More Is Not Better— Manuscript Reviewer Competence and Citations: From the Past Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Social Work Education

The competence of a journal’s referees or reviewers is a critical issue in any discipline. Referees who review manuscripts for a journal, along with the editors who make final decisions about publication, serve as gatekeepers of information and advancement of knowledge in the discipline. They must, as Pardeck (1992 [this issue]) notes, &dquo;have appropriate research and practice skills.&dquo; In addition, they must be familiar with the discipline, to know what is within its purview. They must have a conceptual ability and breadth beyond their own expertise, to know what is innovative. They must have a sense of