http://jar-online.net/index.php/issues/editorial/494 An abstract is a very important element of a journal article. Next to the title and author name(s) it is among the first items of information a prospective reader encounters. It primes readers for what is to come. However, it also functions as a gateway, since many readers will not proceed to the article if the abstract fails to raise sufficient interest. In particular, this includes potential peer reviewers: as the full article remains inaccessible at this stage of decision-making, the abstract needs to convince them to take on the work. For these reasons it may make sense to locate the abstract, as is usually done, on the outside of an article and to consider it meta-data only.