Q: Why does the status date of a manuscript change but the status remains the same?
Why does the status date change after 3 days of "Reviewers assigned" but the status remain the same?
As you would know, once journal editors receive a manuscript, they need to find a relevant peer reviewer for it, e.g., someone who is an expert in the same field. In your case, perhaps, the journal sent a request to multiple reviewers but didn't recieve a favorable response or the journal could be dealing with a lack of response from the reviewers. This could explain the change in status date but not the status itself. If you are waiting to hear from the journal for a long time, you could consider reaching out to the journal editor to inquire about the status of your manuscript.
Related reading:
- Why does the status date of a submission change periodically though the status remains unchanged?
- Why did the status date for my revised submission change twice while the status remained "under review"?
- Tracking your manuscript status in journal submission systems
You will also find this handbook useful
This content belongs to the Journal submission & peer review Stage