About the Journal

Focus and Scope

InfoDesign is a peer-reviewed scholarly journal published three times a year. Its mission is to disseminate theoretical, methodological, and applied research in the field of information design. Submissions should present original research, theoretical reflections, or practice-based studies that contribute to advancing knowledge and understanding of information design and its applications. The journal is indexed in major international databases, including Scopus, the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), and Latindex.

The journal provides a platform for scholarly discussion on how information is organized, structured, and communicated through verbal, visual, and multimodal forms. It seeks to advance knowledge on the design, production, interpretation, and use of information across diverse contexts.

InfoDesign welcomes contributions that address topics including, but not limited to:

  • theory and history of information design, including conceptual frameworks, methods, and historiographical and critical perspectives on the field;
  • the design, development, and evaluation of information and communication systems, such as documents, interfaces, visualizations, diagrams, maps, signage, and digital environments. Contributions in this area should be grounded in theoretical frameworks and critical inquiry, and should articulate insights, principles, or findings that inform broader understanding or applications beyond the specific case studied;
  • technology and society, including the technological, cultural, and social impacts of information design;
  • education, including research on teaching and learning processes related to information design, as well as the use of information design in educational contexts;
  • information-related literacies, including visual literacy, information literacy, graphical literacy, and data literacy, particularly in relation to how people interpret, understand, and use designed information.

The journal encourages interdisciplinary dialogue and welcomes contributions from researchers in fields such as design, communication, computer science, information science, human-computer interaction, education, and related areas.

Contributions may be submitted to the following sections:

  • Full Articles
  • Interviews
  • Reviews
  • Undergraduate Research Papers — papers reporting research conducted at the undergraduate level, whose main author is an undergraduate student or a recently graduated student, and whose co-author is the student’s academic supervisor.

Peer Review Process

The originality and scope of all submissions are preliminarily examined by the editors. The manuscripts considered adequate for publishing are sent to two reviewers, specialists in the topic addressed and with a PhD degree, maintaining anonymity on the the name of the authors. If there is disagreement between the first two reviewers, the article is sent to a third reviewer.

Open Access Policy

This journal provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge.

Policy on the Use of Generative AI and AI-Assisted Tools

This policy sets expectations for authors, peer reviewers, and editors regarding the transparent, responsible, and accountable use of generative artificial intelligence (genAI) and AI-assisted tools in manuscripts submitted to InfoDesign. It aligns with sector guidance from major publishers and journals while addressing the specificities of information design scholarship.

1) Guidance for Authors

Authors must adhere to the following principles and practices when using generative AI or AI-assisted tools:

  • Human accountability: Authors are fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, legality, and integrity of their work. AI systems cannot be listed as authors or coauthors.
  • Transparency & disclosure: Any AI use must be disclosed clearly in the manuscript (Methods/Acknowledgments), with sufficient detail for readers and editors to understand what was used, where, and why and specific sections affected.
  • Verification & reliability: Authors must not rely solely on AI outputs. All text, citations, images, code, and datasets generated with AI require careful human verification and appropriate sourcing.
  • Integrity of the scholarly record: AI-generated material must not include fabricated references, falsified data, or manipulated content. All content must comply with ethical and legal standards.

    Acceptable uses (with disclosure)
    - Language translating, editing, grammar, formatting, and style assistance.
    - Structured support for outline creation, title/abstract refinement, reviewer-response drafting, and plain-language summaries—provided authors verify and revise the content.
    - Code refactoring or snippet suggestions that are tested, documented, and credited like any other software dependency.
    - Data processing aids where methods, parameters, versions, and checks are fully reported.

    Unacceptable uses
    - Listing AI systems as authors or coauthors.
    - Undisclosed AI-generated content of any type (text, figures, diagrams, photos, tables, datasets, code).
    - Fabrication or manipulation of data, references, quotations, or ethics approvals.   
    - References not checked.
    - Uploading confidential materials to public AI tools.

    Figures, images, and visualizations
    - If genAI is used to create or transform images/diagrams: disclose the model(s), prompts, post-processing, and safeguards against bias; ensure permissions for training-set-derived styles. Maintain source files and prompt logs as supplementary material when appropriate.
    - Visualizations must include data provenance, collection dates, transformations, uncertainty/limitations, and reproducibility details. If an AI tool generated or auto-charted a figure, disclose the pipeline and verify the mapping from data to marks.

    2) Guidance for Peer Reviewers

    • Do not upload manuscripts or any excerpts to public AI tools. Use only enterprise/local tools that prohibit data retention, and disclose such use to the editor in confidential comments.
    • AI may help with language clarity checks or structured checklists, but the evaluation must remain human-led.
    • Do not submit reviews written primarily by AI. Any tool assistance should be minimal and disclosed.
    • If AI is used for language suggestions, ensure it does not impose biased stylistic norms or erase culturally specific terminology common to design and Global South scholarship.

    3) Guidance for Editors

    • Ensure the manuscript contains a “Use of AI Tools” statement when applicable.
    • Editors may request clarifications, prompt logs, or version histories when AI use is material to claims or presentation. AI-detection scores must not be used as sole evidence of violation.
    • In reviewer invitations and forms, restate the confidentiality rule and permitted/forbidden AI uses. Flag undisclosed AI-style reviews for follow-up.
    • Enforce the prohibition on AI authorship; ensure contributorship statements identify responsible humans for each component.
    • Where genAI-assisted imagery or auto-charted graphics are used, editors may request dataset samples, scripts, and caption audits.
    • Handle undisclosed or inappropriate AI use under existing publication ethics processes (e.g., corrections, retractions, reviewer bans).

Archival Policy

This journal uses LOCKSS system, developed by Stanford University, to create a file distributed among participating libraries. The system allows these libraries to create permanent journal files for preservation and restoration purposes. More information in http://lockss.org.

The journal is also part of IBICT Cariniana Digital Preservation Services Network, which provides preservation for any journal based on Open Journal System [OJS] in Brazil.

Journal's history

A pioneering initiative in Latin America, the journal InfoDesign, launched in 2004 by SBDI - Brazilian Society of Information Design, is the only scientific journal dedicated to the subarea of information design published in the region, and one of the few design research journals regularly published in Brazil.

Publication Ethics and Publication Malpractice Statement

The Brazilian Information Design Society (SBDI), publisher of InfoDesign, believes that all parties involved in the act of publishing (authors, journal editors, and peer reviewers) must agree upon standards of expected ethical behavior. The ethics statements for this journal are based on the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing.

Journal History

A pioneering initiative in Latin America, the journal InfoDesign, launched in 2004 by SBDI - Brazilian Society of Information Design, is the only scientific journal dedicated to the subarea of information design published in the region, and one of the few design research journals regularly published in Brazil.