Submissions

Author Guidelines

1. Aims and Scope of the Journal

Zeitgeist is a peer-reviewed, open-access academic journal published by Bahona College, Jorhat, Assam. It is devoted to promoting rigorous, critical, and socially engaged scholarship in the fields of humanities and social sciences. The journal provides a platform for original research that interrogates disciplinary boundaries, engages with decolonial and intersectional epistemologies, and contributes to contemporary debates of regional and global significance.

While the journal has a strong regional anchoring in Northeast India, its thematic and methodological reach is global. Submissions are particularly encouraged from underrepresented regions, communities, and traditions of thought that challenge dominant epistemic paradigms and seek to transform the academy’s role in society.

2. Types of Contributions Accepted

The journal accepts the following categories of submissions:

a) Research Articles (5,000–7,000 words)

These are expected to be original research contributions offering new insights, empirical evidence, or theoretical arguments. Submissions must clearly state the research problem, engage with relevant scholarly debates, outline the methodology employed, present findings or arguments in a coherent manner, and conclude with implications or recommendations.

b) Review Essays (4,000–6,000 words)

These essays provide critical engagements with scholarly literature or conceptual developments in a particular field. They must go beyond summary to offer analytical synthesis, critique, comparative framing, or propose new directions in the literature.

c) Thematic Commentaries (2,500–3,500 words)

These short articles offer timely reflections on political, social, cultural, or academic developments. They must be theoretically informed, well-referenced, and grounded in relevant scholarly or empirical contexts.

d) Interviews (Flexible length; prior approval required)

Zeitgeist publishes interviews with scholars, activists, writers, and public intellectuals whose work contributes to the journal's thematic focus. All interviews must be accompanied by a contextualising introduction and must be edited for coherence, accuracy, and consent.

e) Book Reviews (1,000–1,500 words)

Reviews should critically assess academic books published in the past three years. The review must position the book within its field, evaluate its contributions and limitations, and avoid mere summarisation.

All word counts mentioned include the main text, endnotes, references, tables, and figures.

3. Submission Process

All manuscripts must be submitted via email to: zeitgeistjournal.bahona@gmail.com. The subject line must follow this format: “Zeitgeist Submission – [Author’s Full Name] – [Submission Type]”.

Each submission must include the following documents as attachments:

1. The anonymised main manuscript file in .docx (Microsoft Word) format.

2. A separate Title Page containing:

a). Full names of all authors

b). Institutional affiliations and current designations

c). ORCID iDs (strongly recommended)

d). Email and phone number of the corresponding author

1. A scanned and signed copy of the Author Declaration and Compliance Form. Digital signatures are permitted.

Manuscripts that do not include all required components will be considered incomplete and will not be processed for review.

Each manuscript submitted to the journal shall list NO MORE THAN THREE (3) AUTHORS. Submissions exceeding this limit will not be considered for review

4. Language and Style Requirements

All manuscripts must be written in formal, academic British English. Submissions containing excessive grammatical errors, inconsistent usage, or informal tone will be returned for revision without peer review.

• Font: Times New Roman

• Font Size: 12-point

• Line Spacing: 1.5

• Margins: 1 inch (2.54 cm) on all sides

• Alignment: Justified

• Heading Hierarchy: Authors must use consistent formatting for headings (e.g., Heading 1, Heading 2, Heading 3)

• Pagination: All pages must be numbered consecutively in the footer

Avoid colloquial expressions, contractions, and overly ornamental language. The tone should reflect precision, clarity, and intellectual engagement.

5. Abstract and Keywords

All manuscripts, except book reviews and interviews, must include an abstract and keywords.

The abstract should be between 300 and 350 words. It must succinctly state the research problem, theoretical approach, methodology, key findings, and significance of the work.

Include five to six keywords, listed alphabetically and separated by commas. These should not repeat the title but reflect the conceptual and thematic terrain of the submission.

The abstract serves as the primary basis for indexing and reviewer selection and should be written carefully and independently of the main text.

6. Citation and Referencing: APA 7th Edition Style Guide

Zeitgeist strictly follows the APA (American Psychological Association) 7th Edition referencing style. Submissions that do not adhere to APA will be returned for correction.

a) In-text Citation Rules

Use the author–date format for all in-text citations.

• One author: (Sen, 2020)

• Two authors: (Desai & Kumar, 2021)

• Three or more authors: (Roy et al., 2018)

Page numbers must be included when quoting: (Spivak, 1988, p. 274)

Narrative citation: Chakrabarty (2000) argues that…

b) Reference List Format

The reference list must be arranged in alphabetical order, with a hanging indent format.

• Books Spivak, G. C. (1988). In other worlds: Essays in cultural politics. Routledge.

• Edited Books Thapar, R. (Ed.). (2003). Cultural pasts: Essays in early Indian history. Oxford University Press.

• Book Chapters Guha, R. (1997). Subaltern studies: Project and critique. In A. Ludden (Ed.), Reading subaltern studies (pp. 3–44). Permanent Black.

• Journal Articles Chatterjee, P. (1993). The nation and its fragments. Modern Asian Studies, 27(3), 263–288. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0026749X00011123

• Web Sources Klein, N. (2007). The shock doctrine: The rise of disaster capitalism. https://www.naomiklein.org/shock-doctrine

c) Additional Notes

• Only capitalise the first word of a title/subtitle and any proper nouns.

• Do not italicise article titles; only italicise journal names and book titles.

• All cited works must appear in the reference list and vice versa.

• Use endnotes sparingly for explanatory purposes only—not for citations.

7. Peer Review and Anonymisation Protocol

All submissions undergo a double-blind peer review. Authors must ensure:

• The manuscript is fully anonymised, with no author names, affiliations, acknowledgements, or self-identifying citations.

• Citations of the author’s previous work must be anonymised in-text as (Author, Year) and listed as “Author” in the bibliography.

• A separate file (the title page) must contain all author details and declarations.

Failure to comply will lead to immediate desk rejection.

8. Use of Tables, Figures, and Images

All visual material must be embedded within the main text at appropriate points and:

• Numbered sequentially (e.g., Table 1, Figure 2)

• Accompanied by a clear caption and source attribution

• Submitted separately as high-resolution files (minimum 300 DPI) in JPEG or PNG format, where applicable

• Include alt text descriptions for all figures (for accessibility)

Authors must obtain written permission for the use of any copyrighted material and submit proof.

9. Research Ethics and Institutional Compliance

All research must comply with institutional, national, and international ethical standards. Authors must:

• Disclose whether the research involved human participants, sensitive data, or vulnerable populations

• Provide evidence of Ethical Review Board (ERB)/IRB approval, including protocol/reference number, in both manuscript and Declaration Form

• Ensure that informed consent was obtained and documented

• Avoid deception, coercion, or unauthorised data gathering

The editorial board reserves the right to request documentation of ethical approval at any stage.

10. Plagiarism, Data Integrity, and Research Misconduct

Zeitgeist maintains a zero-tolerance policy toward plagiarism and academic fraud. All submissions are scanned using anti-plagiarism software.

Any of the following will result in immediate rejection, retraction, and institutional reporting:

• Plagiarised text (even unintentionally)

• Fabricated or falsified data

• Improper reuse of previously published work without disclosure (“self-plagiarism”)

Authors must also ensure that:

• All data used is verifiable and retained for audit, if requested

• Datasets not included in the manuscript are accessible via repositories or supplementary files

11. Authorship Policy

All named authors must satisfy the four ICMJE authorship criteria:

1. Substantial contribution to conception, design, data, or analysis

2. Drafting or critical revision of the manuscript

3. Final approval of the version submitted

4. Accountability for the integrity of the entire work

The following are not acceptable:

• Guest, ghost, or honorary authorship

• Post-submission additions or deletions without written consent from all authors

All authors must sign the Author Declaration Form.

12. Conflicts of Interest and Funding Disclosure

Authors must disclose any potential conflict of interest—financial, institutional, professional, or personal—that may affect the interpretation of results.

A Funding Statement must accompany all submissions that received financial support, including grants, institutional assistance, or third-party consultancy.

13. Use of Artificial Intelligence Tools

If any AI tools (e.g., ChatGPT, Grammarly, Midjourney) were used:

• Their use must be clearly disclosed under a section titled “Author Note on AI Use”

• Authors must specify how the tool was used (e.g., language editing, figure generation)

• AI tools cannot be listed as authors

• Final responsibility for all content lies solely with human contributors

Failure to disclose AI usage will be considered a breach of publication ethics.

14. Copyright, Licensing, and Article Processing Charges (APC)

Upon acceptance, all articles will be published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.

• Authors retain copyright

• Zeitgeist retains the non-exclusive right to distribute and archive the work

• An Article Processing Charge (APC) of INR 500 is payable after final acceptance. This is a one-time, non-refundable fee to support open-access infrastructure

No fees are charged for submission, peer review, or access.

15. Editorial Decisions and Appeals

All editorial decisions are based on peer review, originality, relevance, and compliance.

• Review outcomes: Accept, Minor Revision, Major Revision, or Reject

• Authors will receive detailed reviewer comments and editorial instructions

• Revised submissions must be accompanied by a point-wise response note

• Appeals must be made in writing and will be reviewed by an external advisory member in accordance with COPE principles

16. Final Compliance

Submissions that fail to comply with these guidelines in full will not be considered for peer review.

All authors must submit a completed and signed Author Declaration and Compliance Form, available on the official website or upon request.

All communication must be addressed to: zeitgeistjournal.bahona@gmail.com