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Submission Guidelines

The Journal for Social Thought (JST) is a peer-reviewed academic journal that is run and maintained by the graduate students in the department of sociology at Western University. The journal is seeking articles and essays that exemplify the following characteristics:

  • Have originality in terms of ideas, claims, and conclusions, and add to the field of study, rather than just reaffirming the existing literature
  • Are important to researchers and social scientists in the specific field
  • Are interesting to researchers in other related disciplines
  • Have strong evidence for the conclusions

The JST accepts original articles and essays (both theoretical and empirical). We do not accept book reviews and research progress reports. As an interdisciplinary journal, the JST encourages submissions within the scope of sociology and related social sciences, including but not limited to the following topics: classical and contemporary social theory; families; aging; work and policy; life course; migration; criminology; health and mental health; race; class; colonialism; quantitative and qualitative methodologies; globalization; internet and technology; gender and sexuality; demography, and many other issues that can be examined under sociological lens. While each annual issue will usually focus on one central theme that is reflected in our current Call for Papers, the inaugural issue will include a breadth of sociological topics. Please see our FAQs for additional information.

Anyone can submit an article for publication in the Journal for Social Thought. The JST encourages manuscript submissions from graduate students, academic professionals, and independent researchers from all over the world who are writing on a variety of sociological topics. We especially welcome submissions from graduate students at Canadian universities and submissions on social issues that are relevant to Canada and Canadians. For empirical papers, all research methodologies are accepted and welcome: quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods. Unfortunately, we only accept submissions written in English at this time.

There are no fees associated with publishing in the JST. Submitters do not need to pay anything and accepted papers do also not require any payment. There are no membership costs.

Manuscript Submission

All manuscripts submitted will be considered to be 1) original, 2) not under consideration for publication from another journal, and 3) not previously published. It will also be assumed that the manuscript has been approved by all co-authors, as well as the institution in which the work was carried out. The publishers will not be legally responsible for any claims of compensation.

By submitting to the Journal for Social Thought (JST), the authors affirm compliance with all of the following statements:

  1. The submission is not being considered for publication by another journal and has not been otherwise previously published.
  2. All sentences and phrases that are directly from another source must be placed in quotations and clearly cited. Both intentional and unintentional violations will be considered plagiarism and will result in disqualification from the submission process.
  3. All research involving human or animal subjects must be approved by a Research Ethics Board and may require documentation of approval by the JST.
  4. All reproduced copyrighted material (e.g. images, figures, tables) has received the proper permissions.

Online Submission

All prospective authors are to submit their manuscripts online, as the journal only publishes electronically. Authors using the system for the first time will need to go the website and create a new account. This information will only be available to the senior editors of the JST and will not be shared publicly or with third parties. Authors who have previously registered on the system can use the login section to access their account using their email address and password. All correspondence with authors will be through email.

All articles will be submitted with the following sections: title page, abstract, keywords, main document, references, tables and figures, illustrations if available, and appendices or supplementary material.

Submit your manuscript to our online Submit Article page in multiple documents. All written sections (abstract, keywords, main manuscript, references) are to be included a single MS Word document (.doc or .docx format) and not include the author name(s). The title page should have the author names and be submitted separately from the main manuscript in its own MS Word document. Finally, submit an additional copy of all tables in MS Excel format (.xls or .xlsx) and tables in an image file (.png or .jpg) either in multiple documents or a single document. This will allow for a simple conversion into LaTeX formatting, which will be the final output presentation of the publication.

Along with your manuscript documents, you must also submit a signed copy of the JST Authorship Agreement, which outlines the obligations and consent of the author(s).

Please adhere to the following guidelines when you are uploading the following additional files following the submission of the main manuscript text:

  • Title Page: Please upload a separate Title Page that has the author names and full title in Microsoft Word format (.doc or .docx). Write in the description “Title Page”.
  • Tables: Please upload your tables in Microsoft Excel format (.xls or .xlsx). They can be included in one file or multiple files. If all of the tables are in the same file write in the description “Tables”. If all of the tables are included as separate files write in the description “Table N” (with N being the table number).
  • Figures: Please upload your figures in separate image files (.png or .jpg). Write in the description “Figure N” (with N being the figure number).
  • JST Authorship Agreement: Please upload your signed Authorship Agreement form (.pdf). Write in the description “Authorship Agreement”.

Title Page

The title of the manuscript should not exceed 15 words. It should be concise, informative, and easy to find. The title page needs to include the name(s) of the author(s), their affiliations, and email address of the corresponding author. The title page should be its own separate MS Word document.

Abstract and Keywords

The abstract should not exceed 200 words. The abstract should consist of the objectives of the paper, the methods used, the results or findings, and contributions of the paper. The keywords should not exceed six (6) words or short phrases for indexing purposes, and should also not be a repetition of the title.

Main Manuscript

The main manuscript should be double-spaced in all sections, excluding the references which can be single-spaced. The page layout requires 1 inch margins on all sides and a justified alignment. The font must be black, size 12, and in Times New Roman.

Manuscripts should not exceed 30 pages (double spaced) or 10,000 words, including all tables, figures, references, and appendices. All manuscripts need to be prepared in accordance with the guidelines of the 6th edition of the American Psychological Association (APA) publication manual.

The main manuscript should include the title of the paper without the names of the authors. The manuscript should consist of the abstract, keywords, the actual paper text, and references. The main title page, tables/figures, and supplementary documents need to be submitted as separate documents through the online submission system. Authors must indicate within the manuscript which positions they expect the tables to be inserted if they are not included in text. Any acknowledgements made should appear at the end of the article before the references.

A running header should be included with a shortened title, as well as page numbers. Headings (e.g., start of sections) should be distinguished from the main body. Use the same font face for all headings. There should be a space above and below headings.

Tables and Figures

All tables should be uploaded in MS Excel format (.xls or .xlsx) either in a single document or in multiple documents. All figures should be uploaded separately as image files (.png or .jpg).

References

All in-text citations and the reference list need to follow the format as written in the 6th edition of the publication manual of the American Psychological Association (APA 6th). Any manuscript that does not follow this format will be sent back to the author(s) for revision.

Additional Submission Requirements

Please see other documentation for more information:

JST Authorship Agreement
Author Resources
JST FAQs
Policies
Copyright Notice
Peer Review Information
JST Code of Ethics