About The Journal
Focus and Scope
ALPHA: Journal of Arts, Literature, and Philosophy is an open-access academic journal published by the Department of Humanities and Arts at the University of Los Lagos. Since its founding, its aim has been to promote and strengthen dialogue and the exchange of original research articles in literature, linguistics, and philosophy written in Spanish.
This scope of activity includes collaborations in the arts, cultural studies, critical theory, or topics that, while not exclusively belonging to any of these fields of knowledge, serve as a meeting point and provide a space to strengthen these areas of interest. It publishes research articles biannually in digital format; these articles undergo a double-blind peer-evaluation process and are free of charge for authors.
ALPHA Journal is institutionally funded and indexed in Web of Science, Scopus, SciELO, The MLA International Bibliography, among other international databases.
Publication Frequency
ALPHA: Journal of Arts, Literature, and Philosophy is a biannual publication that releases two issues per year, in July and December. The call for submissions is open from April through November of each year.
Manuscript Evaluation Process
Manuscripts are evaluated by external peer reviewers in a double-blind process. The average time between receipt and publication of accepted articles is 40 weeks.
Sections of the Journal
Academic contributions may fall into one of the following text subgenres:
- Article
- Note
- Document
- Dossier
- Book Review
Article
An academic publication that presents the final results of a research study, outlines a topic or problem to be explored, specifies the objectives and methodology, reports the main findings, analyzes them, and draws conclusions based on them and in line with the initial objectives. The bibliographic references actually cited in the work are included.
Critical essays are also acceptable in this subgenre. These essays should examine specific aspects of the research covered by the journal's editorial focus, provide a reasoned argument to support the claims made, and include the corresponding bibliographic references. In all cases, these works may not exceed 20 pages, including the list of references and appendices.
Note
This is an academic publication presenting the preliminary results of an ongoing research project. It must follow the structure for articles but may not exceed 10 pages, including the works actually cited. Literature reviews are also acceptable in this subgenre.
Document
The publication of transcriptions of historical documents that could become the subject of future research is considered in this textual category, as well as bibliographic reviews or conceptual reflections that serve as a starting point or reference for other research. The maximum length allowed for this subgenre is 20 pages.
Dossier
ALPHA Journal occasionally publishes Dossiers, which consist of a dedicated section on a specific topic featuring guest editors who are experts in the field. Dossiers can be organized in three different ways: either through scientific articles specifically requested by the Editorial Board, as a proposal from a research group, or as a result of a decision by the Editorial Team based on thematic similarities among the manuscripts accepted for publication. Articles included in the Dossier must meet the same formal and thematic requirements as the scientific articles outlined above and undergo the external peer-arbitration process.
Book Review
This section provides a brief and concise summary of a book, which may include a critical assessment of the work's contributions to one of the disciplines covered by the editorial focus areas outlined by ALPHA Journal. The review must not exceed 5 pages.
History of the Journal
ALPHA: Journal of Arts, Literature, and Philosophy was founded in 1985 by faculty members at the Osorno Professional Institute (now the University of Los Lagos), who promoted the initiative to publish a journal that would bring together the results of their research in the fields of literature, linguistics, and philosophy. Their goal was to provide students of the Spanish Language Education program with an annual journal featuring reports on research projects and essays, to support their educational development.
The first issue featured the journal's own articles. Starting with the second issue, external contributions were included. For two decades, it maintained its annual publication schedule, strengthening its international visibility and production process, both in terms of printing and content. This improvement of the articles quality went hand in hand with the consolidation of the scientific committee, the journal's internationalization, and the high quality of its contributions, largely from researchers at other national and international universities. In 2005, upon joining the SciELO Network, the quality criteria were formalized, and the publication frequency was increased to two issues per year. In 2010, The Alpha journal was included in the Web of Science and Scopus databases, a development that has enabled it to strengthen its presence and prestige as a platform for the dissemination of the humanities.
Diversity and Inclusion Policy
ALPHA: Journal of Arts, Literature, and Philosophy adheres to the principles promoted by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) to strengthen diversity and inclusion in editorial work, to ensure the participation of underrepresented groups in the publication process and on editorial teams, and to promote non-sexist language. Among the actions that demonstrate this commitment are equitable representation on editorial teams, among reviewers, and among authors—including diversity in gender, ethnicity, and geographic origin; fostering the inclusion of diverse perspectives and forms of knowledge that recognize the diversity of thought; and implementing mechanisms to identify and correct any biases related to gender, ethnicity, or other factors.
Diversity recognition is reflected in language. It is important to ensure that the work uses inclusive language and does not contain expressions that imply the superiority of one person over another on the basis of age, gender, ethnicity, culture, sexual orientation, disability, or health status. Using gender-neutral language is recommended and descriptions of personal attributes is avoided, unless they are relevant and valid for the research.
