Q: Why did the status date for my revised submission change twice while the status remained "under review"?
I submitted my paper to an Elsevier journal. After three months, I only received comments from one reviewer. Just to add, the "reviewer invited" status remained constant for two months, and the editor gave a moderate revision decision. I resubmitted the revised manuiscript after 20 days. Status changed to "under review" from "reviewer invited" on 9th June. The status date changed the very next day although the status was still ünder review." what does this mean? Did the editor invite new reviewers? Why did the date change continously for two days? In the first round of review, my paper was sent to only one reviewer. Does this mean it's difficult to get reviewers for my paper?
The journal review status and duration can vary depending on the availability of reviewers and the response time taken by the reviewers. Often, the review period is prolonged due to unavailability of reviewers with the necessary subject area expertise. In other cases, the delay can be due to lack of response from one or more reviewers.
In your case, it seems that the journal kept trying to invite multiple reviewers. However, upon unavailability for a significant amount of time, they gave a decision based on the review of only one expert. The unavailability of the reviewer can be due to several reasons such as a highly specific research area with limited research. It is best to send an email to the journal editor if the review period exceeds more than a month. Most journal editors will acknowledge and provide you with a tentative schedule.
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This content belongs to the Journal submission & peer review Stage