Publish a Registered Report for an early peer review of your proposed research
What are Registered Reports?
Registered Reports enhance research transparency by allowing you to pre-register your study and have your proposed methods and analyses reviewed prior to conducting the actual research. This means that a significant part of your manuscript is peer-reviewed before data collection is complete – with the highest quality submissions accepted in advance. 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.
What to include in your initial submission:
Key research questions and background literature
Hypotheses
Experimental procedures
Analysis pipeline
Statistical power analysis (or Bayesian equivalent)
Pilot data (if applicable)
Benefits of Registered Reports
Improved Planning and Research Design: Get feedback to refine your study design before you begin writing the hypotheses, defining the variables, and creating statistical tests
Enhanced Quality: Use early feedback to strengthen your work before manuscript submission
Recognition: Gain recognition for your research based on its quality and significance, not just the final article
How to publish a Registered Report
Develop an idea
Submit your research question and study design, including your introduction, method, proposed analyses, and pilot data.
Editor evaluation
The journal's editorial team sends suitable submissions for peer review.
Peer review: stage 1
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.
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 you follow the methodology outlined in the study design.
Write your report
Conduct your study according to the methodology outlined in the study design.
Peer review: stage 2
Submit your article for re-review. Peer review assesses whether the study matches the approved research plan, and draws appropriate conclusions.
