Publish a Registered Report for an Early Peer Review of Your Proposed Research

What are Registered Reports?

Registered Reports enable you to increase the transparency of your published research by pre-registering your work and have your proposed methods and analyses reviewed, prior to conducting the actual research. This means that a significant part of your manuscript will be peer-reviewed before the data collection is complete – with the highest quality submissions accepted in advance.

Initial submissions will include a description of the key research question and background literature, hypotheses, experimental procedures, analysis pipeline, a statistical power analysis (or Bayesian equivalent), and pilot data (where applicable).

This early feedback will result in an editorial decision to publish based on the quality of your work and the importance of your research, instead of just the outcome. This enables you to:

• plan more effectively and improve the design of your study before undertaking stages, such as writing the hypotheses, defining the variables, and creating statistical tests
• use the feedback to improve your work before finally submitting to publish
• gain recognition for your work, not just the final published article as the decision to publish is based on the quality of your work and the importance of the research question

Seven Easy Steps to Publishing a Registered Report

1. Develop Idea

Submit your research question and study design, including your introduction, method, proposed analyses, and pilot data.



2. Editor Evaluation

The journal's editorial team sends suitable submissions for peer review.



3. Stage 1 Peer Review

Peer review of your research plan focusing on the importance of the research questions and the ability of the proposed methods to answer those questions.



4. In Principle Acceptance

Your article will be accepted in principle for publication or rejection. This is a commitment from the journal to publish your article, provided that you follow the methodology outlined in the study design.



5. Write Report

Conduct your study. Undertake your research according to the methodology outlined in the study design.



6. Stage 2 Peer Review

Submit your article for re-review. Peer review assesses whether the study matches the approved research plan, and draws appropriate conclusions.



7. Publish Report

Successful publication of your final manuscript.

A number of Wiley journals are now accepting Registered Reports.

Select journal...Alimentary Pharmacology & TherapeuticsAnalyses of Social Issues and Public PolicyApplied Cognitive PsychologyAustralian and New Zealand Journal of Obstetrics and GynaecologyBrain and BehaviorBritish Journal of Clinical PsychologyBritish Journal of Developmental PsychologyBritish Journal of Educational PsychologyBritish Journal of Educational TechnologyBritish Journal of Health PsychologyBritish Journal of Mathematical and Statistical PsychologyBritish Journal of PsychologyBritish Journal of Social PsychologyCancer MedicineCancer ReportsChild Development Clinical EndocrinologyClinical Otolaryngology Conservation BiologyDevelopmental ScienceEcology and EvolutionEndocrinology, Diabetes & MetabolismEquine Veterinary JournalEuropean Journal of Cancer CareEuropean Journal of NeuroscienceExperimental Physiology Human Behavior and Emerging TechnologiesImmunity, Inflammation and DiseaseInfancyInfant and Child Development: prenatal, childhood, adolescence, emerging adulthoodInternational Journal of Eating DisordersInternational Journal of Selection and AssessmentJournal of Accounting ResearchJournal of Clinical NursingJournal of Computer Assisted LearningJournal of NeuropsychologyJournal of Neuroscience ResearchJournal of Occupational and Organizational PsychologyJournal of Organizational BehaviorJournal of PersonalityJournal of Plant Nutrition and Soil ScienceJournal of Research in ReadingLanguage LearningLegal and Criminological PsychologyLifestyle MedicineMind, Brain, and EducationNeuropsychopharmacology Reports Paediatric and Neonatal PainPlant DirectPsycho OncologyPsychology and MarketingPsychology and Psychotherapy: Theory, Research and PracticeStress and Health

How does it work?

Registered Reports Process

During the Registered Reports process, Peer Review of your work is broken into two stages conducted at set points during the publication process.

Stage 1 Peer Review: this initial stage gives you "in principle acceptance" for your final paper before you begin the study. That in principle acceptance is based on peer review of the study methods, to assess the importance of the research question being asked and the quality of the methods chosen to address that research question. In principle acceptance is typically contingent on sufficient study power and quality control measures that ensure that results are interpretable regardless of the primary outcome of the study.

Stage 2 Peer Review: checks that you are conducting the study according to the "registered" Stage 1 study design, checks that any deviations from that design are appropriate and explained, and checks that the results are reported completely and transparently.

Further information

Find out more about Wiley’s Registered Reports Policy for Stage 1 and Stage 2 peer review.

Read about why Registered Reports are a positive change for researchers and journals are described in our post: 8 Answers About Registered Reports, Research Preregistration, and Why Both Are Important.