Instructions for authors

 

Hum – Journal of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences of the University of Mostar is a scientific publication that publishes peer-reviewed papers as well as contributions that are not subject to the peer review process. The journal publishes papers in the fields of humanities and social sciences.

Papers subject to review undergo a double-blind peer review process, meaning that the identity of the author is unknown to the reviewers, and the identity of the reviewers is unknown to the authors. Therefore, authors must submit an un-anonymized manuscript, while information about the author or authors is to be submitted in a separate document.

Manuscripts should be submitted via email to: hum@ff.sum.ba

In the separate document, the following details must be provided:

  • Author's first name and surname
  • Academic degree or professional title
  • Full name of the institution where the author is employed
  • Institutional address
  • Telephone number
  • Email address
  • ORCID identification code

The Editorial Board reserves the right to editorially adapt the manuscript to the propositions of the journal and the standards of the Croatian literary language. Authors are kindly requested to strictly adhere to these instructions.

Originality of Work and Ethical Obligations of Authors
By submitting a manuscript, authors confirm:

  • That the work is original
  • That it has not been previously published, nor is it simultaneously under consideration by another journal
  • That all listed authors have significantly contributed to the preparation of the work
  • That all authors agree to its submission and potential publication in the journal

Substantial reuse of one's own previously published work without clear citation of the source is considered an unacceptable form of self-plagiarism.

Authors are required to:

  • Disclose all sources of research funding
  • Clearly highlight any potential conflicts of interest
  • Adhere to the Code of Ethics of the journal Hum

If the work involves research on humans or animals, authors are required to state that the research was conducted in accordance with the valid ethical guidelines of the home institution and with the approval of the competent ethics committee.

Peer Review Process
All scientific and professional articles undergo a double-blind peer review process. The process includes:
1. An initial editorial assessment of the manuscript
2. Sending the paper to two independent reviewers
3. Making an editorial decision based on the reviews

The Editorial Board may decide not to send a manuscript for review if the work does not fall within the scope of the journal or does not meet minimum scientific standards.

Reviewers evaluate the work based on the following criteria:

  • Scientific originality
  • Methodological soundness
  • Clarity of argumentation
  • Relevance to the journal's scope
  • Scientific contribution

Authors are required to respond to the reviewers' comments and submit the revised version of the paper within the specified deadline.

Structure of the Paper
Scientific and professional articles should contain the following elements:

  • Title of the paper
  • Abstract
  • Keywords
  • Introduction
  • Methodology (if applicable)
  • Research and research results
  • Discussion
  • Conclusion
  • References (Literature)
  • Author Statements (see the section on author statements)

The abstract should clearly present:

  • The objective of the research
  • The methodological approach
  • The main results
  • The primary conclusions

Scope of the Work and Abstract
Preferred length:

  • Scientific and professional articles: 16–20 standard pages of text
  • Book reviews, overviews, and other contributions: 2–6 standard pages

One standard page contains 1,500 characters.

The total scope includes:

  • Footnotes
  • Abstract in Croatian and in one world language
  • Reference list

The abstract should be 150–250 words long. Along with the abstract, 5–7 keywords that help classify the work must be provided. In consultation with the Editorial Board, the length of the article may be extended.

Technical Instructions for Manuscript Submission
The paper should be prepared in a version of MS Word or a compatible program and saved in the following format: .doc or .docx.
Font: Times New Roman
Font Size:

  • Main text: 12
  • Footnotes: 10

Line Spacing:

  • Main text: 1.5
  • Footnotes: Single spacing

Figures, charts, and tables must be:

  • Submitted as separate files
  • Clearly marked with consecutive numbers

The placement of these insertions should be indicated within the text. Authors are responsible for obtaining permission to publish illustrations, photographs, or other copyrighted materials.

Citation Systems and Footnotes
When writing footnotes, the author may use either:

  • The Oxford system
  • The Harvard system (APA 7)

Combining the two systems is not permitted. The chosen system must be consistently applied throughout the entire paper.

The Oxford System
The author's first name is always written before the surname in small caps. For up to three authors, all three are listed; if the source has more than three authors, the first is listed followed by the abbreviation i dr. (and others) or et al. Titles of books, journals, yearbooks, edited volumes (proceedings), daily newspapers, dictionaries, lexicons, and encyclopedias are always written in italics, while the titles of articles, book chapters, entries, or laws are always written inside quotation marks. If a source has a title and a subtitle, the subtitle is separated by a period. The arrangement of other elements depends on the source type.
When citing a source for the second and every subsequent time (non-consecutively), the author's first initial, surname (in small caps), the abbreviation n. dj. (or op. cit.), and the page number are written. If the same source by an author is cited multiple times consecutively, only the term isto (or ibid.) and the page number are used. If the same page of the source is cited multiple times consecutively, only the term isto (or ibid.) is written. All information is provided exactly as it is written in the cited source. Introductions, forewords, and afterwords are cited as articles in an edited volume. It is mandatory to distinguish between direct quotes (clearly indicated with quotation marks in the text), paraphrases (using the abbreviation usp. or cf. at the beginning of the footnote), and comparative notes (using the term vidi or see at the beginning of the footnote).

Examples:

a) Books

  • Jean Grondin, Smisao za hermeneutiku, Matica hrvatska, Zagreb, 1999., p. 23.
  • Multiple authors: James Conant - Urzsula Zeglen, Hilary Putnam, Pragmatism & Realism, Routledge, London - New York, 2005., pp. 12-15.
  • More than three authors: Nigel Blake et al., The blackwell guide to philosophy of education, Routledge, London, 2003.
  • Title and subtitle: Brian Duignan, The Britannica Guide to Ethics. The History of Western Ethics, Britannica educational Publishing, New York, 2011.
  • If it is an edited or compiled book, the appropriate abbreviation is placed after the editor's name: Ivan Kordić (ur.), Actuality of the Past, Institute of Philosophy, Zagreb, 2014.
  • If the book consists of multiple volumes, this information is provided right after the title: Bonifac Badrov, Sabrana djela: Predavanja iz filozofije, vol. II., Franjevački samostan „Gorica“, Livno - Sarajevo, 1997.
  • If it is a revised or later edition, the edition number is provided after the title, followed by the volume if applicable: Nelson Goodman, Fact, fiction and forecast, 4th edition, Harvard University Press, Cambridge Massachusets - London, 1983.

b) Book Chapter

  • Edward Craig, „Meaning and privacy“, in: Bob Hale - Crispin Wright (eds.), A companion to the philosophy of language, Blackwell Publishers, Oxford, 1999.

c) Article in an Edited Volume / Conference Proceedings

  • Ivica Petrović, „Mostar u njemačkoj putopisnoj književnosti“, Identitetska i kulturna raznolikost BiH: zbornik radova, Ivica Šarac (editor-in-chief), Filozofski fakultet Sveučilišta u Mostaru - Synopsis - Zaklada Konrad Adenauer, Mostar, 2015.

d) Journal Article

  • Bertrand Russell, „On denoting“ Mind, vol. 14. (1905), no. 56., pp. 479-493.

e) Encyclopedias, Lexicons, and Dictionaries

  • Without an author or editor: „Tehnologija“, Hrvatski enciklopedijski rječnik, Novi libar, Zagreb, 2002.
  • With an author or editor: Stipe Kutleša (ed.), „Speuzip“, Filozofski leksikon, Leksikografski zavod Miroslav Krleža, Zagreb, 2012.

f) Archives

  • Arhiv Bosne i Hercegovine (hereinafter ABiH), Komisija za vjerska pitanja (hereinafter KVP), box. 24, vol. II, f. 12rv, (box = box, vol. = volume, f. = folio, r = recto - front, v = verso - back).

g) Laws and Regulations

  • „Zakon o znanstvenoj djelatnosti i visokom obrazovanju“, Narodne novine, 2013., 123., art. 4.

h) Internet Sources

  • Julia Tanney, „Gilbert Ryle“, Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, (18 Dec 2007), <http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/ryle/>, (14 May 2012)
  • If there is no author's name, the citation begins with the title of the article or document: „Moritz Schlick“, Philosophedia, (12 Feb 2003), <http://philosopedia.org/index.php/Moritz_Schlick>, (16 Apr 2012).

i) Reference List (Bibliography)

  • In the reference list, it is mandatory to write the surname followed by the author's first name, separated by a comma. For articles, the complete page range (from-to) within the journal must be provided.

The Harvard (APA7) System
Immediately following a quote or paraphrase in the text, the author's surname, publication year, and the page number or page range are provided in parentheses: (Gadamer, 1997, 44). Authors must be particularly careful if they use multiple works by the same author published in the same year. In such cases, a lowercase letter is placed after the publication year to distinguish the sources: (Searle, 1980a, 12), (Searle, 1980b, 44).
Regarding the bibliography, the differences compared to the Oxford system are that the year is written immediately after the author's name and surname, and all elements are separated by a period.

Examples

a) Books

  •  Quine, W. V. O. (1995). From Stimulus to Science. Harvard University Press.

b) Journal Articles

  • Bertrand R. (1905). On denoting. Mind, 14(56), 479-493.

Author Statements
At the end of the paper, authors provide the following statements:

Conflict of Interest Statement
Authors are required to declare any financial, professional, or personal relationships that could influence the interpretation of the results or the conclusions of the work.
Example formulations:
Conflict of Interest Statement
"The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest that could affect the publication of this work."
If a conflict exists:
"The authors declare the following potential conflict of interest: [state the nature of the conflict]."

Funding Statement
Authors are required to declare all sources of financial support for the research or preparation of the work.
Example formulations:
Funding Statement
"The research presented in this paper was funded by the following sources: [name of institution, project number, funding program]."
If there was no funding:
"This research received no specific financial support from any public, commercial, or non-profit institutions."

Artificial Intelligence Use Statement
If the authors used generative artificial intelligence tools (e.g., ChatGPT or other similar tools), this must be clearly indicated.
Example formulations:
Artificial Intelligence Use Statement
"The authors declare that during the preparation of this article, they used the generative artificial intelligence tool [tool name] exclusively for [purpose of use]. The authors bear full responsibility for the content of the work."

If AI tools were not used, no statement is required.

Data Availability Statement
If the work is based on empirical data, authors should indicate where the data are available.
Example formulations:
Data Availability Statement
"The data supporting the results of this study are available from the corresponding author upon request."
If publicly available:
"The data used in this study are available in the following repository: [repository name and link]."
If the data are not available:
"The data used in this study are not publicly available due to [state reason, e.g., privacy protection of participants]."

If the work in not based on empirical data, no statement is required.

Research Data Policy
The journal encourages authors, where possible, to deposit research data into publicly accessible repositories for the sake of transparency and the verifiability of scientific results.

Post-Review Procedure
For articles that undergo the review process and are returned for revision after the peer review has been conducted, authors must send the corrected version of the article to the Editorial Board no later than three months after receiving the reviewers' comments. Otherwise, the Editorial Board reserves the right to refuse publication of the work.

Authors are required to cooperate with the Editorial Board and the reviewers during the revision process and, upon request, provide additional clarifications, data, or documentation relevant to the scientific verification of the statements made in the paper.

Following the publication of the work, authors are obliged to notify the Editorial Board without delay if they notice a significant error or inaccuracy, and to cooperate in the publication of a correction, addendum, or retraction of the paper in accordance with editorial decisions and the journal's ethical guidelines.