The Journal of Non-Significant Differences (JNSD) and the Canyon Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies (CJIS) merged in 2016. The new partnership between the two journals retains the JNSD belief that there is value in the outcome of solid empirical research regardless of the level of significance found through statistical analysis and the CJIS emphasis on exchange of empirical and theoretical research among faculty and students at GCU, especially graduate students and doctoral learners. Recent graduates who previously submitted to JNSD will further benefit from an increase in scholarly dialogue between the JNSD and the CJIS scholarly community. Information about JNSD submissions are for archival purposes only.

 Those interested in submitting to the Canyon Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies are encouraged to do so at: https://cirt.gcu.edu/research/publication_presentation/gcujournals/cjis/about

 JNSD published one volume per year. Submissions were accepted on an open, rolling basis at any time, up to the final submission date of August 1st of each year. Volumes are published online at the JNSD website.

 
Copyright

JNSD published only original manuscripts (i.e., manuscripts under review with another publication, previously published, or revised versions of previously published manuscript are not acceptable). In addition, copyright policies are as follows:

• Authors and JNSD hold joint copyright for published manuscripts.
• Authors are required to acquire necessary permissions for copyrighted images; it is the author's responsibility to determine whether or not permissions are needed for images. In addition, authors are responsible for all permission fees associated with copyrighted materials.
• Trademark use must be credited to owner or permissions must be obtained for use.
• A publication release from the author will be required for a paper to be included in JNSD.

Manuscript Preparation

JNSD publishes manuscripts representing a range of empirical, quantitative methodologies and disciplinary topics. To be eligible for inclusion in JNSD, the research may NOT have statistically significant findings. Successful submissions should clearly highlight the value and implications of the research for the target audience. The American Psychological Association (2010) provides the following general guidelines for communicating your scholarly work:

• Present the problem, question or issue early in the manuscript.
• Show how the issue is grounded, shaped, and directed by theory.
• Connect the issue to previous work in a literature review that is pertinent and informative but not exhaustive.
• State explicitly the hypotheses under investigation or the target of the theoretical review.
• Keep the conclusions within the boundaries of the findings and/or scope of the theory.
• Demonstrate how the study or scholarly approach has helped to address the original issue.
• Identify and discuss what theoretical or practical implications can be drawn from this work.

Suggestions for effective manuscript submissions:

• Title - Titles should not exceed 15 words and should provide a clear introduction to the point of your manuscript.
• Abstract - The abstract provides a short summary (150-250 words) of your work that provides the key information for readers to determine their interest in reading the complete article. The abstract should be "accurate, self-contained, nonevaluative, coherent, and readable" (Calfee & Valencia, 2001).
• Body - Information should be organized and sub-titled to facilitate flow and understanding of key issues. Authors should use discipline-specific guidelines to organize and present information in a manner that is easily communicated to readers. JNSD has no formal length requirements for manuscripts, but authors are encouraged to be direct and concise to maintain a focus on key issues. By in large, manuscripts should not exceed 25 double spaced pages.
• References - Carefully select references to ensure that citations are current and relevant; prioritize credible, published sources that have proven pertinent and valuable to the relevant investigations.  
• Tables, Figures, Appendices & Graphics - When necessary, include supporting documents to illustrate the findings, relevance or utilization of materials.

To facilitate the double-blind review process, the author's name and other identifying information should only appear on the title page; the remainder of the manuscript should be written in a more generalized fashion that does not directly divulge authorship.

Manuscript (including citations and references) must strictly follow APA style as dictated by the 6th Edition of the American Psychological Association Publication Manual (http://www.apastyle.org/).

Review Process

JNSD utilizes a double-blind review process; the review process is as follows:

• Manuscripts receive a desk review by the Editor to determine fit and relevance for JNSD. Manuscripts that pass desk review will be forwarded to a minimum of two peer reviewers.
• Designated reviewers from the Peer Review Board will be assigned to review the manuscript and provide feedback.
• The Editor will make the final publication decision based on the feedback from the peer reviewers.
• Authors will be notified within 8-12 weeks of submission as to the publication decision.

Review Criteria

The following dimensions will be utilized to evaluate manuscript submissions:

• Relevance - Relevance highlights the impact of the paper for influencing best practices in post-secondary instruction.
• Significance - Significance refers to the value, importance and worth of the manuscript within the context of higher education. Significance does NOT refer to the statistical analysis.
• Originality - Originality refers to the level of innovation in practice, approach, technique or purposeful self-reflection.
• Methodology - Methodology emphasizes appropriate methods of inquiry and theoretical interpretation.
• Theoretical grounding - Theoretical grounding refers to the ability to quality of the literature review and the ability to ground manuscript within relevant literature/theory.
• Clarity - Clarity evaluates the ability to communicate information in a clear, cohesive fashion.

Review Outcomes

Utilizing feedback from blind review process, the Editor will make a final publication decision. The review process will take approximately 8-12 weeks. Decisions categories include:

• Reject - Rejected manuscripts will not be published and authors will not have the opportunity to resubmit a revised version of the manuscript to JNSD.
• Revise and Resubmit - Manuscripts receiving a revise-and-resubmit decision have value, but need significant revisions prior to receiving additional consideration for publication.
• Accept Pending Revisions - A manuscript accepted-pending-revisions meets all the major requirements for publication but needs revisions in substantive, mechanical or methodological issues.
• Accept - Accepted manuscripts will be published in the current form with no further modifications required.

Correspondence

All correspondence concerning manuscripts should be directed to the Editor of JNSD at [email protected]. The Editor will direct all correspondence to the lead author; the lead author is responsible for sharing communications with other authors. Beyond communication concerning the review, manuscripts accepted for publication will require additional correspondence to complete copyediting and typesetting.

References

• American Psychological Association. (2010). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.
• Calfee, R. & Valencia, R. (2001). APA Guide to preparing manuscripts for journal publication. Washington, DC: APA.