Author Guidelines

TYPES OF PAPERS

The journal PSYCHOLOGY publishes papers that fall into the main categories listed below.

Empirical research papers: They are the most common form of papers published in the journal PSYCHOLOGY. Empirical research papers, to be accepted for publication, must be original and contribute to the advancement of the field in which they are ascribed, having significant theoretical, applied, and / or multidisciplinary implications. Empirical papers may vary significantly in length, depending on the methodology or nature of the research results they present. However, their extent cannot exceed 8,000 words (including the abstract, tables and graphs, appendices, but excluding the bibliography). In exceptional cases (e.g. reporting of results from multiple studies), a paper of up to 10,000 words may be accepted, upon a reasoned request to the Editor.

Brief empirical reports: This is an alternative way of publishing the results of empirical research. Brief reports present and discuss in a concise and comprehensive way the theoretical background, objectives, methodology, and results of a study. Like empirical research papers, they must be original and have significant theoretical, applied, and/or multidisciplinary implications. Their extent should not exceed 4,000 words (including abstract, tables and graphs, appendices, but excluding bibliography).

Theoretical syntheses / reviews: These papers focus on an important contemporary subject of psychological research and, based on findings from previous studies, review, analyze, and critically evaluate their findings. The theoretical reviews cannot exceed 8,000 words (including abstract, tables and charts, appendices, but excluding bibliography). In exceptional cases, work may be accepted up to 10,000 words upon a reasoned request to the Editor.

Special sections / issues: This is a form of joint publication of many papers - written by different authors - which focus on a common subject. These papers are published simultaneously in a special section of the journal.

The Editorial Committee of the journal may announce a call for papers on a specific topic in order to edit and issue a special tribute (see current announcements). The journal also accepts proposals from researchers who want to propose a specific subject, as well as to compile and edit, as guest editors, the papers of a special section/issue.

Each special section/issue must contain at least six (6) full papers, two commentaries of about ten (10) pages each, and an Introduction by the guest editor.

Researchers interested in editing a special section/issue of the journal PSYCHOLOGY should submit a proposal containing the following information: (1) Title of the Special Section, (2) Summary - Purpose, (3) guest editor(s) Name(s), (4) Authors names, (5) Title and abstract of each paper, (6) Names of two commentators, and (7) timetable for the implementation of the special issue.

Upon approval of the proposal by the Editorial Committee, the guest editor coordinates the peer-review process by external reviewers (through the eJournals platform of the Hellenic Documentation Centre) and submits all the peer-reviewed papers of the special section/issue to the Chief Εditor within the agreed deadline. Some papers in the special section could potentially be rejected by the Editorial Committee of the journal after the review process. The Editorial Committee makes the final decision on the publication of the special section/issue. In the event that a special issue is not approved for publication, the papers that have been positively evaluated may be published as individual papers.

Book reviews: These are short reviews of new books with particular theoretical importance. The extent of a book review cannot exceed 2,000 words (excluding bibliography). Authors wishing to carry out a book review should send a proposal to the Journal's Editorial Committee.

Translations: In special cases, researchers may send to the Editorial Board of the journal a proposal to publish a translation of a foreign-language work of particular importance and theoretical weight for one of the fields of psychology. Translations may be published after approval by the Editorial Board and assurance of relevant rights by the publisher / journal of the original foreign-language paper.

SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL

Supplementary material such as research instruments, data, software / applications, videos, images and sound clips, can be published with any article to enhance it. Submitted supplementary items are published as they are received (e.g., Excel or PowerPoint files will appear as such online). Please submit supplementary material together with the paper and supply a concise, descriptive caption for each supplementary file. If you wish to make changes to supplementary material during any stage of the peer-review process, please make sure to provide an updated file during resubmission.

COST OF PUBLICATION

The journal PSYCHOLOGY has a Diamond Open-Access policy. The authors are not charged with any submission, processing, production, or publication costs. These costs are entirely waived by the Hellenic Psychological Society. Papers can be openly accessed and shared immediately after publication.

PEER-REVIEW PROCESS

The evaluation of each paper by independent reviewers is intended to ensure the quality, methodological adequacy and originality of the papers published in PSYCHOLOGY. The reviewers collaborating with the journal are distinguished scientists from Greece or abroad who cover all the scientific fields of psychology and related sciences. Their contribution to ensuring the quality of the work published in the journal is crucial.

The journal PSYCHOLOGY has adopted a "double-blind" peer-review model, protecting thus the identity of both the authors of the paper and of its reviewers. Each submitted work is sent to at least two independent reviewers who evaluate the paper on its originality, integrity, consistency and, in general, its overall quality. Τhe Editorial team ensures that reviewers of each paper are specialists in the field and independent of the authors, i.e. not affiliated with the same institution, not collaborating in the same project.

See, Instructions to reviewers 

Upon considering that a paper meets the scientific criteria for publication in the journal, the evaluators may request a review of the paper by sending their general and specific comments and suggestions for improvement to the authors. The review process may include one or more rounds of review until the manuscript reaches the necessary quality to be accepted for publication. The final decision on the publication of the paper is taken by the Editor on the basis of the aforementioned reviews.

Confidentiality of submissions and evaluations

Papers submitted for publication in PSYCHOLOGY, as well as their evaluations/peer-reviews are considered confidential documents. Only the Editor-in-Chief, the members of the Editorial Board of the journal, and the anonymous reviewers of the paper have access to them. Relevant confidentiality instructions are given to all parties involved.

Appeals/complaints against rejection

In case an author presents an appeal against rejection, the Editor-in-chief of the Journal will consider the author’s argument, the reviewer reports and will decide whether the decision to reject should stand, another independent opinion/review is required, or the appeal should be considered. The complainant is informed of the Editor's decision with an explanation if appropriate. Decisions on appeals are final.

AUTHORSHIP

Every person listed as an author of the submitted papers should meet the following criteria for authorship, and every person who meets the following criteria for authorship must be listed as an author.
Authors must 
1. have made substantial contributions to the conception or design of the research work or the acquisition, analysis or interpretation of data
2. have drafted the paper or revised it critically for intellectual content
3. have approved the submitted version, and
4. agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.

Changes to authorship

Authors are expected to consider carefully the list and order of authors before submitting their manuscript and provide the definitive list of authors at the time of the original submission. Any addition, deletion or rearrangement of author names in the authorship list should be made only before the manuscript has been accepted and only if approved by the journal Editor. To request such a change, the Editor must receive (a) a statement on the reason for the change from the corresponding author, and (b) a written confirmation from all authors that they agree with the addition, removal or rearrangement. In the case of addition or removal of authors, this includes confirmation from the author being added or removed. Only in exceptional circumstances will the Editor consider the addition, deletion or rearrangement of authors after the manuscript has been accepted. While the Editor considers the request, publication of the manuscript will be suspended. If the manuscript has already been published in an online issue, any requests approved by the Editor will result in a corrigendum.

Authorship disputes

In case of authorship disputes (e.g., on the inclusion of a person who does not meet authorship criteria, the omission of a person who meets criteria for authorship, the submission of a manuscript without the knowledge or consent of an author, the order of the authors’ names), consideration of the manuscript for publication may have to be postponed pending resolution of the dispute. In case of such disputes, the Editor-in-Chief will initially query the corresponding author and/or other authors of the paper regarding the claim. Depending on the response, the journal may need to turn the investigation of the complaint over to the institution(s) where the work reported in the manuscript was done.
If the manuscript has already been published, any disputes that lead to a change in authorship will result in the publication of a corrigendum.

USE OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI) TOOLS

AI tools cannot meet the requirements for authorship as they cannot take responsibility for the submitted work. As non-legal entities, they cannot assert the presence or absence of conflicts of interest nor manage copyright and license agreements. Therefore, these tools cannot be listed as an author of a paper.
The use of AI tools in the writing of a manuscript, production of images or graphical elements of the paper, or in the collection and analysis of data must be transparent in disclosing in the Materials and Methods, in Acknowledgements or similar section of the paper how the AI tool was used and which tool/version was used. Tools that are used to improve spelling, grammar, and general editing are not included in the scope of these guidelines.
Authors are fully responsible for the content of their manuscript, the accuracy of any information provided and for correctly referencing any supporting work on which that information depends, even for those parts produced by an AI tool. They are thus liable for any breach of publication ethics.

DECLARATION OF COMPETING INTERESTS

A competing interest is anything that interferes with, or could reasonably be perceived as interfering with, the full and objective presentation, peer review, editorial decision-making, or publication of research or non-research articles submitted to the Journal PSYCHOLOGY.

Competing interests can be financial or non-financial, professional, or personal. Competing interests can arise in relation to an institution, organization, or another person.

Declaring all potential competing interests is a requirement at PSYCHOLOGY and is integral to the transparent reporting of research.

Failure to declare competing interests can result in the immediate rejection of a manuscript. If an undisclosed competing interest comes to light after publication, PSYCHOLOGY will take action and issue a public notification to the community.

ETHICS APPROVAL

When reporting a study that involved human participants, authors should include a statement that confirms that the study was approved by the appropriate institutional and/or national research ethics committee, mention the name of the ethics committee and the approval number, and certify that the study was performed in accordance with the ethical standards as laid down in the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments.

When reporting a study that involved animals the authors should clearly indicate in the manuscript that the study complies with the EU Directive 2010/63/EU for animal experiments and that such guidelines have been followed.

PLAGIARISM

Plagiarism is when an author attempts to use/publish someone else’s work or part of it as his or her own. Duplicate publication, sometimes called self-plagiarism, occurs when an author reuses substantial parts of his or her own published work without providing the appropriate references. This can range from getting an identical paper published in multiple journals, to adding small amounts of new data to a previous paper. 

Plagiarism, including duplicate publication of the authors’ own work, in whole or in part without proper citation, represents a violation of intellectual property law and is not tolerated by the journal.

By submitting a manuscript to the journal it is understood and explicitly declared that it is an original manuscript and unpublished work and is not under consideration elsewhere.

Manuscripts submitted to the journal are checked for originality using anti-plagiarism software (TurnItIn) after submission and before starting review.

Plagiarism can appear in various forms.

• Copying the exact content from another source.
• Using portions of another author's paper.
• Copying elements of another author's paper, such as figures, tables, equations or illustrations, or copying or purposely using sentences without citing the source.
• Copying or downloading figures, photographs, pictures or diagrams without properly acknowledging the sources.
• In the case of a paper being submitted, that was originally published in another language, the title, date, and journal of the original publication must be identified by the authors, and the copyright must be obtained. The editor may accept such a translated publication to bring it to the attention of a wider audience.
• In case the author wants to use material from another work then it is mandatory to cite the source in references. 

Handling of plagiarism

The manuscripts in which the plagiarism is detected are handled based on the extent of the plagiarism.

• < 20% Plagiarism: The manuscript is sent back to the author(s) for content revision.
• >20% Plagiarism: The manuscript is rejected without review.

MISCONDUCT / VIOLATION OF ETHICAL STANDARDS

If there is suspicion of violation of ethical standards (i.e. scientific misbehavior or alleged fraud of any kind), the Editorial Committee of the journal will carry out an investigation. If, after an investigation, there are valid concerns, the authors concerned will be contacted under their given email address and given an opportunity to address the issue.
If the violation of the ethical standards is confirmed, depending on the situation and the severity of the violation, this may result in the implementation of one of the following measures:

• If the manuscript is still under review, it may be rejected and returned to the author.
• If the article has already been published, depending on the nature and severity of the infraction:

1. an erratum/corrigendum may be placed with the article.
2. an editor’s note or editorial expression of concern may be placed with the article.
3. or, in severe cases, retraction of the article may occur.

The reason will be given in the published erratum/corrigendum, editor’s note, editorial expression of concern, or retraction notice. In case of retraction, the article is maintained on the platform marked “retracted” and the explanation is provided in a note linked to the article.

DATA AVAILABILITY & ARCHIVING

Reproducibility of scientific claims is integral to the integrity of published research. At the heart of research claims are the data from which results are obtained and conclusions are drawn. Without access to the original data, scientific claims can be difficult (if not impossible) to replicate.
The journal PSYCHOLOGY aims to encourage meta-analysis and reproducibility studies, and to facilitate understanding of the data underlying the papers published. Therefore, it strongly encourages authors to make the data associated with their manuscript available:

• by providing a link to an open-access repository where the data are permanently stored (e.g., the National Documentation Centre repository, the Open Science Framework (OSF), the SSOAR repository for the Social Sciences, zenodo.org repository of OpenAir, Dataverse, re3data.org or the Databibadd list). Note that personal websites and departmental websites do not qualify as repositories because they are transient.
• by including them as supplementary material to the submitted paper (through our online submission system, selecting the submission item as ‘Data set'). Data published as a supplement with PSYCHOLOGY, will be connected to the DOI of the manuscript.

FORMATTING OF PAPERS

The maximum extent of each paper depends on its type (see, TYPES OF PAPERS above).

Authors must format their work in the relevant TEMPLATE document provided by the journal and follow the style, formatting, and submission guidelines detailed in the GUIDELINES document.

DOWNLOAD the TEMPLATE & GUIDELINES documents here:

• TEMPLATE (EN) in English       TEMPLATE (GR) in Greek
• GUIDELINES (EN) in English    GUIDELINES (GR) in Greek

Authors are also encouraged to upload, together with their manuscript, "Complementary material" (see, above) which would enhance the recognition and dissemination of their work.  

Authors must remove any information that will lead to their identification (names, institutions, laboratories, bibliographic references, etc.) when submitting their work for evaluation. This information will be added in the final stage before the work is published.

SUBMISSION

To submit your paper online, go to the following link https://ejournals.epublishing.ekt.gr/ index.php/psychology/submission/wizard and fill in all necessary information following the steps as described.

You must register as an author to submit your paper online. If you have already registered in the journal, please, upgrade your profile.

The following fields in your profile are mandatory (papers will not be assigned for review if the mandatory fields are not completed):

OpenAIRE metadata. If your submission is the result of EC funding through Horizon 2020, this field is obligatory to fill with the grant agreement number of your research grant. This will allow for your publication to become visible in the European repository www.openaire.eu, which provides open access to all publications funded by the EC.

Supporting Institutions.We recommend completing this field if the article is the result of a specific grant, a European project or a private research funder (e.g. the European Commission, the Hellenic Foundation for Research and Innovation, the Latsis Foundation).

NOTE: Uploading of revised versions of a paper by its authors is done as a continuation of the original submission and not as a new submission. To locate the original submission, visit the 'User Dashboard'.