Popdevr workflow

Population and Development Review Workflow Router (popdevr-workflow)

The orchestrator for a PDR submission. Figure out the stage and the article type, then send the user to the matching skill. PDR is the Population Council's journal at the intersection of demography AND development — the router's first job is to confirm the paper connects population dynamics (fertility, mortality, migration, ageing, structure) to social, economic, or environmental change and public policy, with the big-picture reach PDR is known for, not a narrow estimate that merely uses population data.

When to trigger

• Starting a new PDR paper and unsure where to begin
• Mid-project and unsure which skill applies next
• Deciding which article type fits (Article vs. Notes & Commentary vs. Data & Perspectives)
• Returning with a decision letter (route to popdevr-rebuttal)

First question: which article type?

Situation	Type	Route to
Full original study or substantial synthetic/conceptual essay	Research Article (typically ~8,000–10,000 words)	normal pipeline below
Short, focused argument or response on a current population question	Notes & Commentary (short)	popdevr-literature-positioning + popdevr-writing-style
A new dataset, indicator, or interpretation of population statistics	Data & Perspectives	popdevr-data-analysis + popdevr-transparency-and-data
Archival population document or official-agency text with framing	Archives	popdevr-writing-style
Evaluative review of a population/development book	Book Review (usually invited)	popdevr-writing-style

Length is a norm, not a hard portal cap. Confirm current limits and types on the Wiley author page (see 待核实). PDR uses Free Format submission for the first round.

Routing map (stage -> skill)

Idea / fit (pop ↔ development)?      -> popdevr-topic-selection
Where does it sit in the field?      -> popdevr-literature-positioning
What's the argument/mechanism?       -> popdevr-theory-building
Is the design/method sound?          -> popdevr-research-design
Are the analyses sound?              -> popdevr-data-analysis
Are the exhibits clear?              -> popdevr-tables-figures
Does it read for a broad audience?   -> popdevr-writing-style
Data statement & sharing plan?       -> popdevr-transparency-and-data
How will it be judged?               -> popdevr-review-process
Ready to submit (ScholarOne)?        -> popdevr-submission
Got an R&R / decision?               -> popdevr-rebuttal

Default order

topic-selection -> literature-positioning -> theory-building -> research-design -> data-analysis -> tables-figures -> writing-style -> transparency-and-data -> review-process -> submission -> rebuttal

Iterate: PDR papers loop theory ↔ design ↔ analysis as the population-and-development argument sharpens; a synthetic essay loops literature-positioning ↔ theory-building ↔ writing-style instead, since its contribution is the framework, not a new estimate.

Anti-patterns

• Treating PDR like a methods-forward demography journal (that is Demography / Population Studies) — PDR rewards the population-and-development connection and the broad-interest argument
• A pure estimation paper with no development, policy, or environment payoff
• A policy op-ed with no population-science grounding (PDR is peer-reviewed, not a magazine)
• Leaving the data availability statement and double-anonymization until acceptance

Router pass for PDR

Run this as a concrete capability pass. First lock the population process, the development/policy linkage, the data and time scale, the selection/measurement issue, and the uncertainty; then test whether the manuscript addresses PDR's broad audience — demographers, economists, environmental and policy scholars — who inspect both the population evidence and its development meaning.

• Primary move: Run the pack as fit gate, evidence gate, writing gate, source-map gate, and output contract; stop at the first gate that lacks evidence.
• Decision ledger: return claim / evidence / blocker / next edit rows so the next pass can patch the manuscript directly.
• Sibling comparison: compare against Demography and Population Studies (methods-forward), Population Research and Policy Review (applied policy), and Studies in Family Planning (programs); if a neighbor has the stronger audience claim, recommend re-routing before polishing.
• Verification floor: before submission-ready advice, re-open resources/official-source-map.md for volatile rules and name the one unresolved fact that could change the recommendation.

Output format

【Stage】idea / positioning / theory / design / analysis / exhibits / writing / data / review / submit / rebut
【Type】Research Article / Notes & Commentary / Data & Perspectives / Archives / Book Review
【Route to】popdevr-<skill>
【Why】one line
【Then】the next skill after that

Supplementary resources

• ../../resources/external_tools.md — population + development data sources and software by method
• ../../resources/official-source-map.md — official PDR URLs behind every fact in this pack