Manuscript guidelines
NISPAcee Manuscript Guidelines for Conference Paper and Publication Submissions
The aim of this guideline is to ensure consistent and academic appearance of NISPAcee conference papers and proceedings. Authors are required to follow the suggested template below.
1. Structure of the Paper and the Language
All papers submitted to the NISPAcee Conference must contain the following parts:
- Title
- Author(s)
- Abstract
- Points for Practitioners (if relevant)
- Keywords
- Introduction
- Main Body
- Conclusion
- References
All papers must be written in English. Before submitting your paper, it should be checked for grammar and typos. Authors are responsible for the English language quality and conformity of an article with these guidelines.
2. Style
NISPAcee requires the following stylistic points to be followed for all the manuscripts:
2.1 Paper Format
Papers should be submitted in PDF format. None of the other formats are accepted. The maximum file size allowed is 4 MB.
2.2 Font, Size and Formatting
Use Times New Roman font, size 10 (except for the titles). Text should be justified. Space between lines: 1.5 pt.
2.3 Paper Length
The final paper should be around 8000-10 000 words.
3. Title
The title should be a concisely worded representation of the content of the paper.
4. Author(s)
Author(s) name (first name surname), institution, country and email should follow below the title, centered middle, in italics with a footnote indicating the author(s’) position, institution, city and country.
5. Abstract
An abstract is mandatory for all NISPAcee Conference participants.An abstract should be a succinct summary of the content of the paper. It should not exceed 300 words and should be structured to highlight the following aspects:
- Convey the principal objectives and scope of the research
- Describe the design/methodology employed
- Summarize the research findings and principal conclusions
References to literature, bibliographic information, figures or tables should NOT be included in the abstract.
6. Points for Practitioners
If applicable, summarize practical findings of your research highlighting their significance and value to the practitioners in public administration and public policy. Summary should not exceed 300 words.
7. Key words
Use maximum of 5 key words, corresponding to the themes in your research. Key words should generally be nouns instead of adjectives or adverbs and must be listed in an alphabetical order, separated by commas. Do not use abbreviations.
8. Introduction
The introduction must inform the reader about the aim of the undertaken research, broadly summarize the context and major trends in scholarship for the chosen topic and justify why it is an essential component of the ongoing research in the field and/or of practical importance. From this broad basis narrow down to your particular research topic, placing the research in the context of the existing academic debate and/or practical developments. State the paper’s central argument(s) and broadly describe the structure of your research, explaining the rationale behind each step, highlighting the research methodology and if applicable, limitations.
9. Main Body
The body of the paper presents your research and analysis. It must contain:
10. Research Methodology
Methodology of the research should be a separate heading of the paper. The chosen methodology must be accurately described, accounting for the tools and the techniques used for collecting and analyzing the data. Methodology is the core bases for the readers to assess verifiability and validity of your research findings.
11. Titles, Subtitles and Paragraphs
Paper should be comprised of titles and subtitles. This helps to structure the research and ensure easy navigation.11.1 Titles
Should by typed in Times New Roman size 12, bolded, with first letters capitalized. Skip one space, then start the text.
11.2 Subtitles
Should appear in bold, italicised with first letters capitalised. Subtitles and the main body of the text of the paper should be in Times New Roman, size 10. Start the text on the next line.
11.3 New paragraphs
Should not be indented.
Example
1. Public Administration Education in Romania
Public administration-related programmes in Romania are generally housed within faculties of…
1.1 Professors of Public Administration
The academic staff teaching public administration in Romania has extensive international experience…
1.2 Academic Texts Utilised in Delivering Public Administration Programmes
Although Romania has been isolated from the international community for most of the last decade, a wide variety of international public administration textbooks are…
12. Numbering Sections
For purposes of clarity, sections and sub-sections of the text should utilize the scientific numbering system. No more than two levels of sub-sections should be used whenever possible. Main section titles should appear in bold, and sub-section headings should be both bolded and italicised.
13. Bullets and Numbering
<Tab> should be used after each bullet or number prior to beginning the text, and
<enter> after each bulleted or numbered sentence. Each bulleted or numbered sentence/phrase should be followed by ";” with the exception of the final point, which should end with a period (".”).
Example
•<Tab> Deciding about the organisation of the process and about the feedback to politicians; <Enter>
•<Tab> Recruitment and selection of the ‘policy-making team’; <Enter>
•<Tab> Monitoring the progress, deciding about pace and deadlines; <Enter>
•<Tab> Judging the interim drafts and products. <Enter>
14. Notes
Note numbers should be placed within the main body of the text in superscript. Notes should be numbered consecutively from "1” and collected at the end of the page.
15. Tables, Illustrations, Graphs, Figures
The tables, graphs or other graphics should be inserted in the text.
16. Conclusion
The paper has to contain a conclusion, which summarizes arguments and demonstrates the importance of the findings.
17. Citation Style
It is up to the author to choose his/her preffered style of citation (APA, Harvard, etc.). The chosen style should be consistently used throughout the text of the paper.
18. In-house Reference suggestions
It is up to the author to choose his/her preffered style of citation (APA, Harvard, etc.). The chosen style should be consistently used throughout the text of the paper.
Examples
Authors
Book with one author
Doniger, Wendy. 1999. Splitting the Difference. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Book with two authors
Cowlishaw, Guy, and Robin Dunbar. 2000. Primate Conservation Biology. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Book with more than three authors
Laumann, Edward O., John H. Gagnon, Robert T. Michael, and Stuart Michaels. 1994. The Social Organization of Sexuality: Sexual Practices in the United States. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Editor, translator, or compiler
Lattimore, Richmond, trans. 1951. The Iliad of Homer. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Books
Chapter or other part of a book
Twaddell, W. Freeman. 1957. A note on Old High German umlaut. In Readings in Linguistics I: The Development of Descriptive Linguistics in America, 1925–1956. 4th ed. Edited by Martin Joos. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Chapter of an edited volume originally published elsewhere (common for primary sources)
Cicero, Quintus Tullius. 1986. Handbook on Canvassing for the Consulship. In Rome: Late Republic and Principate, edited by Walter Emil Kaegi Jr. and Peter White. Vol. 2 of University of Chicago Readings in Western Civilization, edited by John Boyer and Julius Kirshner. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Originally published in Evelyn S. Shuckburgh, trans., The Letters of Cicero, vol. 1 (London: George Bell & Sons, 1908).
Preface, foreword, introduction, and similar parts of a book
Rieger, James. 1974. Introduction to Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus, by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Book published in both printed and electronic forms (N.B.: be sure that it is clear which form was consulted; however, there is no need to indicate "paper” in a citation to a traditional bound book)
Kurland, Philip B., and Ralph Lerner, eds. 1987. The Founders’ Constitution. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Also available online at http://press-pubs.uchicago.edu/founders/ and as a CD-ROM.
Articles
Journal article
Smith, John Maynard. 1998. The Origin of Altruism. Nature 393: 639–40.
Article in an electronic journal (N.B.: an access date, not generally required by Chicago, may be required by your publisher or discipline; if so, include it parenthetically at the end of the citation, as in the fourth example below)
Hlatky, Mark A., Derek Boothroyd, Eric Vittinghoff, Penny Sharp, and Mary A. Whooley. 2002. Quality-of-Life and Depressive Symptoms in Postmenopausal Women after Receiving Hormone Therapy: Results from the Heart and Estrogen/Progestin Replacement Study (HERS) trial. Journal of the American Medical Association 287, no. 5 (February 6),
http://jama.ama-assn.org/issues/v287n5/rfull/joc10108.html#aainfo
(accessed January 7, 2002).
Popular magazine article
Martin, Steve. 2002. Sports-Interview Shocker. New Yorker, May 6, 84.
Newspaper article
William S. Niederkorn, "A Scholar Recants on His ‘Shakespeare’ Discovery,” New York Times, June 20, 2002, Arts section, Midwest edition.
Chicago style is for newspaper citations to be made in running text, not in parenthetical notes:
As William Niederkorn noted in a New York Times article on June 20, 2002.
If the article is cited in the reference list, it would look like this:
Niederkorn, William S. 2002. A scholar recants on his "Shakespeare” discovery. New York Times, June 20, Midwest edition.
Books, theses ands papers
Book review
Gorman, James. 2002. Endangered species. Review of The Last American Man, by Elizabeth Gilbert. New York Times Book Review, June 2, 16.
Theses and dissertations
Amundin, M. 1991. Click Repetition Rate Patterns in Communicative Sounds from the Harbour Porpoise, Phocoena phocoena. Ph.D. diss., Stockholm University.
Paper presented at a meeting or conference
Doyle, Brian. 2002. Howling Like Dogs: Metaphorical Language in Psalm 59. Paper presented at the annual international meeting for the Society of Biblical Literature, June 19–22, in Berlin, Germany.