We are currently on OMP 3.2, but this issue is unchanged since running 3.1x.
Our workflow uses the “Review” stage not only for external reviewers, but also for reviews of book proposals by members of the editorial board. There are therefore cases in which the same user may be a reviewer and an editor.
The trouble is that, just as (when a user has multiple roles) the Dashboard defaults to entering the submission in the “Author” or “Reviewer” role and requires a special link to be clicked to enter in the “Editor” role, the email template is populating notifications to the editor in her capacity as a reviewer, rather than as an editor. Thus, when, after the reviews are done, another editor tags her in a copyediting discussion, the notification email sends her a link to the page that confirms that her review has been submitted. To see the message on the copyediting discussion board, she has to go out to the Submissions panel, go to the submission using the “Editor” role link, and then navigate to the discussion board.
Is there a way to change this so that the system treats her by default as an editor instead of a reviewer? (Or perhaps another solution to this problem that we haven’t considered?)
Thank you!
Hi @racemochridhe,
I think what you’re running into here is OJS’s attempt to permit users who are generally privileged (editors/managers) to occasionally behave as unprivileged users (authors/reviewers) without “spilling the beans” e.g. by identifying authors to a reviewer in an anonymous review, or vice versa.
Have you considered either of the following treatments for decisions about proposals, rather than the peer review toolset?
- Use the Discussions tool on the submission stage
- Assign your editorial board to the submission, but with the assignments designated as “Recommend Only”
Regards,
Alec Smecher
Public Knowledge Project Team
@asmecher, thank you for the prompt response! The privilege distinction makes good sense and overall works very well in OMP. The only time it creates trouble for us is in this case, where a distinction that made sense in one stage (review) is carried over into a following stage where it is no longer needed (copyediting) and creates unnecessary hurdles for the editor in accessing the submission (most notably by rendering the link in the discussion board notifications functionally useless).
I tried going back and editing that editor’s assignment in the review stage to “Recommend only,” but when I sent a test message to her on the discussion board in the copyediting stage, she still received the same email link directing her to the review submission confirmation instead of the copyediting discussion. Is there an aspect to that solution I am missing? It would be less disruptive to our workflow to be able to resolve the problem that way rather than conducting internal review entirely by discussion board.
Hi @racemochridhe,
Sorry, yes, OMP – though both OJS and OMP behave the same way in this regard.
The distinction kicks in when there’s a review assignment. When there’s a review assignment in place, OJS will divert navigation to the normal editor’s view to the reviewer’s view instead. I’d suggest experimenting with one of the options I suggested on a submission that doesn’t have anyone assigned as a reviewer (yet) to see if either of those workflows would suffice.
Thanks,
Alec Smecher
Public Knowledge Project Team