Submissions

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Submission Preparation Checklist

As part of the submission process, authors are required to check off their submission's compliance with all of the following items, and submissions may be returned to authors that do not adhere to these guidelines.
  • The submission has not been previously published, nor is it before another journal for consideration (or an explanation has been provided in Comments to the Editor).
  • The submission file is in OpenOffice or Microsoft Word
  • Where available, DOIs for the references have been provided.
  • The text is double-spaced; uses a 12-point font; employs italics, rather than underlining (except with URL addresses); and the placement of all illustrations, figures, and tables are indicated within the text at the appropriate points, and the illustrations, figures and tables are at the end of the manuscript after the references section.
  • The text adheres to the stylistic and bibliographic requirements outlined in the Author Guidelines, which is found in About the Journal.
  • The instructions in Ensuring a Blind Review have been followed.

Author Guidelines

All manuscripts should be prepared using the 6th Edition of the publication manual of the American Psychological Association (APA, 2009). This format should be applied to all aspects of the manuscript, including as an absolute minimum:

  • Title page (for blind peer review)
  • Abstracts
  • Keywords
  • Levels of heading
  • Tables
  • In-text citations
  • Reference lists
  • Anti-discriminatory language

All submissions should be written in an accessible style that can be understood by both students and practitioners. All jargon should be defined clearly if used at all and authors are encouraged to avoid using jargon wherever possible.

Documents should be processed using a word-processing package (e.g MS Word) and not submitted as PDFs.

Page numbers should be included on all pages of every manuscript submitted to the journal. Articles must be prepared using 12 point Times New Roman or Cambria font and 1.5 line spacing.

PLAGIRISM

All articles will be submitted through Turnitin plagiarism detection software prior to being sent out for review. In instances where the editorial team are concerned about the nature or level of matches between the submitted work and existing published sources, the submitted manuscript will be sent back to the lead author with details of the concerns and an invitation to revise the manuscript in question.

 

ORIGINAL RESEARCH ARTICLES

Articles should report the findings of completed original or replicated research studies. Preliminary findings or the findings from pilot studies will be considered under the ‘short report’ submission criteria detailed below.

Ideally, reports of original research that employ quantitative methodologies should not exceed 5000 words. Those employing qualitative or mixed qualitative and quantitative methodologies should not exceed 7000 words. After consultation with the Editor, longer manuscripts may be considered if a clear case for the length can be made. However the emphasis should be on clarity and conciseness of writing. The word limit does not include tables and reference lists; neither does it include verbatim extracts from qualitative sources. It does however include in-text citations.

Articles should include appropriate reference to the theoretical and practice context throughout. Findings should make reference explicitly to the implications for practice. Indeed at the end of the manuscript three bullet points must be presented in which the most important implications for practice are summarized. These points must not exceed 150 words in total.

Ideas for special issues/sections of the journal are welcome, and individuals with such an idea are encouraged to contact the Editor-in-Chief (Dr Erica Bowen) or the Deputy (Dr Simon Goodman) in the first instance to discuss these ideas further.

 

LITERATURE REVIEW ARTICLES

Articles should synthesize existing literature using either qualitative (narrative), quantitative (meta-analytical) or systematic reviewing approaches. The reviews must examine literature that has clearly stated and identified implications.

Literature review articles ideally should not exceed 7000 words. The word limit does not include tables and reference lists; neither does it include verbatim extracts from qualitative sources. It does however include in-text citations.

At the end of the manuscript three bullet points must be presented in which the most important implications for practice are summarized. These points must not exceed 150 words in total.

 

SHORT REPORTS

Short reports should provide summaries of the most important findings from either preliminary or pilot studies using qualitative, quantitative or mixed methodologies.

Short reports should not exceed 2500 words. The word limit does not include tables and reference lists; neither does it include verbatim extracts from qualitative sources. It does however include in-text citations.

At the end of the manuscript three bullet points must be presented in which the most important implications for practice are summarized. These points must not exceed 150 words in total.

 

PRACTICE NOTES

Practice notes function to summarize an aspect of psychological theory with a view to providing clear direction for practitioners. For example, an article in which adult attachment theory is summarized within the context of offender rehabilitation, with clear implications for how intervention sessions at different phases of intervention might be designed.

Practice notes should not exceed 3500 words. The word limit does not include reference lists. It does however include in-text citations.

 

IMPACT NOTES

Impact notes lead on from practice notes in that they are written in order to illustrate how aspects of psychological research have directly influenced practice in a particular area. Consequently, the above example at this point might represent a practitioner view of how empirical findings relating to adult attachment theory have been interpreted and used to inform intervention approaches with offenders, and evidence of its impact might also be reported (e.g. preliminary evaluation data).

Impact notes should not exceed 4000 words. The word limit does not include tables and reference lists; neither does it include verbatim extracts from qualitative sources. It does however include in-text citations.

 

RESPONSE PAPERS

The journal encourages response papers which provide measured commentaries and/or evidence-based opinion on previously published work in any section of the journal. The papers should encourage and represent healthy academic debate which ultimately furthers knowledge and understanding of the topic or policy examined. All papers are to be written in an appropriate academic jargon-free tone.

Response papers should not exceed 2500 words. The word limit does not include tables and reference lists; neither does it include verbatim extracts from qualitative sources. It does however include in-text citations.

 

POLICY REVIEWS

Given the relevance of public policy to psychological practice, we invite authors to consider providing policy reviews. Such articles should provide the context of the relevant policy, either aspects of particular relevance for psychological practice, or how policies have changed or their relevance for practice. These reviews should be written for a largely non-academic audience, focusing particularly on practitioners.

Policy reviews should not exceed 5000 words. The word limit does not include tables and reference lists. It does however include in-text citations

Original Research Articles

Articles should report the findings of completed original or replicated research studies. Preliminary findings or the findings from pilot studies will be considered under the ‘short report’ submission criteria detailed below.

Ideally, reports of original research that employ quantitative methodologies should not exceed 5000 words. Those employing qualitative or mixed qualitative and quantitative methodologies should not exceed 7000 words. After consultation with the Editor, longer manuscripts may be considered if a clear case for the length can be made. However the emphasis should be on clarity and conciseness of writing. The word limit does not include tables and reference lists; neither does it include verbatim extracts from qualitative sources. It does however include in-text citations.

Articles should include appropriate reference to the theoretical and practice context throughout. Findings should make reference explicitly to the implications for practice. Indeed at the end of the manuscript three bullet points must be presented in which the most important implications for practice are summarized. These points must not exceed 150 words in total.

Ideas for special issues/sections of the journal are welcome, and individuals with such an idea are encouraged to contact the Editor-in-Chief (Dr Erica Bowen) or the Deputy (Dr Simon Goodman) in the first instance to discuss these ideas further.

Literature Review Articles

Articles should synthesize existing literature using either qualitative (narrative), quantitative (meta-analytical) or systematic reviewing approaches. The reviews must examine literature that has clearly stated and identified implications.

Literature review articles ideally should not exceed 7000 words. The word limit does not include tables and reference lists; neither does it include verbatim extracts from qualitative sources. It does however include in-text citations.

At the end of the manuscript three bullet points must be presented in which the most important implications for practice are summarized. These points must not exceed 150 words in total.

Short Reports

Short reports should provide summaries of the most important findings from either preliminary or pilot studies using qualitative, quantitative or mixed methodologies. 

Short reports should not exceed 2500 words. The word limit does not include tables and reference lists; neither does it include verbatim extracts from qualitative sources. It does however include in-text citations.

At the end of the manuscript three bullet points must be presented in which the most important implications for practice are summarized. These points must not exceed 150 words in total.

Practice Notes

Practice notes function to summarize an aspect of psychological theory with a view to providing clear direction for practitioners. For example, an article in which adult attachment theory is summarized within the context of offender rehabilitation, with clear implications for how intervention sessions at different phases of intervention might be designed.

Practice notes should not exceed 3500 words. The word limit does not include reference lists. It does however include in-text citations.

Impact Notes

Impact notes lead on from practice notes in that they are written in order to illustrate how aspects of psychological research have directly influenced practice in a particular area. Consequently, the above example at this point might represent a practitioner view of how empirical findings relating to adult attachment theory have been interpreted and used to inform intervention approaches with offenders, and evidence of its impact might also be reported (e.g. preliminary evaluation data).

Impact notes should not exceed 4000 words.  The word limit does not include tables and reference lists; neither does it include verbatim extracts from qualitative sources. It does however include in-text citations.

Policy Reviews

Given the relevance of public policy to psychological practice, we invite authors to consider providing policy reviews. Such articles should provide the context of the relevant policy, either aspects of particular relevance for psychological practice, or how policies have changed or their relevance for practice. These reviews should be written for a largely non-academic audience, focusing particularly on practitioners.

Policy reviews should not exceed 5000 words. The word limit does not include tables and reference lists. It does however include in-text citations.

Response Papers

The journal encourages response papers which provide measured commentaries and/or evidence-based opinion on previously published work in any section of the journal. The papers should encourage and represent healthy academic debate which ultimately furthers knowledge and understanding of the topic or policy examined. All papers are to be written in an appropriate academic jargon-free tone.

Response papers should not exceed 2500 words. The word limit does not include tables and reference lists; neither does it include verbatim extracts from qualitative sources. It does however include in-text citations.

Copyright Notice

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

  1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.

  2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.

  3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).

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