About the Journal

Introduction and Focus

The Prospherus Scientific Journal (ISSN: 3091-177X) is a digital academic publication with multidisciplinary coverage and continuous periodicity, structured under the Continuous Quarterly Publication model. Editorial management strictly adheres to the principle of Open Access; consequently, the entirety of its scientific output is available free of charge, immediately and permanently, to any user or institution, without restrictions or embargo periods.

Under this framework, the international scientific community is authorized to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, and link to the full texts of the articles, as well as to use them for any other lawful and academic purpose. The journal's open policy aims to maximize the impact, visibility, and global exchange of scientific knowledge.

License and Copyright Transition Regime

Authors retain the intellectual property rights to their works without any restriction and grant the journal the right of first publication. In order to optimize indexing standards and expand the reuse of knowledge, the licensing policy adopts a temporary transition scheme:

  • Historical Editorial Archive and Current Cycle (Through 2026): Published research is distributed under the international Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0), allowing it to be downloaded and distributed with proper attribution to the authors, while limiting its alteration and commercial exploitation.
  • Upcoming Editorial Archive (From 2027 onward): In accordance with the advanced Open Science criteria set by international organizations, all manuscripts accepted for upcoming volumes will be published under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International license (CC BY-NC 4.0), authorizing the adaptation, remixing, and derivative construction of the material for non-commercial purposes.

Objective and Scope

Prospherus's primary objective is the dissemination of original, previously unpublished scientific contributions and research that demonstrate a high level of methodological quality. The publication seeks to establish itself as an active channel for the advancement of science and contemporary academic debate, projecting its reach at both the national and international levels.

Thematic Coverage

The journal is multidisciplinary in nature and evaluates manuscripts within the following fields of knowledge:

  • Education and Social Sciences: Pedagogical models, educational innovation, clinical psychology, social psychology, and political science.
  • Economics and Business: Business administration, economic policy, and regional development.
  • Health Sciences: Medical research, public health, and physical education.
  • Engineering and Technology: Computer science, chemical engineering, and industrial engineering.

Quality Control, Ethics, and Evaluation Process

Peer Review

Every manuscript received undergoes an initial relevance screening by the Editorial Committee. Works that meet the formal guidelines are forwarded to a system of external peer evaluation under the double-blind peer review modality, guaranteeing the anonymity of authors and reviewers. The methodological design, the soundness of the argumentation, and the currency of the bibliographic references are rigorously evaluated.

Ethical and Integrity Commitment

Prospherus rigorously aligns itself with international ethical standards, including the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki and the Recommendations of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE). Research involving human beings or animals must mandatorily include a statement of Informed Consent and formal approval from a certified Research Ethics Committee.

Target Audience

The journal is aimed at researchers, academics, specialists, and graduate students interested in the specific dynamics and findings of the thematic areas covered by the publication.

Publication Frequency and Manuscript Submission

The journal operates under a continuous publication model, formally organizing its content into one annual volume divided into four quarterly issues:

  • Issue 1: January - March period (published in early January).
  • Issue 2: April - June period (published in early April).
  • Issue 3: July - September period (published in early July).
  • Issue 4: October - December period (published in early October).

The call for manuscript submissions remains permanently open throughout the year. Authors may submit their work at any time through the OJS platform.

Fee Exemption Policy (APC-Free)

Thanks to the financing and institutional support of Edúcate Ecuador, the Prospherus Scientific Journal operates under a model of absolute gratuity for authors. The publication does not apply any Article Processing Charges (APCs). The entire process, which covers reception, scientific evaluation, style correction, layout, and indexing, does not generate any financial cost for researchers.

Digital Interoperability and Preservation

In order to guarantee maximum visibility in global repositories, the platform implements the OAI-PMH (Open Archives Initiative Protocol for Metadata Harvesting). This enables automated metadata transfer and interoperability with international indexing systems and scientific documentation networks.

The website's technological infrastructure is built on Open Journal Systems (OJS), an open-source platform developed by the Public Knowledge Project (PKP). Prospherus has an active integration with the PKP Preservation Network (PKP PN), which uses the LOCKSS (Lots of Copies Keep Stuff Safe) program to create decentralized, permanent archives. This system ensures the perpetual preservation of the original content, its automated restoration in the event of technical contingencies, and its secure distribution across international university library networks.

Indexing and Information Systems

The journal's quality and regulatory compliance progressively support its presence in scientific visibility information systems, directories, and databases, such as Latindex, Dialnet, Google Scholar, Crossref, the ISSN Portal, Scilit, and Semantic Scholar, among other academic documentation environments.

Disclaimer

The Prospherus Scientific Journal assumes no legal liability for any judicial or extrajudicial claim arising from copyright infringement related to the works it publishes. Responsibility for the originality of the texts, the rigor of the data presented, and the securing of the corresponding permissions to reproduce material protected by third-party rights rests exclusively and non-transferably with the signing authors.