Getting Published in The Journal of Black Psychology

By Beverly J. Vandiver, Ph.D.

 

Getting published in a psychological journal is a competitive process and can be challenging and lengthy. However, authors who are attentive to several factors will ease the process and increase the likelihood of receiving a positive review, and possibly an acceptance of their manuscript for publication. The process of getting published in the Journal of Black Psychology (JBP) isno different than most psychological journals. There are key factors authors need to pay attention to increase their manuscript in obtaining a positive review. Five of these factors are summarized below. These are (a) fit of the research, (b) contribution to the psychological literature, (c) quality of  the  manuscript,  (d)  quality of APA style and writing, and (e) responsiveness to editorial feedback.

 

Fit of the Research

The topic of the manuscript should fit with the mission of the journal. The mission of JBP is to publish manuscripts on the psychological experiences of Black/ African populations. Thus, manuscripts in which the population is not Black or of African descent are not reviewed. Most manuscripts in which the focus is a cross-cultural comparison, comparing a Black sample to non-Black samples, are also not reviewed. Historically, a Black sample was compared to a White sample, which was treated as the normative group. This comparative approach was used to establish that Blacks were psychological deficient or pathological (Guthrie, 2004). There is nothing wrong with a comparative research when the purpose is designed to describe the difference and understand  the  meaningfulness  of the difference (Azibo, 1988). This is the primary approach of cross-cultural psychology when samples from different countries, cultural populations, or ethnicities are compared (Matsumoto & Juang, 2012). What is disconcerting is when comparative research  is based on a small sample of Blacks in comparison    to a larger sample of Whites. Thus, it is important to use an intracultural approach within a racial/ethnic population before using  a  comparative  approach.  An intracultural approach allows for understanding the specific processes within a population, so what is normative is established within the population instead of using another population’s normative standards (Ponterotto & Casas, 1991). Not all Blacks are alike. Thus, understanding the cultural differences within the broader nomenclature of African or Black is vital to advance the field of Black and African psychology.

 

Contribution to the Literature

Another crucial issue to address for a positive editorial review at JBP is whether the content of the manuscript provides a contribution to the psychological literature on Black/African populations. To fulfill this step means that the authors need to conduct a thorough literature search on the specific topic and identify a gap within the pertinent literature. In recent years, replicating established studies have been encouraged, as new techniques, electronic equipment, and measures  have changed the course of research and the findings (Bohannon, 2015). Thus, it is important to establish in the introduction/literature why the specific research  is important by indicating how it closes  the  gap  in the literature, replicates, or advances the research. In essence, a case must be made that this manuscript is timely and will made a contribution to the psychological literature on Black/African populations.

 

Quality and Structure of the Content

Each section of the manuscript is reviewed for its quality. For an empirical manuscript, the required sections are introduction/literature review, method, results, discussion, references, and tables/figures. The authors of conceptual or systematic literature review manuscripts create the necessary sections, but the focus is on definitions, systematic reviews, critical analyses, and synthesis of the pertinent literature. Because the bulk of JBP’s submissions are empirical in nature and due to limited space for this article, I will briefly summarize what the editor and reviewers of JBP are looking for in the primary sections of an empirical paper.

 

Introduction/literature review. Reviewers will evaluate whether  the  introduction/literature  has  covered  the relevant research on the specific psychological concepts.

 

Reviewers look to see whether seminal articles or studies are reviewed or cited. And reviewers will check whether the literature is dated and accurate. Other areas that will be reviewed include the quality of the flow and structure of the literature review, the level of critical analysis, and the extent of the case made for the importance of the research. The literature review needs to end with the purpose of the study, which includes the goals, research questions, or hypotheses of the study. It is important that the goals, research questions, or hypotheses parallel the literature reviewed. At times intuitive leaps are made from the literature that has not been established and the focus of the research is based on these leaps, not what has actually been established.

 

Method section. The purpose of the method section  is to describe the methodological steps clearly so other researchers are able to replicate the research.

 

The information may also provide evidence  for  the  generalizability  of the findings. For the participant section, the sample needs to be described well, such as age range, race/ethnicity, gender, social class, occupation or academic status, income level, marital status, and  any other pertinent demographic variables. For the measures section, sufficient information needs to be provided about each scale or variable used as measures. Describing a scale requires defining the construct and reporting its rating format, scoring, and  interpretation.  Evidence  that it is a viable scale is required: prior, not current, reliability estimates and validity of the scores. For qualitative research, it is important to describe the coding and interpretive process.

 

Finally, procedures of how the data were collected need to be described. If an experimental design is used, the design needs to be described clearly, including the manipulations, materials, equipment, or stimuli used.

 

Results section. The sequence of the findings is vital to a well written and understandable results section. The focus of the first paragraphs of the results section should be on descriptive statistics (e.g., means, standard deviations, correlations, reliability estimates). If there are more than two to three variables, then reporting this information in a table is best. It is important to indicate how missing data and outliers were treated and whether the assumptions of the statistics have been met. Preliminary analyses need to be addressed, such as whether the scores of  a  scale  differ  based on some demographic or other specific  properties. For qualitative research, a set up of the themes that emerged is necessary.

Reporting primary analyses require that specific information be provided in a specific sequence. Any set-up information before the analyses were run must be reported (e.g., coding of categorical variables or creating interaction terms). The type of analysis needs to be noted, and then the variables used, the level of probability, and the specific statistics or omnibus test. Effect sizes must always be reported. Any findings of post-hoc tests need to follow the same sequence. The findings need to be interpreted in the context of the problem, so that the findings are understandable to the readers. Any extensive findings need to be reported  in tables and figures. Above all, the type of analyses used should be appropriate for the hypotheses posed and the level of measurement of the variables. For qualitative manuscripts, the themes need to be delineated and evidence needs to be provided to support the themes.

 

Discussion. The purpose of the research should be restated. It  should be noted whether the findings supported the goals, research questions, or hypotheses of the research. Then subsequent paragraphs are devoted to providing possible explanations for the findings based on prior research. It is critical to highlight how this findings advance the relevant research. Limitations of the research need to be reported. No research is without limitations. At least two to three limitations need to be noted. Finally, recommendations for future research and practice are presented.

 

Two to three recommendations of each are sufficient.

Quality of APA Style and Writing

For the social sciences, the American Psychological Association (APA; 2009) style manual is the established standard for the United States. Some standard is necessary for all papers to follow in order to make it easier for social scientists to communicate information. JBP follows the sixth edition style. Details matter. Sloppy presentations of research may signal to an editor or reviewers that the research may not have been done with care. To assist in this process, I recommend using the APA Style Blog, http://blog.apastyle.org/. There is a Google search engine within the website so searches for specific topics can be found easily. Examples are provided for setting up manuscripts, citing specific references, and setting up the references. The manual is now available as an E-book and the manual has examples of every aspect of putting together a manuscript, including the mechanics of writing.