Author Guidelines

  1. Type of Manuscripts

AJSPM welcomes the following article types:

  • Original research articles (quantitative, qualitative, or mixed methods)
  • Psychometric/Measurement Studies (scale development, validation, adaptation, invariance, IRT/CTT studies)
  • Experimental studies (lab/field experiments with clear design and analysis)
  • Systematic Review/Meta Analyses (with transparent methods)
  1. Submission Requirements
  • Submissions must be original, not previously published, and not under consideration elsewhere.
  • Manuscripts should be written in English with a clear academic style.
  • Manuscripts must be submitted through the journal’s online submission system (OJS). Ensure all required metadata (author names, affiliations, corresponding authors, abstract, keywords) is completed accurately.
  1. Manuscript Structure

AJSPM generally follows an empirical article structure. Because of the blind review system, authors SHOULD NOT include their names, their affiliations, the address of the affiliation, or their email addresses in the manuscript file. Authors' details (names, affiliations, and email addresses) should be provided only through the OJS submission system in the enter metadata section.  

  • Title page (submitted separately for double-blind review)
    • Title
    • Author names, affiliations, ORCID (recommended)
    • Corresponding author email
    • Funding statement (if any)
    • Conflict of interest statement
  • Blinded Manuscript File (no author identifiers)
    • Title. This should be a concise, compact formulation. It may be creatively written to attract readers. Maximum 20 words, in English, bold, with the first word capitalized.
    • Abstract (150-200 words). It must be written in English; it should comprise one single-spaced paragraph and not exceed 200 words. The text should be clear and concise, including five components: (1) research background, (2) research objectives, (3) methods, (4) results, and (5) research implications. Do not include abbreviations or citations.
    • Keywords(3-6 keywords). These should reflect the study variables, participant characteristics, and cited theoretical frameworks (at least three terms or phrases), listed alphabetically and separated by semicolons.
    • Introduction. The introduction should concisely present the research background, a focused review of relevant literature, the original contribution of the study, and the research objectives. For quantitative studies, authors should also state the hypothesis or hypotheses where applicable. The background must clearly identify a knowledge gap in psychometrics, experimental psychology, or educational psychology that requires empirical clarification or theoretical explanation.
      The literature review should synthesize key theories and prior findings that are directly relevant to the research problem, and it should demonstrate how the chosen framework informs the research question(s) and guides the study design, particularly where psychological measurement or instrumentation is central. Authors must explicitly describe the novelty of the work.
      If hypotheses are included, they should be grounded in the theoretical review and, where appropriate, stated in a directional (one-tailed) form. Research objectives should be written in clear narrative sentences. The introduction should be approximately 20% of the full manuscript.
    • Method. This section should describe the overall research methods used in the study and provide sufficient detail to allow replication and to guide further research. Authors must clearly identify the study design, variables/constructs, and participants (including key characteristics, sampling procedures, inclusion/exclusion criteria, and research setting).
      For studies involving psychological measurement, authors must report the research instruments in detail, including the instrument name(s), the number of items, response format/scoring procedures, and reliability coefficients relevant to the current study. If instruments are adapted or translated, the adaptation procedure should be described (as applicable). For experimental and educational studies, procedures should be presented clearly.
      The methods section should also specify the statistical analysis techniques and software used, including model specifications where relevant (e.g., EFA/CFA/SEM/IRT models, fit criteria, and decision rules). The methods section should be approximately 20% of the full manuscript.
    • Results. This section should present the study findings clearly and systematically. Authors should report the data in a straightforward form, followed by the results of any assumption checks (where relevant), and then the results of hypothesis testing and/or analyses. Results may be presented sequentially or integrated across analyses, but they must be reported in a logical order and interpreted with critical clarity.
      The results section must directly address the research questions and/or hypotheses. Tables, charts, and figures should be used where appropriate to summarize key findings and to make the analyses meaningful and easy to understand. For measurement-focused manuscripts, authors should report the main psychometric evidence relevant to the study (e.g., factor/model results, reliability indices, and validity-related findings, as applicable). The results section should be approximately 20% of the full manuscript.
    • Discussion. This section should interpret the study findings by linking them to relevant theories and current literature and by comparing them with the results from previous studies. The discussion must provide a critical explanation of what the findings mean, why they matter, and how they advance knowledge within AJSPM’s scope (psychometrics, experimental psychology, developmental psychology, and educational psychology).
      Authors should explain the implications of the results for research, practice, and/or policy, particularly where the study involves psychological measurement or the use of instruments in specific populations or educational/developmental settings. The discussion should not merely repeat the results section; instead, it should offer interpretation, integration, and evaluation.
      Authors must also acknowledge the strengths of the study and discuss its limitations, including methodological constraints and directions for future research. The discussion should be approximately 20% of the full manuscript.
    • Conclussion. This section should present the main conclusions of the study in concise, clear, and compact sentences, written as coherent paragraphs (not bullet points or numbered lists). The conclusion must be grounded in the results and discussion, synthesizing the key findings and explaining what the study clarifies in relation to the research questions and/or hypotheses.
      Authors should highlight the original contributions of the study to psychological knowledge within AJSPM’s scope, particularly in relation to psychological measurement and psychometrics, experimental evidence, developmental processes, or educational applications. The conclusion should not introduce new data or arguments and should not exceed one page.
    • Acknowledgment (if any). This is a short text to acknowledge the contributions of colleagues, institutions, or agencies that aided the efforts of the authors.
    • References. References from the most recent 10 years are recommended. The reference list must be arranged in alphabetical order and formatted using APA referencing style (7thedition). All sources listed in the reference list must be cited in the manuscript, and every in-text citation must appear in the reference list. Please include the DOI for each reference whenever available. Authors are encouraged to use a reference manager such as Mendeley.
  1. Formatting and Style
  • The rules in the Publication Manual of the APA 7thedition should be followed.
  • Font/Spacing: Times New Roman 12, with 1.5 spacing; the words should be between 3000-4000 excluding references.
  • Use standard statistical notation and report values consistently.
  • Use Mendeley or Zotero reference management software and select the setting for APA 7th
  • Tables, figures, or graphs must be in editable format (not screenshots, not JPEG/JPG/PNG format), it must be clear, titled, and referenced in-text.
  1. Methodological and Reporting Standards  

AJSPM prioritizes methodological rigor. Authors should report enough detail to allow evaluation and replication.

  • For quantitative studies: Sampling and inclusion/exclusion criteria, power considerations (when appropriate), clear operational definitions of constructs, and report effect size and uncertainty (e.g., confidence intervals) where appropriate.
  • For experimental studies: randomization/allocation procedures (if used), control/comparison conditions, manipulation checks (if applicable), internal validity threats, and how they were addressed.
  • For psychometric and measurement papers, if your work involves scale development/adaptation/validation, include as applicable:
    • Construct definition and theoretical basis
    • Item development/adaptation procedure (e.g., translation/back-translation, cultural adaptation, pilot testing)
    • Reliability evidence appropriate to design (e.g., internal consistency, test-retest, interrater)
    • Validity evidence aligned to claims (e.g., content, factor structure, convergent/discriminant, criterion-related)
    • Model specification and fit reporting (for CFA/EFA/SEM)
    • Measurement invariance in making group comparisons
  1. Double-Blind Review: Remove author names/affiliations from the main manuscript file; avoid self-identifying statements (e.g., “in our previous work at X University....”); if citing your own work, write neutrally (as you would cite any other author); put acknowledgments and funding details only in the title page file.
  2. Contact: For editorial inquiries, please contact the Editorial Office via the journal website.