Manuscript Preparation Guidelines
Manuscripts submitted to the Burdur Mehmet Akif Ersoy University Journal of Sports Sciences must be prepared in accordance with the journal’s official article template, author guidelines, ethical principles, and publication policies. Manuscripts that do not comply with the journal template or formatting requirements may be returned to the authors before peer review.
The journal applies a double-blind peer-review process. Therefore, the initial manuscript file must be anonymised. Author names, institutional affiliations, ORCID IDs, acknowledgements, project information, funding details that may reveal identity, and any other identifying information must not be included in the anonymised manuscript file during initial submission.
Author-related information is added only after the manuscript has been accepted for publication.
Language
The journal publishes manuscripts in English. Manuscripts must include an English title, abstract, and keywords. Turkish title and abstract may be provided optionally where applicable.
Authors are responsible for ensuring that the manuscript is written in clear, coherent, and academically appropriate English.
General Structure of the Manuscript
Manuscripts should be prepared according to the following structure:
- Article type
- Title
- Abstract
- Keywords
- Highlights
- Main text
- Declarations
- References
- Appendices, if applicable
After acceptance, the final publication version must also include author names, institutional affiliations, ORCID IDs, corresponding author information, article information, author contributions, and other required publication metadata.
Article Type
The article type should be clearly indicated in the manuscript. The journal publishes original research articles, review articles, systematic reviews, meta-analyses, bibliometric studies, methodological papers, and theoretically grounded qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-methods studies.
Title
The manuscript title should be clear, concise, informative, and consistent with the content of the study. The title should reflect the main topic, method, population, or conceptual focus of the manuscript where appropriate.
During initial submission, the title page must not include author names or affiliations.
Author Information
Author information must not be included in the anonymised manuscript file submitted for peer review.
After acceptance, the final version of the manuscript must include:
- Author name(s)
- Institutional affiliation(s)
- ORCID ID(s)
- Corresponding author information
- E-mail address of the corresponding author
- Institutional address where appropriate
Article Information Box
In the final publication version, the article information section should include:
- Article type
- Subject area
- Submission date
- Acceptance date
- DOI
- License information
These details are added or finalised during the publication preparation stage.
Abstract
The abstract should clearly and concisely present the purpose, methodology, study group or data source, data collection process, data analysis techniques, main findings, and conclusion of the study.
The abstract must not exceed 250 words.
No citations, tables, figures, or undefined abbreviations should be included in the abstract.
Keywords
Authors should provide 3–6 keywords that accurately represent the content of the manuscript. Keywords should be written in English and separated by semicolons.
Keywords should be specific, searchable, and consistent with the main concepts of the study.
Highlights
Each manuscript should include a short Highlights section consisting of 3 bullet points.
Highlights should briefly present the main contribution, methodological focus, and key findings or implications of the study. Each bullet point should be clear, concise, and informative.
Main Text
The main text should be structured according to the type and methodological design of the manuscript. Original research articles should generally include the following sections:
- Introduction
- Materials and Methods
- Results / Findings
- Discussion
- Conclusion
Where appropriate, Results and Discussion may be combined, particularly in review, bibliometric, or conceptual studies.
Introduction
The Introduction section should clearly present the research problem, scientific background, theoretical framework, and rationale of the study.
Merely providing definitions related to the topic is insufficient. The introduction should demonstrate conceptual coherence, logical flow, and critical engagement with the relevant literature.
The research gap, purpose of the study, research questions or hypotheses, and theoretical or practical contribution should be clearly stated.
Materials and Methods
The Materials and Methods section should provide sufficient detail to allow readers to understand and evaluate the scientific rigor, transparency, and reproducibility of the study.
Depending on the research design, this section may include the following subheadings:
- Research model or design
- Population and sample / study group / participants
- Data sources
- Data collection tools or instruments
- Data collection procedure
- Data analysis
- Validity, reliability, or trustworthiness
- Ethical approval and informed consent
For quantitative studies, the sampling method, sample size, statistical analyses, software used, significance level, and relevant assumptions should be clearly reported.
For qualitative studies, the research design, participant selection, data collection process, analysis procedure, coding process, researcher reflexivity, and trustworthiness strategies should be explained.
For bibliometric, systematic review, and meta-analysis studies, the databases searched, search strategy, inclusion and exclusion criteria, screening process, data extraction, and analysis tools should be clearly reported.
Results / Findings
Results should be presented clearly, systematically, and in alignment with the research questions, hypotheses, or study objectives.
Tables and figures should be placed within the flow of the text and referred to appropriately.
Findings should be reported objectively. Detailed interpretation should be reserved for the Discussion section unless Results and Discussion are combined.
Discussion
The Discussion section should interpret the findings in relation to the existing literature, theoretical framework, and research objectives.
Authors should explain how the findings support, extend, or differ from previous studies. Theoretical, methodological, practical, and policy implications should be discussed where appropriate.
The discussion should not merely repeat the results; it should provide critical interpretation and scholarly contribution.
Conclusion
The Conclusion section should provide a concise summary of the main findings and their significance. Conclusions must be directly supported by the findings and should not be overstated.
Where appropriate, authors should include limitations of the study and recommendations for future research, policy, or practice.
Declarations
Each manuscript must include a Declarations section before the References. The Declarations section should include the following items where applicable:
| Item | Statement |
|---|---|
| Ethics Approval | Name of ethics committee, approval date, approval number, or “Not applicable” |
| Informed Consent | Statement indicating whether informed consent was obtained, or “Not applicable” |
| Conflict of Interest | Declaration of any conflict of interest, or “The author(s) declare no conflict of interest” |
| Funding | Funding details, or “This study received no funding” |
| Data Availability | Data availability statement or reason for restriction |
| AI Tools Declaration | Statement indicating whether artificial intelligence tools were used |
For studies involving human participants, animals, personal data, surveys, interviews, observations, experiments, or intervention procedures, ethical approval and informed consent statements must be provided where applicable.
Author Contributions
Author contribution information is required for accepted manuscripts and must be included in the final publication version. Each author’s contribution should be clearly indicated.
The contribution categories may include:
- Study design
- Data collection
- Data analysis
- Manuscript writing
- Critical revision
Author contribution statements should reflect actual scholarly contributions and must comply with ethical authorship principles.
Tables
Tables must be placed within the flow of the text and referred to in the manuscript.
Each table should include a table number and a clear, concise title. Table titles should appear above the table in accordance with the journal template.
Tables should be editable and should not be inserted as images. Font size may be adjusted according to content, generally between 9 and 10 pt. Tables should be clear, readable, and formatted consistently throughout the manuscript.
Table notes and explanations may be placed below the table where necessary.
Figures and Graphics
Figures, graphics, diagrams, maps, and visual materials must be embedded within the text and referred to in the manuscript.
Each figure should include a figure number and a concise title or caption. Figure captions should be presented in accordance with the journal template.
Figures must be clear, high quality, and readable. Authors are responsible for obtaining permission for copyrighted figures, images, or visual materials where required.
References
References and in-text citations must be prepared according to APA 7th Edition guidelines.
All sources cited in the text must appear in the reference list, and all references listed must be cited in the text.
Authors are responsible for ensuring the accuracy, accessibility, and authenticity of all references. Fabricated, unverifiable, or non-existent references are considered a violation of publication ethics.
DOI links should be provided where available.
Appendices
Appendices may be included when necessary, such as measurement tools, interview forms, supplementary tables, coding frameworks, or additional methodological materials.
Appendices should be clearly labelled and referred to in the text where appropriate.
Initial Submission File
During initial submission, the manuscript must be uploaded anonymously. The anonymised manuscript file must not include:
- Author names
- Institutional affiliations
- ORCID IDs
- Corresponding author information
- Acknowledgements
- Project or funding details that reveal identity
- Any statement that may directly identify the author(s)
Author information, contribution statements, acknowledgements, and other identifying details should be submitted separately where required and added to the final version after acceptance.
Final Publication Version
After acceptance, authors must submit the final version of the manuscript in accordance with the journal template. The final version must include complete author information, affiliations, ORCID IDs, corresponding author details, article information, author contributions, declarations, and all required publication metadata.
Final Note
Authors are strongly advised to review the journal’s official article template, Open Access Policy, Peer Review Policy, Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement, Plagiarism Policy, Copyright and Licensing Policy, Editorial Independence and Conflict of Interest Policy, and Statement on the Use of Artificial Intelligence before submission.