Aims and scope

Sri Lanka Journal of Multidisciplinary Research (SLJMR) is published by the Eastern University, Sri Lanka. It is a refereed journal that publishes original articles, reviews, and short communications relating to any field of study. The journal is multidisciplinary, innovative and international in its approach.

General

Submission of a manuscript to the Editor-in-Chief involves the assurance that it is original and that no similar paper, other than an abstract or an oral or poster presentation, has been or will be submitted for publication elsewhere without the consent of the Editorial Board. The language of publication is English. Papers are edited to increase clarity and ease of communication.

Manuscript preparation

• The maximum length of contribution is 5000 words, including figures, tables and references. The papers should be written clearly and concisely.
• Manuscripts should be typed in double line spacing in Times New Roman 12-point size on A4 page with 2.5 cm margin.
• Although a rigid format is not insisted upon, it is usually convenient to divide the papers into sections such as Title, Abstract, Keywords, Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results and Discussion, Conclusions, Acknowledgements, References, Tables and Figures.

Title page

• Title informative and not more than 30 words
• Authors listed
• Addresses at which the work was carried out after all the names
• The present addresses of the authors, if different from the above, should appear in a footnote
• Corresponding author’s name and email address
• Running title not exceeding 45 characters

Abstract

• Indicate why and how the work was done, the results and conclusions
• 250 words or less

Keywords

• Maximum five words
• Avoid choosing keywords from the Title
• They should be in alphabetical order and separated by commas

Introduction

• Describe clearly the current state of work in the relevant field
• Describe the reasons for carrying out the experiments
• Give a clear statement of the objectives and hypotheses being tested

Materials and methods

• Sufficient information must be given in this section to allow the reader to understand the experimental design and statistical

Results and discussion

• It should be combined to avoid repetition
• Make use of tables and figures where necessary and without duplication
• Focus on the work presented and its relationship with other relevant published work

Conclusions

• State the most important outcome of your work
• Do not simply summarize the points already made in the body, instead, interpret your findings at a higher level of abstraction

Acknowledgements

• Sources of funding should be listed
• All contributors who do not meet the criteria for authorship should be listed (e.g., technical help, data analysis, writing assistance or general support)

Headings

• Heading of major sections should be centered and in bold
• Subheadings should be in bold and placed on the left of the page
• Please use no more than three levels of displayed headings

Page and line numbers

• Each page of the manuscript should be numbered at the bottom centre of the page
• Continuous line numbers must be used throughout

Abbreviations

• Abbreviations should be defined at first mention and used consistently thereafter

Scientific style

• Système International (SI) units are preferred
• Genus and species names should be in italics

References

In the text, cite by author and date; place multiple citations in author alphabetical order; if >1 citation for an author, then place these citations in chronological order (e.g., Hanson & Hill, 2012, 2014; Ruppel, 1991; Windels et al., 2004) In the References section, place in author alphabetical order Please use the examples below for style (‘Harvard style’) Journal article: Zadoks, J.C., Chang, T.T. & Konzak, C.F. (1974) A decimal code for the growth stages of cereals. Weeds Research, 14, 415–421.

Work fully accepted and in press:
Freer-Smith P.H. & Webber, J.F. (2016) Tree pests and diseases: the threat to biodiversity and the delivery of ecosystem services. Biodiversity and Conservation. doi: 10.1007/s10531-015-1019-0.

Book:
Campbell, C.L. & Madden, L.V. (1990) Introduction to Plant Disease Epidemiology. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons.

Book chapter:
Hall, R. & MacHardy, W.E. (1981) Water relations. In: Mace, M.E., Bell, A.A. & Beckman, C.H. (Eds.) Fungal Wilt Diseases of Plants. New York, NY: Academic Press, pp. 255–298.

Conference proceedings:
McIntosh, R.A. (1992) Catalogues of gene symbols for wheat. Proceedings of the Seventh International Wheat Genetics Symposium, Cambridge, UK. 13–19 July 1992. pp. 1225–1323.

Dissertation or thesis:
Lenné, J.M. (1978) Studies of the biology and taxonomy of Colletotrichum species. PhD thesis, Melbourne, University of Melbourne.

Online material:
Goudet J. (2001) FSTAT, a program to estimate and test gene diversities and fixation indices v. 2.9.3. Available at: http://www2.unil.ch/popgen/softwares/fstat.htm [Accessed 22 November 2022].

Tables

• Tables follow the literature cited section
• Each Table to be on a separate page
• Self-explanatory with an appropriate caption (title) without abbreviations
• Identify tables using a number, e.g. Table 2
• Mention tables in the text in numerical order (Table 1, then Table 2 etc)
• Use superscript lowercase letters for footnotes, e.g. a, b and c
• Vertical lines should not be used, and horizontal rules used only in the headings and at the bottom

Figures

• Figures should be presented following the Tables
• Each Figure to be on a separate page with the legend (title) below the figure.
• Identify figures using a number, e.g. Figure 2
• Mention figures in the text in numerical order (Figure 1, then Figure 2 etc)
• Subdivisions within figures should be labelled with lowercase letters, e.g. (a), (b) and (c)

Peer-review process

The review process is carried out in three stages. First, the Editor-in-Chief evaluates whether the paper meets the formal criteria and falls within the scope of the Journal and assigns the manuscript to a handling Editor, who evaluates the paper specifically and sends it to two experts for review according to his/her research expertise. The review process is a double-blind review. The final decision on acceptance is made by the Editor-in-Chief, considering the reviewers’ opinion, with the eventual help of other Editorial Board members, if necessary.

Proofs

Corrected proofs must be returned to the handling Editor without delay. Failure to do so will result in delay in publication.

Submission of manuscript

The manuscript should be submitted as a single file, including Main text, Tables and Figures. The electronic version of the manuscript and all correspondence should be sent to the E-mail address: sljmr@esn.ac.lk