In academic publishing, the single-blind and double-blind peer review systems are the most commonly adopted. Choosing the wrong format for your manuscript—specifically failing to anonymize it for a double-blind review—can lead to an immediate desk reject. This guide explains the key differences, the pros and cons, and exactly how to prepare your paper for each.

What is Single-Blind Peer Review?

Single-blind review is the traditional standard in many scientific disciplines. In this model, the names of the reviewers are hidden from the author, but the reviewers know exactly who wrote the paper.

When you submit your paper, you include the title page, author names, affiliations, and acknowledgments. The reviewers see this information immediately.

The Pros

• Contextual Understanding: Reviewers can look up the authors' previous work to see how the new study fits into their established research line.
• Conflict Detection: Reviewers can easily spot conflicts of interest (e.g., "I am currently working with this author") and recuse themselves.
• Plagiarism Check: Knowing the author helps reviewers distinguish between legitimate self-citation and potential self-plagiarism.

The Cons

• The "Mathew Effect": There is a risk of bias where famous researchers (or those from prestigious universities) get easier acceptances based on reputation rather than merit.
• Implicit Bias: Reviewers may unconsciously judge papers based on the author’s gender, nationality, or institution.

What is Double-Blind Peer Review?

Double-blind review (also known as dual-anonymous review) is designed to maximize fairness. In this model, both the reviewer and the author remain anonymous to each other.

You must submit a fully anonymized manuscript. The reviewers judge the paper solely on the quality of the research, without knowing if it was written by a Nobel Prize winner or a first-year PhD student.

The Pros

• Fairness & Meritocracy: It levels the playing field. Papers are judged on content, not reputation.
• Reduced Bias: It minimizes discrimination based on gender, race, country of origin, or institutional prestige.
• Protection for Junior Researchers: New researchers are not penalized for lacking a "big name" in the field.

The Cons

• Context Loss: Reviewers cannot easily verify if the authors are extending their own previous data or simply reusing it.
• Difficulty in Anonymizing: In niche fields, reviewers can often guess the authors based on the writing style or specific references ("In our previous work...").

How to Prepare Your Manuscript 

The preparation process differs significantly depending on the review type.

For Single-Blind Submissions:

• Include Everything: Ensure your Title Page includes all author names, affiliations, and contact details.
• Acknowledgments: You can include funding sources and thank-yous in the initial submission.
• Self-Citation: You can cite your previous work normally (e.g., "In our previous study [1]...").

For Double-Blind Submissions:

• Remove Names: The first page should only contain the title and abstract. Remove all names and affiliations.
• Third-Person Citation: Never identify yourself as the author of a cited paper.
  • Wrong: "As we showed in [1]..."
  • Right: "As Smith et al. [1] showed..."
• Check File Metadata: Open your PDF properties and remove your name from the "Author" field.
• Remove Acknowledgments: Do not list funding sources or acknowledgments in the review version (add them back only after acceptance).
• Anonymize Links: If sharing code or data (e.g., GitHub), use a neutral, anonymous repository service.

Conclusion

Understanding Single-blind vs. Double-blind peer review is essential for academic success.

• If you are submitting to a Single-blind journal, leverage your reputation and ensure your academic identity is clear.
• If you are submitting to a Double-blind conference, spend extra time scrubbing your manuscript of any identifying details to avoid administrative rejection.

Always check the "Author Guidelines" on the conference or journal website before hitting submit! For more international academic resource, please visit Aisholar.