The Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology (JCCAP)

The Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology (JCCAP) is the official journal for the Society of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology (Division 53), American Psychological Association . It publishes original contributions on the following topics: (a) the development and evaluation of assessment and intervention techniques for use with clinical child and adolescent populations; (b) the development and maintenance of clinical child and adolescent problems; (c) cross-cultural and socio-demographic issues that have a clear bearing on clinical child and adolescent psychology in terms of theory, research, or practice; and (d) training and professional practice in clinical child and adolescent psychology, as well as child advocacy.

Manuscripts that discuss theoretical and/or methodological issues on topics pertinent to clinical child and adolescent psychology also are considered. Authors need not be members of SCCAP to submit articles to JCCAP.

There are several criteria that increase the likelihood that a manuscript will be favorably evaluated in JCCAP: (1) The paper reflects a substantive advance in our understanding of clinical child and adolescent psychology. (2) The paper is of such importance that it likely will influence an area of research. (3) The paper presents new ideas or creative methods. (4) The paper offers theoretically-driven hypotheses. (5) Multiple measures, informants, or procedures are used to collect data. (6) Sophisticated methodologies are carefully employed. (7) Longitudinal methods are used. (8) Data are rigorously and appropriately analyzed. (9) The implications of the findings for clinical child and adolescent psychology are well articulated.

Instructions for Authors

Style of Manuscripts

Manuscripts should be prepared according to the guidelines in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6th edition). Typing instructions, including format, organization, and the preparation of figures, tables, and references appear in the Manual. Unsolicited manuscripts may be submitted as Regular Articles or Brief Reports. We also have two invited article series titled Future Directions and Evidence Base Updates. A Regular Article may not exceed 11,000 words (i.e., 35 pages), including references, footnotes, figures, and tables. Brief Reports include empirical research that is soundly designed, but may be of specialized interest or narrow focus. Brief Reports may not be submitted in part or whole to another journal of general circulation. Brief Reports may not exceed 4,500 words for text and references. These limits do not include the title page, abstract, author note, footnotes, tables, and figures. Manuscripts that exceed these page limits and that are not prepared according to the guidelines in the Manual will be returned to authors without review. Future Directions submissions are written by leading scholars within the field. These articles provide a brief summary of important advances that are needed within a specific research or practice area pertinent to clinical child and adolescent psychology. Evidence Base Updates submissions are also written by leading scholars in the field who, for lack of a better term, update the field on the evidence supporting assessment and treatment techniques relevant to clinical work with children and adolescents. Future Directions and Evidence Base Updates submissions are by invitation only and undergo peer review.

All Regular Article and Brief Report submissions must include a title of 15 words or less that identifies the developmental level of the study participants (e.g., children, adolescents, etc.).  JCCAP  uses a structured abstract format. For studies that report randomized clinical trials or meta-analyses, the abstract also must be consistent with the guidelines set forth by CONSORT or MARS, respectively. The Abstract should include up to 250 words, presented in paragraph form. The Abstract should be typed on a separate page (page 2 of the manuscript), and must include each of the following label sections:

1) Objective (i.e., a brief statement of the purpose of the study);
2) Method (i.e., a detailed summary of the participants, N, age, gender, ethnicity, as well as a summary of the study design, measures, and procedures;
3) Results (i.e., a detailed summary of the primary findings that clearly articulate comparison groups (if relevant);
4) Conclusions (i.e., a description of the research and clinical implications of the findings). Avoid abbreviations, diagrams, and reference to the text in the abstract. A list of up to five keywords that describe the central themes of the manuscript should be included below the abstract on page 2. JCCAP will scrutinize manuscripts for a clear theoretical framework that supports central study hypotheses.

In addition, a clear developmental rationale is required for the selection of participants at a specific age. The Journal is making diligent efforts to ensure that there is an appropriately detailed description of the sample, including a) the population from which the sample was drawn; b) the number of participants; c) age, gender, ethnicity, and SES of participants; d) location of sample, including country and community type (rural/urban), e) sample identification/selection; f) how participants were contacted; g) incentives/rewards; h) parent consent/child assent procedures and rates; i) inclusion and exclusion criteria; j) attrition rate. The Discussion section should include a comment regarding the diversity and generality (or lack thereof) of the sample. The Measures section should include details regarding item content and scoring as well as evidence of reliability and validity in similar populations.

All manuscripts must include a discussion of the clinical significance of findings, both in terms of statistical reporting and in the discussion of the meaningfulness and clinical relevance of results. Manuscripts should a) report means and standard deviations for all variables, b) report effect sizes for analyses, and c) provide confidence intervals wherever appropriate (e.g., on figures, in tables), particularly for effect sizes on primary study findings. In addition, when reporting the results of interventions, authors should include indicators of clinically significant change. Authors may use one of several approaches that have been recommended for capturing clinical significance, including (but not limited to) the reliable change index (i.e., whether the amount of change displayed by a treated individual is large enough to be meaningful, the extent to which dysfunctional individuals show movement to the functional distribution).

All manuscripts should conform to the criteria listed in Table 1 of the 2008 APA Publications and Communications Board Working Group on Journal Article Reporting Standards (published in American Psychologist ). These reporting standards apply to all empirical papers. In addition, JCCAP requires that reports of randomized clinical trials conform to CONSORT reporting standards, including the submission of a flow diagram and checklist. Non-randomized clinical trials must conform to TREND criteria and meta-analyses should conform to MARS standards (see Table 4 in 2008 American Psychologist article).

Submitting Manuscripts

JCCAP receives all manuscript submissions electronically via its ScholarOne Manuscripts site. ScholarOne Manuscripts allows for rapid submission of original and revised manuscripts, and facilitates the review process and internal communication between authors, editors, and reviewers via a web-based platform. ScholarOne technical support can be accessed here. If you have any other requests, please contact the journal’s editor, Andres De Los Reyes, Ph.D.

Color Reproduction

Color art will be reproduced in color in the online publication at no additional cost to the author. Color illustrations will also be considered for print publication; however, the author will be required to bear the full cost involved in color art reproduction. Please note that color reprints can only be ordered if print reproduction costs are paid. Print Rates: $900 for the first page of color; $450 per page for the next three pages of color. A custom quote will be provided for articles with more than four pages of color. Art not supplied at a minimum of 300 dpi will not be considered for print.

Proofs and Reprints

Page proofs are sent to the designated author using Taylor & Francis’ Central Article Tracking System (CATS). They must be carefully checked and returned within 48 hours of receipt. Authors for whom we receive a valid email address will be provided an opportunity to purchase reprints of individual articles, or copies of the complete print issue. These authors will also be given complimentary access to their final article on Taylor & Francis Online.

Peer Review

A masked review procedure will be used on all submitted manuscripts. To prepare manuscripts for masked review, authors’ names and affiliations should not appear on the title page or elsewhere in the manuscript file (they can be entered into the system and placed on a separate page in the cover letter file). Footnotes identifying the authors should be typed on a separate page and submitted in the cover letter file. Authors should make every effort to ensure that the manuscript file itself contains no clues to their identities. Manuscripts that do not comply with these instructions will be returned to the authors without review.

This journal uses ScholarOne Manuscripts (previously Manuscript Central) to peer review manuscript submissions. Please read the guide for ScholarOne authors before making a submission. Complete guidelines for preparing and submitting your manuscript to this journal are provided below.

Publication Policies

Authors are responsible for all statements made in their work and for obtaining permission from copyright owners to use a lengthy quotation (500 words or more) or to reprint or adapt a table or figure published elsewhere. Authors should write to both author(s) and publisher of such material to request nonexclusive world rights in all language for use in print and nonprint forms of the article and in future editions. This applies to direct reproduction as well as “derivative reproduction” (where you have created a new figure or table which derives substantially from a copyrighted source). Authors are required to sign an agreement for the transfer of copyright to the publisher. All accepted manuscripts, artwork, and photographs become the property of the publisher.

Open Access

Taylor & Francis Open Select provides authors or their research sponsors and funders with the option of paying a publishing fee and thereby making an article fully and permanently available for free online access – open access – immediately on publication to anyone, anywhere, at any time. This option is made available once an article has been accepted in peer review. Full details of our Open Access program.

Search Engine Optimization

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Visit the Taylor & Francis Author Services website for further resources and guides to the complete publication process and beyond.

Interested in joining the manuscript review team?

Applications for Editorial Board Ad-Hoc reviewers are considered on an as-needed basis. If you are interested in becoming an Editorial Board Ad Hoc Reviewer send a current CV along with a letter of interest to Barb Myers, Managing Editor, bamyers@iu.edu

Editorial Board

ASSOCIATE EDITORS

EDITORIAL ASSISTANT

CONSULTING EDITORS