Scientific Manuscript Editor — Peer-Review Preparation

Preparing a peer-review-ready empirical paper that converts a 25-year independent research program and existing dataset into a reproducible research asset. The manuscript examines how institutions use proxy measurements when underlying human characteristics are difficult to measure directly, using human body composition as a concrete empirical case. Scope of Work The editor will provide a focused final editorial and manuscript-preparation review, including: *Strengthen clarity and coherence of the political-economy argument without changing its substantive claims *Ensure the empirical section is appropriately bounded, modest, and clearly connected to the institutional question *Review methodological descriptions for clarity, transparency, and reproducibility *Improve organization, flow, readability, and transitions *Identify areas where claims may appear overstated, ambiguous, insufficiently supported, or vulnerable to reviewer criticism *Provide editorial feedback on substantive or structural issues for the author's consideration; the author retains final authority over all scientific and conceptual decisions *Ensure terminology, presentation, citations, references, and bibliography are appropriate for the journal selected *Review manuscript formatting, tables, figures, headings, and supplementary materials for compliance with journal requirements *Review the final manuscript for journal-readiness and open-access publication standards *Provide limited assistance with peer-review responses and revision strategy if the manuscript receives reviewer comments during the project period Ideal Background *Professional experience editing or preparing manuscripts for peer-reviewed journals *Background in economics, political economy, public policy, empirical social science, or a closely related field *Strong ability to edit technically sophisticated material involving statistics, measurement, classification, or empirical research *Familiarity with concepts such as proxy measurement, institutional persistence, path dependence, information constraints, and coordination *Ability to improve the presentation and communication of an argument while preserving the author's scientific boundaries and not introducing unsupported claims *Experience working with independent researchers, academic authors, think tanks, or research organizations preferred Important This is an editorial role, not a research or co-author role. The underlying analysis, scientific claims, dataset, and research framework are already established. The objective is to strengthen the manuscript's presentation, clarity, methodological communication, and journal readiness—not to redesign the research or alter its scientific conclusions. The editor will provide independent editorial judgment and constructive criticism, but the author retains final authority over all scientific, conceptual, and substantive decisions. This is a grant-funded project, so the budget is fixed.