsewhere, that states that all of the authors are in agreement with the submission of the manuscript to EQOL Journal, and that, for studies that use animal or human individuals, authors must include information regarding their institution’s ethics committee, and which identifies the official approval number;

·         A signed form that there is no conflict of interest.

Name the files in a way that ensures the author's identity is not revealed at any point. See example:

·         Manuscript.docx – (main manuscript file)

·         Statement.pdf – (authorship statement)

·         Declaration.pdf – (declaration of potential conflict of interest)

·         Fig1.tiff – (Figure 1), etc.

An original manuscript submitted for publication will be submitted to the review process as long as it fits the following criteria:

·         The study was not previously published, nor has been submitted simultaneously for consideration of publication elsewhere;

·         All persons listed as authors approved its submission to EQOL Journal;

·         Any person cited as a source of personal communication has approved the quote;

·         The opinions expressed by the authors are their exclusive responsibility;

·         The author signs a formal statement that the submitted manuscript complies with the directions and guidelines of EQOL Journal.

The Editor-in-Chief and associate editors will make a preliminary analysis regarding the appropriateness, quality, originality, and written style/grammar of the submitted manuscript. The editors reserve the right to request additional information, corrections, and guideline compliance before they submit the manuscript to the ad-hoc review process.

EQOL Journal uses ad-hoc reviewers, who volunteer to analyze the merit of the study. Typically, two or more expert reviewers are consulted in a double-blind process. Authors are notified by e-mail when their submission has been accepted (or rejected). Minor changes in the text may be made at the discretion of the Editor-in-Chief and/or associate editors. Changes can include spelling and grammar in the chosen language, written style, journal citations, and reference guidelines. The author is notified of changes via email. The final version is available to the author for his or her approval before it is published.

EQOL Journal applies the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license to articles and other works it publishes. If the author(s) submit its paper for publication by EQOL Journal, they agree to have the CC BY license applied to their work. Under this Open Access license, the author(s) agree that anyone can reuse their article in whole or part for any purpose, for free, even for commercial purposes. Anyone may copy, distribute, or reuse the content as long as the author(s) and original source are properly cited. This facilitates freedom in re-use and also ensures that EQOL Journal content can be mined without barriers for the needs of research. On the other hand, the author(s) may use content owned by someone else in their article if they have written permission to do so. If the manuscript contains content such as photos, images, figures, tables, audio files, videos, et cetera, that the author(s) do not own, EQOL Journal will require them to provide it with proof that the owner of that content has given them written permission to use it and has approved of the CC BY license being applied to their content. Otherwise, EQOL Journal will ask the author(s) to remove that content and/or replace it with other content that you own or have such permission to use. EQOL Journal provides a form the author(s) can use to ask for and obtain permission from the owner.

In addition, the author(s) may freely use the content they previously published in a paper through another publisher and they own the rights to that content; however, that’s not necessarily the case and it depends on the license that covers the other paper. Some publishers allow free and unrestricted reuse of article content they own, such as under the CC BY license. Other publishers use licenses that allow reuse only if the same license is applied by the person or publisher reusing the content. If the article was published under a CC BY license or another license that allows free and unrestricted use, the author(s) may use the content in the submitted manuscript provided that the author(s) give proper attribution, as explained above. If the content was published under a more restrictive license, the author(s) must ascertain what rights they have under that license. EQOL Journal advises the author(s) not to include any content in the submitted manuscript that they do not have rights to use, and always give proper attribution.

The editors of EQOL Journal consider plagiarism to be a serious breach of academic ethics. Any author who practices plagiarism (in part or totality) will be suspended for six years from submitting new submissions to the EQOL Journal. If such a manuscript is approved and published, public exposure of the article with a printed mark (“plagiarized” or “retracted”) on each page of the published file, as well as suspension for future publication for at least six years, or a period determined by the editorial board. Third-party plagiarized authors or institutions will be notified, informing them about the faulty authors. Plagiarism will result in immediate rejection of the manuscript. IMPORTANT: All submissions will be checked twice (after manuscript submission and after acceptance (post-review)) with:

EQOL Journal only publishes studies that have been approved by an institutional ethics committee (when a study involves humans or animals). Failure to provide such information prevents its publication. To ensure these requirements, it is essential that submission documentation is complete. If you have not completed this step yet, go to the EQOL Journal website and fill out the two required documents: Declaration of Potential Conflict of Interest and Authorship Statement. Whether or not your study uses humans or animals, these documents must be completed and signed by all authors and attached as supplementary files in the originally submitted manuscript.

After the manuscript has been accepted, authors will receive a PDF version of the manuscript for authorization, as it should look like a printed version of the EQOL Journal. Authors should carefully check for omissions. Reporting errors after this point will not be possible and the Editorial Board will not be eligible for them.

Should there be any errors, authors should report them to the Office e-mail address eqol@uns.ac.rs or office@eqoljournal.com. If there are not any errors authors should also write a short e-mail stating that they agree with the received version.

EQOL is hosting the Code of Conduct Ethics Committee of Publications of the COPE (the Committee on Publication Ethics), which provides a forum for publishers and Editors of scientific journals to discuss issues relating to the integrity of the work submitted to or published in their journals.

2. MANUSCRIPT STRUCTURE

The first page of the manuscript should be the title page, containing: the title, type of publication, running head, and manuscript information. See example:

Effects of Invasion games on physical fitness in primary school children

Original Scientific Paper

Invasion games in children

Word count: 2,980

Abstract word count: 236

Number of Tables: 1

Number of Figures: 1

2.1.1. Title

The title should be short and informative and the recommended length is no more than 20 words. The title should be in Title Case, written in uppercase and lowercase letters (initial uppercase for all words except articles, conjunctions, short prepositions no longer than four letters, etc.) so that the first letters of the words in the title are capitalized. Exceptions are words like: “and”, “or”, “between”, etc. The word following a colon (:) or a hyphen (-) in the title is always capitalized.

2.1.2. Type of publication

Authors should suggest the type of their submission.

2.1.3. Running head

Short running title should not exceed 50 characters including spaces.

2.1.4. Manuscript information

All authors are required to provide word count (excluding title page, abstract, tables/figures, figure legends, Acknowledgements, Conflict of Interest, and References), the Abstract word count, the number of Tables, and the number of Figures.

2.1.5 Author(s), affiliation(s), and corresponding author

No part of the main manuscript file should include the name(s) of the author(s), their affiliation(s), or the corresponding author. This information should be provided exclusively through the electronic submission system.

The second page of the manuscript should be the abstract and keywords. It should be placed on the second page of the manuscripts after the standard title written in upper and lower-case letters, bold.

Since the abstract is an independent part of your paper, all abbreviations used in the abstract should also be explained in it. If an abbreviation is used, the term should always be first written in full with the abbreviation in parentheses immediately after it. The abstract should not have any special headings (e.g., Aim, Results…).

Authors should provide up to six keywords that capture the main topics of the article. Terms from the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) list of Index Medicus are recommended to be used.

Keywords should be placed on the second page of the manuscript right below the abstract, written in italics. Separate each keyword by a comma (and a space). Do not put a full stop after the last keyword. See example:

Abstract

Results of the analysis of…

Keywords: games, teaching, impact, kids

Starting from the third page of the manuscripts, it should be the main chapters. Depending on the type of publication main manuscript chapters may vary. The general outline is: Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, Acknowledgements (optional), Conflict of Interest (optional), and Title. However, this scheme may not be suitable for reviews or publications from some areas and authors should then adjust their chapters accordingly but use the general outline as much as possible.

2.3.1. Headings

Main chapter headings: written in bold and in Title Case. See example:

Methods

Sub-headings: written in italics and in normal sentence case. Do not put a full stop or any other sign at the end of the title. Do not create more than one level of sub-heading. See example:

·         Table position of the research football team

2.3.2 Ethics

When reporting experiments on human subjects, there must be a declaration of Ethics compliance. The inclusion of a statement such as the following in the Methods section will be understood by the Editor as the authors' affirmation of compliance: “This study was approved in advance by [name of committee and/or its institutional sponsor]. Each participant voluntarily provided written informed consent before participating.” Authors who fail to submit an Ethics statement will be asked to resubmit the manuscripts, which may delay publication.

2.3.3 Statistics reporting

EQOL Journal encourages authors to report precise p-values. When possible, quantify findings and present them with appropriate indicators of measurement error or uncertainty (such as confidence intervals). Use normal text (i.e., non-capitalized, non-italic) for the statistical term “p”.

2.3.4. “Acknowledgements” and “Conflict of Interest” (optional)

All contributors who do not meet the criteria for authorship should be listed in the ‘Acknowledgements’ section. If applicable, in the ‘Conflict of Interest’ section, authors must clearly disclose any grants, financial or material support, or any sort of technical assistance from an institution, organization, group, or individual that might be perceived as leading to a conflict of interest.

References should be placed on a new page after the standard title written in upper and lower-case letters, bold.

All information needed for each type must be present as specified in the guidelines. Authors are solely responsible for the accuracy of each reference. Use authoritative sources for information such as Web of Science, Medline, or PubMed to check the validity of citations.

2.4.1. References style

EQOL Journal adheres to the American Psychological Association 7^th Edition reference style. Check “American Psychological Association (2019). Concise rules of APA style. American Psychological Association.” to ensure the manuscripts conform to this reference style. Authors using EndNote® to organize the references must convert the citations and bibliography to plain text before submission.

2.4.2. Examples for Reference citations

   One work by one author

ü  In one study (Reilly, 1997), soccer players…

ü  In the study by Reilly (1997), soccer players…

ü  In 1997, Reilly’s study of soccer players…

Works by two authors

ü  Duffield and Marino (2007) studied…

ü  In one study (Duffield & Marino, 2007), soccer players…

ü  In 2007, Duffield and Marino’s study of soccer players…

Works by three to five authors: cite all the author names the first time the reference occurs and then subsequently include only the first author followed by et al.

ü  First citation: Bangsbo, Iaia, and Krustrup (2008) stated that…

ü  Subséquent citation: Bangsbo et al. (2008) stated that…

Works by six or more authors: cite only the name of the first author followed by et al. and the year

ü  Krustrup et al. (2003) studied…

ü  In one study (Krustrup et al., 2003), soccer players…

Two or more works in the same parenthetical citation: Citation of two or more works in the same parentheses should be listed in the order they appear in the reference list (i.e., alphabetically, then chronologically)

ü  Several studies (Bangsbo et al., 2008; Duffield & Marino, 2007; Reilly, 1997) suggest that…

2.4.3. Examples for Reference list

Journal article (print):

ü  Bangsbo, J., Iaia, F. M., & Krustrup, P. (2008). The Yo-Yo intermittent recovery test: a useful tool for evaluation of physical performance in intermittent sports. Sports Medicine, 38(1), 37-51.

ü  Duffield, R., & Marino, F. E. (2007). Effects of pre-cooling procedures on intermittent-sprint exercise performance in warm conditions. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 100(6), 727-735.

ü  Krustrup, P., Mohr, M., Amstrup, T., Rysgaard, T., Johansen, J., Steensberg, A., . . . Bangsbo, J. (2003). The yo-yo intermittent recovery test: physiological response, reliability, and validity. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 35(4), 697-705.

Journal article (online; electronic version of print source):

ü  Shaw, A. (1999). The planning and development of New Bombay [Electronic version]. Modern Asian Studies, 33(4), 951-988.

Journal article (online; electronic only):

ü  Chantavanich, S. (2003, October). Recent research on human trafficking. Kyoto Review of Southeast Asia, 4. Retrieved November 15, 2005, from http://kyotoreview.cseas.kyoto-u.ac.jp/issue/issue3/index.html

Conference paper:

ü  Pasadilla, G. O., & Milo, M. (2005, June 27). Effect of liberalization on banking competition. Paper presented at the conference on Policies to Strengthen Productivity in the Philippines, Manila, Philippines. Retrieved August 23, 2006, from http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTPHILIPPINES/Resources/Pasadilla.pdf

Encyclopedia entry (print, with author):

ü  Pittau, J. (1983). Meiji constitution. In Kodansha encyclopedia of Japan (Vol. 2, pp. 1-3). Tokyo: Kodansha.

Encyclopedia entry (online, no author):

ü  Ethnology. (2005, July). In The Columbia encyclopaedia (6th ed.). New York: Columbia University Press. Retrieved November 21, 2005, from http://www.bartleby.com/65/et/ethnolog.html

Thesis and dissertation:

ü  Pyun, D. Y. (2006). The proposed model of attitude toward advertising through sport. Unpublished Doctoral Dissertation. Tallahassee, FL: The Florida State University.

Book:

ü  Borg, G. (1998). Borg's perceived exertion and pain scales: Human kinetics.

Chapter of a book:

ü  Kellmann, M. (2012). Chapter 31-Overtraining and recovery: Chapter taken from Routledge Handbook of Applied Sport Psychology ISBN: 978-0-203-85104-3 Routledge Online Studies on the Olympic and Paralympic Games (Vol. 1, pp. 292-302).

Reference to an Internet source:

ü  Agency. (2007). Water for Health: Hydration Best Practice Toolkit for Hospitals and Healthcare. Retrieved 10/29, 2013, from www.rcn.org.uk/newsevents/hydration

All tables should be included in the main manuscript file, each on a separate page right after the Reference section.

Tables should be presented as standard MS Word tables.

Number (Arabic) tables consecutively in the order of their first citation in the text.

Tables and table headings should be completely intelligible without reference to the text. Give each column a short or abbreviated heading. Authors should place explanatory matter in footnotes, not in the heading. All abbreviations appearing in a table and not considered standard must be explained in a footnote of that table. Avoid any shading or coloring in your tables and be sure that each table is cited in the text.

If you use data from another published or unpublished source, it is the author’s responsibility to obtain permission and acknowledge them fully.

2.5.1. Table heading

The table heading should be written above the table, in Title Case, and without a full stop at the end of the heading. Do not use suffix letters (e.g., Table 1a, 1b, 1c); instead, combine the related tables. See example:

·         Table 1. Repeated Sprint Time Following Ingestion of Carbohydrate-Electrolyte Beverage 

2.5.2. Table sub-heading

All text appearing in tables should be written beginning only with the first letter of the first word in all capitals, i.e., all words for variable names, column headings, etc. in tables should start with the first letter in all capitals. Avoid any formatting (e.g., bold, italic, underline) in tables.

2.5.3. Table footnotes

Table footnotes should be written below the table.

General notes explain, qualify or provide information about the table as a whole. Put explanations of abbreviations, symbols, etc. here. General notes are designated by the word Note (italicized) followed by a period.

·         Note. CI: confidence interval; Con: control group; CE: carbohydrate-electrolyte group.

Specific notes explain, qualify or provide information about a particular column, row, or individual entry. To indicate specific notes, use superscript lowercase letters (e.g., ^{a, b, c}), and order the superscripts from left to right, top to bottom. Each table’s first footnote must be the superscript ^a.

• ^aOne participant was diagnosed with heat illness and n = 19.^bn =20.

Probability notes provide the reader with the results of the texts for statistical significance. Probability notes must be indicated with consecutive use of the following symbols: * † ‡ § ¶ || etc.

• *P<0.05, †p<0.01.

2.5.4. Table citation

In the text, tables should be cited as full words. See example:

ü  Table 1 (first letter in all capitals and no full stop)

ü  ...as shown in Tables 1 and 3. (citing more tables at once)

ü  ...result has shown (Tables 1-3) that... (citing more tables at once)

ü  ....in our results (Tables 1, 2 and 5)… (citing more tables at once)

On the last separate page of the main manuscript file, the authors should place the legends of all the figures submitted separately.

All graphic materials should be of sufficient quality for print with a minimum resolution of 600 dpi. EQOL Journal prefers TIFF, EPS, and PNG formats.

If a figure has been published previously, acknowledge the source and submit written permission from the copyright holder to reproduce the material. Permission is required irrespective of authorship or publisher except for documents in the public domain. If photographs of people are used, either the subjects must not be identifiable or their pictures must be accompanied by written permission to use the photograph whenever possible permission for publication should be obtained.

Figures and figure legends should be completely intelligible without reference to the text.

2.6.1. Figure legends

Figures should not contain footnotes. All information, including explanations of abbreviations, must be present in figure legends. Figure legends should be written below the figure, in sentence case. See example:

·         Figure 1. Changes in the accuracy of instep football kick measured before and after fatigued. SR – resting state, SF – state of fatigue, *p>0.01, †p>0.05.

2.6.2. Figure citation

All graphic materials should be referred to as Figures in the text. Figures are cited in the text as full words. See example:

• Figure 1
• figure 1
• Figure 1.
• …exhibit greater variance than the year before (Figure 2). Therefore…
• ….as shown in Figures 1 and 3. (citing more figures at once)
• …result has shown (Figures 1-3) that... (citing more figures at once)
• …in our results (Figures 1, 2 and 5)... (citing more figures at once)

2.6.3. Sub-figures

If there is a figure divided into several sub-figures, each sub-figure should be marked with a small letter, starting with a, b, c etc. The letter should be marked for each subfigure in a logical and consistent way. See example:

• Figure 1a
• …in Figures 1a and b we can…
• …data represent (Figures 1a-d)…

All units of measure should conform to the International System of Units (SI).

Measurements of length, height, weight, and volume should be reported in metric units (meter, kilogram, or liter) or their decimal multiples.

Decimal places in the English language are separated with a full stop and not with a comma. Thousands are separated with a comma.

Latin names of species, families, etc. should be written in italics (even in titles). If you mention Latin names in your abstract they should be written in non-italic since the rest of the text in the abstract is in italics. The first time the name of a species appears in the text both genus and species must be present; later on, in the text, it is possible to use genus abbreviations. See example:

• First time appearing: musculus biceps brachii
• Abbreviated: m. biceps brachii

3.1. Proofs

The corresponding author will receive page proofs (as PDF files) by e-mail. Corrections referring to typesetting, editing, completeness, and correctness of the manuscript should be made within five days. Significant changes at this stage are not acceptable. The authors bear the main responsibility for proofreading: any subsequent corrections cannot be guaranteed. If no response from the authors is received, the Editor reserves the right to delay publication or to proceed to press without author proof.

The corresponding author, at no cost, will be provided with a PDF file of the article via e-mail.

Please direct all correspondence concerning manuscript submissions to:

Damjan JAKŠIĆ, Editor-in-Chief,

“Exercise and Quality of Life” Journal,

Faculty of Sport and Physical Education,

University of Novi Sad,

16 Lovćenska str., 21000 Novi Sad

Republic of Serbia

+381 21 450 188, desk 142

e-mail: eqol@uns.ac.rs or office@eqoljournal.com