Editorial Friction and the Limits of Q1-Centric Validation in Complex, Method-Driven Research

This white paper analyses the structural frictions of the contemporary Q1-centric peer-review system using a consolidated dataset of editorial communications associated with a doctoral research programme. Based on approximately 180 editorial emails exchanged between November 2025 and January 2026, the study documents recurrent reviewer assignment failures, prolonged editorial latency, scope-based desk rejections, and institutional bias against method-driven, cross-disciplinary research. The paper argues that the absence of Q1 publications in such cases reflects systemic limits of the current editorial model rather than deficiencies in research quality, and discusses implications for doctoral evaluation practices.