Large Language Models Across the Lifecycle of Scholarly Publishing

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue examines how large language models are being integrated into the preparation, review and editorial handling of scholarly manuscripts. Rather than treating large language models solely as tools of authorship, the focus is on their broader influence on writing practices, peer review and editorial judgment within contemporary journal publishing.

As generative artificial intelligence becomes embedded across the manuscript lifecycle, the central challenge has shifted from simple questions of authorship attribution to more complex issues of disclosure, acceptable use and responsibility. Most journals now state that authors remain fully accountable for content produced with AI assistance, yet practical questions remain unresolved. These include how the extent of large language models use should be disclosed, which uses are considered acceptable or unacceptable and how editors and reviewers should respond when manuscripts or review reports exhibit strong indicators of artificial intelligence-generated language. This Special Issue invites contributions that engage directly with these unresolved editorial and ethical tensions.

Key Topics and Areas of Interest

Large Language Models in Manuscript Preparation

• Artificial intelligence-assisted drafting, language editing and structural revision of manuscripts
• Distinctions between acceptable support uses and disallowed forms of content generation
• Effects of large language models use on writing quality, rhetorical structure and disciplinary voice

LLMs in Peer Review and Editorial Evaluation

• Reviewer use of large language models in manuscript assessment and report writing
• Editorial responses to manuscripts and reviews that exhibit artificial intelligence-dominant stylistic patterns
• Limits of detection, interpretation of ‘artificial intelligence-like’ writing and implications for editorial trust

Integrity, Disclosure and Governance

• Disclosure practices and reporting standards for large language model use beyond authorship attribution
• Accountability frameworks when artificial intelligence-assisted text shapes scholarly arguments or evaluations
• Journal policies addressing permitted and prohibited uses of large language models in manuscripts and reviews

Submission Guidelines

Both empirical and conceptual studies are welcome, including:

• Qualitative analyses of author, reviewer and editor decision-making
• Quantitative and text analytical studies of artificial intelligence-influenced manuscripts and peer review reports
• Policy and governance-oriented contributions relevant to journal editors and publishers

Submissions should offer theoretically informed and empirically grounded insights into how large language models are redefining responsibility, disclosure and judgment in scholarly publishing.

Dr. Eungi Kim
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Publications is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.