Author Instructions
Author Instructions
All manuscripts should be submitted via ScholarOne Manuscripts.
- Publishing Policies
- Peer Review
- Authorship
- Licence to Publish
- Open Access
- General
- Paper Categories
- Presentation
- Use of Inclusive Language
- Format
- Data Availability Statement
- Conflicts of Interest
- Declaration of Funding
- Ethics Approval
- Clinical Trials
- Acknowledgements
- References
- Tables
- Figures
- Guidelines for Data Analysis and Presentation
- Units, Nomenclature and Formulae
- Animal Experimentation
- How to Submit Manuscripts
- Supplementary Material
- Proofs and Reprints
Publishing Policies
Brain Impairment insists on high standards of ethical behaviour throughout the publication process. Our journal editors work within the guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE). Further information on our policies can be found at https://www.publish.csiro.au/journals/publishingpolicies.
Peer Review
Brain Impairment is a peer-reviewed journal that uses a single-anonymised peer-review. The Editors-in-Chief are responsible to maintain high-quality peer-review of papers submitted to the journal and work together with Associate Editors to ensure a thorough and fair peer-review and the highest scientific publishing standards. After initial editorial assessment, submissions are single-anonymised peer-reviewed by a minimum of two independent, anonymous expert referees and recommendations made to the Editors-in-Chief for a decision. All submissions undergo preliminary assessment by the Editor, who may reject a paper before peer review when it is outside the journal’s scope or is of insufficient quality. Associate Editors select reviewers and after at least two review reports are received, they make the recommendation whether to accept/reject or send a manuscript for revision. The final decision is made by the Editors-in-Chief.
Under our single-anonymised policy, reviewers’ names are not disclosed to the authors. To increase transparency, reviewers may choose to sign their reports. We ask reviewers and authors not to directly contact each other while the manuscript is under consideration, rather keep all communication through ScholarOne with the Editor’s involvement.
Authorship
The conditions around authorship for Brain Impairment should follow the recommendations of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), for more information see https://www.publish.csiro.au/journals/publishingpolicies#1.
Licence to Publish
For details regarding copyright, please see Copyright/Licence to Publish.
Open Access
Authors may choose to publish their paper Open Access on payment of a publication fee. See Open Access for more details. Corresponding authors from eligible institutions can publish articles as Open Access in Brain Impairment at no cost to research projects via CSIRO Publishing’s Read and Publish agreements. See Read and Publish for more details.
General
The journal addresses topics related to the aetiology, epidemiology, treatment and outcomes of brain impairment with a particular focus on the implications for functional status, participation, rehabilitation and quality of life. Disciplines reflect a broad multidisciplinary scope and include neuroscience, neurology, neuropsychology, psychiatry, clinical psychology, occupational therapy, physiotherapy, speech pathology, social work, and nursing. Submissions are welcome across the full range of conditions that affect brain function (stroke, tumour, progressive neurological illnesses, dementia, traumatic brain injury, etc.) throughout the lifespan.
The Editors reserve the right to reject poorly prepared or inappropriate manuscripts without sending them for review. A poorly written manuscript may be returned for revision before sending it out for review if the English expression is ambiguous or overlong, analysis of the data is clearly inappropriate, or the style severely deviates from that advocated in this set of instructions.
Brain Impairment assumes that all authors of a multi-authored paper agree to its submission, and that the results have not been published nor are being considered for publication elsewhere. The Journal endeavours to ensure that the work published is that of the named authors except where acknowledged and, through its reviewing procedures, that all published results and conclusions are consistent with the primary data. However, it can take no responsibility for fraud or inaccuracy on the part of the contributors.
Paper Categories
Original articles
Articles in this category describe ethically approved research projects which generate knew knowledge. A general guide for length is 5,000 words; however, the length of manuscripts should be appropriate to the content and research approach. This article type requires a structured abstract with the headings: background, methods, results, conclusion(s).
Review articles
Reviews of the literature which present a synthesis and critique of existing research using a formal method such as systematic review or scoping review format. Length is dependent upon the topic and scope of literature presented with up to 7,000 words recommended. This article type requires a structured abstract with the headings: background, methods, results, conclusion(s).
Brief Report
Articles less than 3,000 words in length which present research findings that are less substantial than an original article, either in scope or content, for example, small pilot studies. This article type requires a structured abstract.
Clinical Practice: Current Opinion
This category includes clinical case descriptions, clinical opinion pieces, or articles which present new directions in brain impairment research or service delivery and should be less than 3,000 words. A structured abstract is optional for this article type.
Research Protocol
Papers describing the background, rationale and methods of a proposed project, and similar in length and scope to original articles. A structured abstract is optional for this article type.
The journal also publishes other content such as Editorials and ASSBI Presidential Addresses by invitation only.
Presentation
Manuscripts must be presented double spaced in a clear, readable typeface (Times preferred), in an A4-size document with 3cm margins. Number all pages except the figures, beginning with the first page.
The work should be presented in clear and concise English. Section headings should be clearly visible with each level treated consistently throughout the paper.
For information on Supplementary Material, please see Supplementary Material.
Use of Inclusive Language
These guidelines should be used to assist in identifying appropriate language but are by no means exhaustive or definitive. Inclusive language comprises carefully chosen words and phrases that are respectful and promote the acceptance and value of all people. It is language which is free from words, phrases or tones that demean, insult, exclude, stereotype, or trivialise people on the basis of their membership of a certain group or because of a particular attribute. As such, inclusive language should make no assumptions about the beliefs or commitments of any reader, and contain nothing which might imply that one individual is superior to another on any grounds including but not limited to: age, gender, race, ethnicity, culture, sexual orientation, disability or health condition. We encourage the use of plural nouns (e.g., 'they' as default wherever possible instead of 'he/she'), and recommend avoiding the use of descriptors that refer to personal attributes, unless there is scientific or clinical relevance. For further guidance on inclusive language see Inclusive language | Style Manual. If there are questions about language use and/or publishing with regards to First Nations people, please contact the Journal.
Format
Papers should usually be in the form Title, Abstract, Keywords, Introduction, Materials and methods, Results, Discussion, Acknowledgements, Author statements and References. Consider using subheadings to organise material.
The title should be concise and appropriately informative and should contain all keywords necessary to facilitate retrieval by online search engines. The abstract (200 words for a research article) should open with a clear statement of the broad context of the work, briefly summarise the aims and research approach, give the principal findings, and conclude by specifying the main implications of the results. Keywords not already in the title or abstract should be listed beneath the abstract. A running head (<50 letter spaces) should be supplied for use at the top of the printed page.
The Introduction should set the scene for the work in the opening sentences. The following text should only cover essential background literature and clearly indicate the reason for the work. This section should close with a paragraph specifying aims and, where appropriate, testable hypotheses. In the Materials and methods, sufficient detail should be given to enable the work to be repeated. If a commercial product such as an analytical instrument is mentioned, supply its full model name and location of the manufacturer. Give complete citations and version numbers for computer software. Data analysis must be explained clearly, especially when complex models or novel statistical procedures are used. Results should be stated concisely and without interpretation (although in complex studies, modest interpretation of some data may provide context helpful for understanding subsequent sections). Data presented should address the aims and testable hypotheses raised in the Introduction. Use tables and figures to illustrate the key points but do not repeat their contents in detail. The Discussion should explain the scientific significance of the results in context with the literature, clearly distinguishing factual results from speculation and interpretation. Avoid excessive use of references - more than three to support a claim is usually unnecessary. Limitations of methods should also be addressed where appropriate. Conclude the Discussion with a section on the implications of the findings. Footnotes are discouraged and should be used only when essential. Acknowledgments, including funding information, should appear in a brief statement at the end of the body of the text.
Data Availability Statement
CSIRO Publishing encourages authors to share the research data underlying their papers to support transparency and reproducibility of research. A Data Availability Statement must be included at the end of the manuscript indicating whether the data used to generate the results in the paper are available and, if so, where to access them. For more information on CSIRO Publishing’s data sharing policy and for examples of what to include in the data availability statement please see https://www.publish.csiro.au/journals/publishingpolicies#6.
Authors can get credit for their work by citing their research data in the reference list of their article. Citations should include at a minimum: all authors, year of publication, title of dataset, record ID, publisher. DOI or URL if available. Examples of how to cite research data:
Wang L, Edwards D, Bailey A, Carr L, Boreham C, Grosjean E, Anderson J, Jarrett A, MacFarlane S, Southby C, Carson C, Khider K, Palu T, Henson P (2021) Well log data analysis and interpretation on the pre-Carboniferous succession in Waukarlycarly 1, Canning Basin, Western Australia. Record 2021/003 [Dataset]. Geoscience Australia, Canberra. Available at http://pid.geoscience.gov.au/dataset/ga/144547
Fiddes S, Pepler A, Saunders K, Hope P (2020) Southern Australia’s climate regions (Version 1.0.0) [Dataset] Zenodo. doi:10.5281/zenodo.4265471
Digital Earth Australia (2021) Wetlands Insight Tool Queensland Wetlands Polygons. Version 1.0.0 [Dataset]. Geoscience Australia, Canberra. Available at http://pid.geoscience.gov.au/dataset/ga/144795
Conflicts of Interest
A ´Conflicts of Interest’ section should be included at the end of the manuscript. It should identify any financial or non-financial (political, personal, professional) interests/relationships that may be interpreted to have influenced the manuscript. If there is no conflict of interest, please include the statement "The authors declare no conflicts of interest".
Declaration of Funding
Under a subheading 'Declaration of Funding' at the end of the text authors are required to declare all sources of funding for the research and/or preparation of the article, and the inclusion of grant numbers is recommended. Authors should declare sponsor names along with explanations of the role of those sources if any in the preparation of the data or manuscript or the decision to submit for publication; or a statement declaring that the supporting source had no such involvement. If no funding has been provided for the research, please include the following sentence: "This research did not receive any specific funding".
Ethics Approval
In reporting research regarding human subjects, authors are required to document that a formally constituted review board (Institutional Review Board or Ethics committee) has granted approval for the research to be done, or that the principles outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki regarding human experimentation have been met. Authors are required to include their ethics statement at the end of the manuscript, alongside Conflict of Interest and Funding statements. Authors will be asked to confirm the inclusion of the statement during the submission process.
Investigators who do not have access to an institutional review board are required to provide a statement to the editor outlining why it was not possible to gain formal ethics approval. If the study is judged exempt from review, a statement from the committee is required. Authors should make an ethics statement within the manuscript to this effect. Authors should also state that the research was undertaken with appropriate informed consent of participants or guardians. CSIRO Publishing also follows CSIRO’s own guidelines on ethical human research.
Clinical Trials
Articles on clinical trials should contain abstracts that include items the CONSORT group has identified as essential. When reporting a randomised controlled trial (RCT) include the trial registration number at the end of the abstract. When reporting on a RCT, list the trial registration number at the first instance of using the trial acronym whenever a registration number is available.
Acknowledgements
The contribution of colleagues who do not meet all criteria for authorship should be acknowledged. Anyone included in the Acknowledgements section should have granted permission to be listed. Sources of financial support should be acknowledged in a separate ‘Declaration of Funding’ rather than here.
References
References are cited by the author and date (Harvard system); they are not numbered. All references in the text must be listed at the end of the paper, with the names of authors arranged alphabetically; all entries in this list must correspond to references in the text. In the text, the names of 2 co-authors are linked by ´and´; for 3 or more, the first author´s name is followed by ´et al.´. Where more than one reference is cited in the text, they should be listed chronologically. No editorial responsibility can be taken for the accuracy of the references. The titles of papers and the first and last page numbers must be included for all references. Papers that have not been accepted for publication cannot be included in the list of references and must be cited in the text as ´unpublished data´ or ´personal communication´; the use of such citations is discouraged. Full titles of periodicals must be given.
Reference List
Book: Lezak MD (1983) ‘Neuropsychological assessment’, 2nd edn. (Oxford University Press: New York)
Book chapter: Heilman KM, Watson RT, Valenstein E (1985) Neglect and related disorders. In ‘Clinical neuropsychology’. (Eds KM Heilman, E Valenstein) pp. 243–293. 2nd ed. (Oxford University Press: New York)
Journal article: Tate RL, Broe GA (1999) Psychosocial adjustment after traumatic brain injury: what are the important variables? Psychological Medicine 29(03), 713–725. doi: 10.1017/S0033291799008466.
Published psychological or other test manual: Kertesz A (1982) ‘Western Aphasia Battery.’ (Grune & Stratton: New York)
Conference proceedings/paper (unpublished): Walsh KW (1986) Bridging the gaps in clinical neuropsychology: The applied scientist model [Paper presentation]. 21st Annual Conference of the Australian Psychological Society, 24–29 August 1986, James Cook University, Townsville, Qld., Australia.
Conference proceedings/paper (published): Morris RG, Pullen E, Kerr S, Bullock PR, Selway RP (2006). Exploration of social rule violation in patients with focal prefrontal neurosurgical lesions. In ‘Proceedings of the 6th International Conference on Disability, Virtual Reality and Associated Technologies’, Esbjerg, Denmark, 18–20 September 2006.
Thesis: Barr AC (2011) Prospective memory functioning after stroke: A research portfolio. Dissertation/Thesis), University of Edinburgh, UK. Retrieved from https://www.era.lib.ed.ac.uk/handle/1842/6049.
Tables
Reserve tables for important data directly related to the content of the paper. A well- constructed table should enable data to be isolated from the text and presented in a way that enables the reader to quickly see patterns and relationships of the data not readily discernible in the text. Use brief but explanatory table titles. The table title is placed at the top of the table. Include each table on a separate sheet. When constructing tables use tabs to space your columns as this will make it much easier to typeset the table in the text.
Editable tables should be prepared in Word using the 'Table' tool (not tabs), without any hard returns within cells, or can be set up in Excel. Number each table and refer to it in the text (Table 1, Table 2, etc.) in order of appearance. There is no need to add instructions on the placement of tables as long as each table is referred to in the text. Do not provide tables as images.
Table titles should be concise and clear and should fully explain the table. Use sentence case throughout the table. Supporting information relating to the whole table should be placed in the footnote. Any symbols, abbreviations or acronyms used in the table should also be defined in the footnote. Additional information relating to specific cells should be placed as table footnotes using superscript capital letters as identifiers. Symbols for units of measurement should be placed in parentheses beneath the column heading.
Keep tables as simple as possible, without excessive subdivision of column headings.
Figures
Figures should be supplied as separate files but the captions should be included in the main document (at the end). Refer to each figure in the text (Fig. 1, Fig. 2, etc.), and number each figure according to the order in which it appears in the text. There is no need to add instructions on placement of figures as long as each figure is referred to in the text. If your figure has multiple parts label with (a), (b), (c), etc. and place the labels in the top left of each image where possible. Figure parts can be supplied as separate images if needed. Please make sure all images are supplied are at highest possible resolution.
Format
Where possible, line diagrams (graphs, charts, etc.) should be provided as editable files and prepared using either a graphics or chart/graph program such as MacDraw, Illustrator, CorelDraw, Excel, Sigmaplot, Harvard Graphics or Cricket Graph and files should be saved in one of the following formats: encapsulated PostScript (EPS), Illustrator or Excel (provided the Excel files have been saved with the chart encapsulated in it). The submission of scanned images or illustrations prepared in a paint program, e.g. Photoshop (and PICT and JPEG files) is discouraged, because of the difficulty in making editorial corrections to these files. If illustrations must be created in a paint program, save the file as a TIFF or EPS (these files should be 600 dpi for line drawings and 300 dpi for halftone figures). Photographs can be supplied in the highest resolution possible.
Fonts
Please prepare figures using a standard sans serif font. Arial preferred. Font sizes for main axis labels, part labels should not be more than 8pt. Legends and data points should be 7pt font size where possible. Font should never be smaller than 5pt to ensure readability.
Style
- Use sentence case for text within figures
- Use Australian English spelling (ise, not ize, etc.) throughout
- Use 'and' not '&'
- For ranges in numbers (5–10) or minus signs (–20) please use an en rule rather than a hyphen as this is clearer for the reader.
Graphs
Should be prepared with one main x and y axis line. Grid lines are not required. Line weight of x- and y-axes should be ~1.0 (not below 0.7). State on the axes of a graph what is being measured and give the appropriate units in parentheses. Ensure any symbols/colours used are explained in a legend on the figure, or in the caption. Ensure numbers on axes have the same number of decimal places.
Photographs
Ensure that permission has been gained by the copyright holder of the photograph and include a photographer credit in your caption. If your photograph contains people, please ensure that they have provided permission for their image to be published.
Captions
Captions should be concise and clear and should fully explain the figure. Explain any symbols or abbreviations used in the caption of the figure, or in a legend. If your figure has multiple parts, ensure each part is explained in the caption. If your figure is a photograph, ensure the photographer is credited in the caption.
If your figure files are too large for upload to ScholarOne please ensure you let CSIRO Publishing know as soon as your paper is accepted and an alternative transfer will be arranged. Note: Figures used in the final paper will be based on what is provided – if the quality is low in the original, it will remain low in the final publication.
Authors are responsible for obtaining prior permission from the copyright holder for the use of figures/images from other publications. Authors may be charged a fee by the copyright holder for such reuse.
Guidelines for Data Analysis and Presentation
Effective data analysis seeks to summarise and clarify results, enhancing the objectivity with which they are presented and interpreted. If an analysis fails to achieve this, it is probably unsuitable. No matter what analysis is used, the reader must be provided with enough information to independently assess whether the method is appropriate. Therefore, assumptions and models underlying unusual statistical analyses must be clearly stated, usually with supporting references. Even when conventional parametric statistics are used, the reader must be assured that the data satisfied assumptions of normality as well as other specific requirements (e.g. homogeneity of variances). Bayesian and other non-frequentist approaches are welcomed but their application and assumptions must be explained and justified in sufficient detail.
Describing data. Full details of sampling, survey and experimental designs, protocols for collecting data (with references where appropriate), precision of measurements, sampling or experimental units, and sample sizes must be given. Typically, reported values should include the sample size and some measure of precision (e.g. standard errors or specified confidence intervals) of estimates. Presenting data as graphs is invaluable, helping demonstrate trends and illustrate where data might violate statistical assumptions. Tables are useful when specific values are to be presented or the data do not lend themselves readily to graphical presentation. See recent issues of the Journal for examples of effective figures and tables.
Describing statistical analyses. The specific statistical procedure must be stated. If it is an unusual one, it should be explained in sufficient detail, including references where appropriate. All statistics packages used should be cited fully with their version number. Sometimes, it will be necessary to indicate which procedure, method or module within a package was used. If conclusions are based on an analysis of variance or regression, there must be sufficient information to enable the construction of the full analysis of variance table (at least, degrees of freedom, the structure of F-ratios, and P values). Indicate which effects were considered fixed or random and explain why. If data are to be pooled or omitted, this should be fully justified.
Actual p values are far more informative than ´p < 0.05´ or symbols such as ´*´. However, statistical significance should not be confused with effect size and biological importance. Power analyses (i.e. determination of Type II error rates) may be useful, especially if used in conjunction with descriptive procedures like confidence intervals.
Units, Nomenclature and Formulae
Use S.I. units for all measurements unless there are valid reasons for not doing so - these will need full explanation. Avoid ambiguous forms of expression such as mL/m2/day.
Mathematical formulae. Mathematical formulae should be presented with symbols in correct alignment and adequately spaced. Equations should not be embedded images; use equation editors that result in an editable format. Each formula should be displayed on a single line if possible. During the final proof stage, the author(s) must check formulae very carefully.
Enzyme nomenclature. The names of enzymes should conform to the Recommendations of the Nomenclature Committee of the IUB on the Nomenclature and Classification of Enzymes as published in ´Enzyme Nomenclature 1984´ (Academic Press, Inc., New York, 1984). If there is good reason to use a name other than the recommended one, at the first mention of the alternative name in the text it should be identified by the recommended name and EC number. The Editor should be advised of the reasons for using the alternative name.
Chemical nomenclature. The names of compounds such as amino acids, carbohydrates, lipids, steroids, and vitamins should follow the recommendations of the IUPAC-IUB Commission on Biochemical Nomenclature. Other biologically active compounds, such as metabolic inhibitors, plant growth regulators, and buffers should be referred to once by their correct chemical name (in accordance with IUPAC rules of Chemical Nomenclature) and then by their most widely accepted common name. Where there is no common name, trade names or letter abbreviations of the chemical may be used.
DNA data. DNA sequences published in the Journal should be deposited in one of the following nucleotide sequence databases: EMBL, GenBank or DDBJ. An accession number for each sequence or sequence set must be included in the manuscript before publication. In addition, electronic copies of the data sets in nexus format should be supplied with the manuscript to aid the review process.
Animal Experimentation
Researchers must have proper regard for conservation and animal welfare issues. Possible adverse consequences of the work for populations or individual organisms must be weighed up against the possible gains in knowledge and practical applications. Papers reporting work with animals should include a reference to the code of practice adopted for the reported experimentation. Editors should ensure that peer reviewers consider ethical and welfare issues raised by the research they are reviewing, and to request additional information from authors where needed. In situations where there is doubt as to the adherence to appropriate procedures or approval by the relevant ethics committee, editors are required to reject these papers.
CSIRO Publishing also follows guidelines provided by the CSIRO Animal Ethics committee.
How to Submit Manuscripts
To submit your paper, please use our online journal management system ScholarOne Manuscripts, which can be reached directly through this link or from the link on the journal´s homepage.
In addition to manuscript files, authors are requested to upload a summary text file for the online Table of Contents. Submission of an image file is optional, but encouraged. The short summary should also be included in the main Word file.
The short summary is a three-sentence paragraph of 50 to 80 words written for interested non-experts, such as journalists, teachers, government workers, etc. The text should be free from scientific jargon, and written at the level of an article in a science magazine. Your first sentence should engage the reader, convincing them that this is an important area. The second sentence should introduce the problem addressed in the paper, and state your main discovery. The final sentence should describe how the results fit into the bigger picture (i.e. implications or impact of the discovery).
If you encounter any difficulties, or you have any queries, please contact the Editors-in-Chief:
Jennifer Fleming (j.fleming@uq.edu.au) or
Grahame Simpson (Grahame.Simpson@sswahs.nsw.gov.au)
Authors are strongly advised to follow the above instructions. Following them closely will shorten the time between submission and publication and reduces the workload for reviewers. Poorly prepared and unnecessarily lengthy manuscripts have less chance of being accepted or will require laborious revision.
Resubmission of manuscripts revised in response to reviewers´ comments should occur within 30 days for minor revisions and 60 days for major revisions, and be accompanied by a detailed point-by-point explanation of how each comment has been addressed. Unless prior arrangements are made with the Editor, revised manuscripts received after 3 months will usually be treated as new submissions.
Supplementary Material
Supplementary material of a detailed nature that may be useful to other workers, but which is not essential to the published paper, should be submitted with the manuscript for inspection during peer review. Such material will be published online as Supplementary Material in association with the published paper and made available free to all users.
Supplementary materials will not be typeset or copyedited, so should be supplied exactly as they are to appear online.
Proofs and Reprints
Page proofs are sent to the corresponding author for checking before publication. Proofs should be checked and returned by email to the Production Editor within 48hr of receipt. At this stage, only essential alterations and correction of typesetting errors may be undertaken. Excessive author alterations will be charged to the author.
Reprint order forms and prices are enclosed with the proofs and should be completed and returned to the Production Editor with the proofs. Corresponding authors will be sent a free PDF of their paper on publication. There are no page charges.
