Journal Author Guidelines

The American Mental Health Counselors Association
Journal of Mental Health Counseling

GUIDELINES FOR AUTHORS

The Journal of Mental Health Counseling publishes articles on all aspects of practice, theory, research, and professionalism related to mental health counseling. The Journal is divided into four sections: Practice, Theory, Research, and Professional Exchange. For all qualitative and quantitative research articles, authors must include a detailed description of the participants, with particular to their race, ethnicity, and gender. Authors are expected to discuss the implications of the findings based on the racial, ethnic, and gender composition of the sample or population.

Manuscripts should be well organized and concise so that the development of ideas is clear. Avoid dull, stereotyped writing and the use of jargon. Aim for clear communication of ideas. Include separate pages for author notes and the abstract. The abstract should clearly summarize the main ideas of the manuscript. Manuscripts should be prepared in accord with the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (5th ed.)

Do not use footnotes. The material they would contain should be incorporated in the text. Keep tables to a minimum. Include only essential data and combine tables where possible. Refer to the APA publication manual for style of tabular presentations. Each table should be on a separate page following the reference section of the manuscript. Final placement of tables is at the discretion of the Editor; in all cases, tables will be placed near the first reference to them in the text. Be sure to include figure legends on a separate sheet.

Lengthy quotations require permission from the copyright holder for reproduction. Adaptation of tables and figures also requires reproduction approval from the copyrighted source. It is the author’s responsibility to secure such permission and a copy of the publisher’s written permission must be provided to the Editor immediately after acceptance of the article for publication.

References should follow APA style. Check all references for completeness and accuracy including year, volume number, and pages of journal citations. Make certain that all text references are listed in the reference list and vice versa. For other style questions, consult the APA Publication Manual. Consult the APA web site (www.apa.org/journals/webref.html) for the correct format for electronic references.

All manuscripts undergo a blind peer review process.

Typing Requirements

• Article titles and headings should be as short as possible.
• The title of the article should appear on the first page. Also include in this page the name and institutional affiliation of each author. Also provide address, telephone number, fax number, and e-mail address for each author.
• Double space all materials. Allow wide margins.
• Authors must reduce bias in language against persons on the basis of gender, sexual orientation, racial or ethnic group, disability, or age by referring to the guidelines in the APA Publication Manual.
• Never submit material for concurrent consideration by another publication.
• Manuscripts should be submitted electronically to the Editor along with a cover letter. Cover letters should be prepared following APA Publication Manual guidelines
• Submit manuscripts electronically to jmhc@uakron.edu
• To submit in hard copy, send an original and three (3) copies, along with a cover letter to:

James R. Rogers, Ph.D.
Editor, Journal of Mental Health Counseling
The University of Akron
Department of Counseling
27 South Forge Street
Akron, OH 44325-5007
Office: 330.972.8635
Fax: 330.972.5292 

• Authors submitting hard copy must include an email address in their correspondence with the Editor.
• Final versions of accepted manuscripts must be submitted electronically using Microsoft Word. No other file formats will be accepted.