Submission guidelines

Prototyping Across Disciplines is a peer-reviewed, trans-disciplinary journal that champions the artifact as a primary site of knowledge production. Reflecting the work of Ruecker and Roberts-Smith (2018) and the 2021 collection Prototyping across the Disciplines: Designing Better Futures, this journal provides a rigorous framework for situating design research alongside established academic disciplines.

The Prototype Edition Concept
The Prototype Edition is a finished scholarly object, not a proposal or preliminary report. Using the metaphor of a museum vitrine, this format frames the artifact so it can be examined, compared, and debated as a complete contribution. The goal is to make research conducted through prototyping directly publishable without the need for extended narrative prose.

The Eight-Page Structure
Submissions must adhere to a fixed eight-page count. This constraint ensures that the argument is bounded, legible, and reviewable through images and minimal text.

Page 1: The Cover Page (The Claim)
Function: Assert the primary epistemic move visually and succinctly, acting as a "map legend" for the reader.

Required Elements:

  • Title: Must describe the conceptual epistemic move, not just the application domain.
  • Hero Image: One dominant image of the prototype.
  • Six Contextual Thumbnails: Organized as two rows:
    • Row A: Three images representing relevant work by others in the field.
    • Row B: Three images representing the lab’s own prior trajectory or related work.
  • Metadata: Author names, affiliations, 3–5 keywords, and prototype category.

Pages 2–7: The Evidence Plates
Function: Make the argument inspectable through a sequence of "exhibit stations".

Requirements per Page:

  • One High-Resolution Image: Clear, uncropped, and high-fidelity.
  • Pointer Caption: 1–2 sentences that identify the salient epistemic feature. Captions must point, not explain or narrate process.
  • Navigation: A small thumbnail of the main prototype in the top corner to maintain reviewer focus.

Page 8: The Review (Post-Acceptance)
The final page of the published version is reserved for a structured peer review.

Reviewers evaluate the submission based on whether it is Contestable, Defensible, and Substantive.

Image Standards
Images are the primary argumentative substrate and must meet the following criteria:

  • Photographs: Should ideally show the prototype in use.
  • Screenshots: Must include enough context to be intelligible (avoid isolated UI fragments).
  • Integrity: Like data visualization, images must not distort claims through selective or misleading framing.

Authorship and Credit
We follow a "film credits" model rather than a traditional byline. All contributors whose intellectual or technical decisions materially shaped the prototype should be credited, including developers, fabricators, and collaborators.

Intended Audience

This open access publication serves a broad interdisciplinary audience interested in prototyping as a research method. Authors should keep this audience in mind while preparing their submissions. 

Format and Style Guidelines

We encourage submissions written in English using the active voice; for example, it is fine to use the first person when describing your study (“We interviewed ten participants” rather than “Interviews of ten participants were conducted”). 

Please try to avoid most abbreviations and disciplinary specific jargon. If you want to use an abbreviation, please write the phrase in full the first time, followed by the abbreviation in brackets. 

Formatting

  • 1.5 spaced, Arial, 10.5 pt.
  • Use italics instead of underlining (unless it’s a URL).
  • Include page numbers.
  • Use 2.5 cm page margins.
  • Indent paragraphs to 1.27 cm, using the paragraph function in Word, rather than the “tab” key.
  • Left-align all text.
  • Insert any images, charts, tables, or figures into the document where they would appear in the published version.
  • Use the latest style guidelines of your discipline (for example, APA, MLA, Chicago).

Technical Guidelines for Submission

All submissions should be anonymized to facilitate double-blind peer review, with the exception of invited papers. Please remove author names and references to specific institutions or programs for the peer review process. To ensure your manuscript is fully anonymized, please follow the instructions for "Ensuring a Blind Review" found on the OJS submission screen.

Please submit in WORD (.doc or .docx) or RTF format. We cannot accept PDF files.

Ethics

For any research involving human participants, you must provide confirmation of ethics board clearance within the body of the text. 

You must also declare any Conflicts of Interest.

You must be the author(s) of the submission; you must have approved the work for publication; you must take responsibility for the content of the submission; and you warrant that the submission does not contain libelous or unlawful statements or infringe on the rights or privacy of others or contain material or instructions that might cause harm or injury.

Authors are responsible for notifying editors and providing retractions or corrections of mistakes promptly.