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_Annual Review of Anthropology_
S. Terry Childs (ARCHSTC@SIMSC.BITNET)
Tue, 9 Nov 1993 13:08:00 EST
Review_. I cannot comment on the pattern over the 22 volumes that have
come out, but as an author in the latest volume, I suspect that there are
several interacting factors involved in why those rates exist. First,
scholars often overcommit themselves; they make agreements that they cannot
always keep due to extenuating circumstances (i.e., unusual teaching load).
They have the best intentions, but.... Second, review articles are not easy
to write and can become much more time-consuming that originally imagined.
Third, ARA has very specific deadlines and, if you cannot meet them, there is
relatively little room for overtime calls (although they do give some
reasonable slack for down-to-the-wire folks!). Finally, I suspect that ARA
asks more scholars for contributions than they expect to actually come through
based on previous experience with the above.
All in all, I found ARA to be a very well-run operation and nice group
of people who set deadlines, keep them to keep us all happy, work very well
and closely with authors when needed, and produce a very fine product.
S. Terry Childs
Smithsonian Institution/National Park Service
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