Print version ISSN 1413-8271
Online version ISSN 2175-3563

INSTRUCTIONS TO AUTHORS

• Types of collaboration accepted by the journal Psico-USF
• Editorial norms
• Article submission
• Form of presentation
• References

Original papers related to psychology in the following categories:

1. Research report: investigation based on empirical data, using a scientific method. Limited to 20-25 pages, including summary, abstract, figures, tables, and bibliographical references.
2. Theoretical study: analysis of theoretical constructs leading to the questioning of existing themes and the elaboration of hypotheses for future research. Limited to 15-20 pages, with the same specifications as for Category 1.
3. Report of professional experience: Case study, with analysis of conceptual implications, or description of procedures or strategies of intervention, with methodologically appropriate evidence of the efficacy, of interest for practicing psychologists in various areas. Limited to 10 pages.
4. Critical review of the literature: Analysis of extensive body of investigation related to a subject of interest for the development of psychology. Limited to 15-20 pages, with the same specifications as for Category 1.
5. Research Note: Report of limited research supplementing a specific investigation. Limited to 7 pages.
6. Letter to the editor: Critical evaluation of an article published in Psico-USF, or the response of an author to such criticism.
7. Technical note: Description of original research techniques and instruments. Limited to 5 pages.
8. Review. Critical review of a recently-published book, informing readers of its contents and potential audience. Limited to 5 pages.
9. Debate. Register of the opinion of the individuals involved in polemic issues, either directly or indirectly. Limited to 5 pages.

1. Selective process. Manuscripts conforming to Categories 1 - 9 above will be evaluated on the basis of originality, thematic relevance, and methodological quality, as well as adequacy in relation to the editorial norms adopted by the journal. A manuscript will be accepted for analysis with the assumption that a) all authors are in agreement with the submission of the manuscript for publication in the journal Psico-USF, and b) any person cited as the source of personal communication agrees with that citation.

2. Original material: The contents of manuscripts submitted for publication in Psico-USF cannot have been published elsewhere, nor submitted for publication in any other journal. The contents and statements contained in all papers are the sole responsibility of the author(s).

3. Editorial review. The papers submitted for publication will be evaluated by the Editorial Board, which will consult ad hoc reviewers. There are three kinds of response: a) unconditional acceptance, b) acceptance subject to revision, and c) rejection. Authors are normally notified of the acceptance or rejection of their manuscripts within three months of the date of receipt. Even if they are rejected, the originals will not be returned.

The linguistic review of the manuscript will be undertaken by the Editorial Board of the journal. If substantial changes are necessary author(s) wil be given a month to make the requested changes.

4. Copyright: The copyright of published articles belongs to the journal Psico-USF. The reproduction of these articles in other publications or for any use requires the written authorization of the editor of Psico-USF. Those individuals interested in partial reproduction of the articles in the journal (quotations exceeding 500 words, as well as figures, tables, or other illustrations) should obtain written permission from the author(s) or copyright owner. Manuscripts containing reproductions of parts of other publications should respect limits of the original source to guarantee the originality of the paper submitted. It is recommended that the reproduction of figures, tables, and drawings extracted from other publications be avoided but, if this is not possible, should be accompanied by written permission. Under no circumstances can publication rights be granted to others without the written agreement of both the editor of Psico-USF and the authors.

Papers in Portuguese, Spanish and English are accepted.

Independent of the number of authors of a text, three copies of the journal will be supplied.

Information about the author(s): include a brief description (30-40words) about the present work of the author(s) and their education.

Manuscripts should be sent to the editors of Psico-UFS at the following address:

Include 1) a letter requesting publication of the paper in Psico-UFS, 2) three hard copies of the manuscript (fax not accepted), 3) a digital copy in an authorized format on a floppy disk labeled with the name of the file containing the article.

Letter requesting publication: Any manuscript submitted to the journal should be accompanied by a letter signed by all of the authors informing the journal that the manuscript is being submitted or resubmitted for publication. Submission of revised manuscripts should follow the same process as for initial submissions, with 3 hard copies and a digital version.

Ethical aspects: In the letter, the author(s) should guarantee that all participants in the study have given informed consent and that their privacy has been respected. It should also include the information that the work was approved by the ethics committee of the institution of the author(s).

Manuscripts in Portuguese, Spanish and English are accepted.

Style
Notes for publication: The journal Psico-USF adopts the style sheet of the APA.

Format
Articles should be typewritten, double-spaced throughout (including tables and references), in Times New Roman 12, with no more than 80 characters per line and the number of pages limited to what is permitted for which the manuscript is being submitted, with numbering starting with the cover page.
Standard 8 ½ x 11" or A4 paper should be used, with upper and lower margins of 2.5 cm and left and right margins of 3 cm each.

Manuscripts should follow the following format:

1. Cover page, without author identification, containing only the following
a. Complete title in the language of the manuscript, not to exceed 15 words. The title should be relevant and clear, but may be creative. It should inform the reader about the objective(s) of the paper, but should not include names of cities, countries or other other geographic information.
b. Suggested short form for running title, which should not exceed 5 words.
c. Complete title in English, comparable to that in the language of the manuscript.

2. Cover page with identification, containing
a. Complete title in language of the manuscript.
b. Suggestion for running title.
c. Complete title in English, comparable to that in the language of the manuscript.
d. Names of all of the authors.
e. Institutional affiliation of each of the authors (include only the name of the university and the city where it is located).
f. Footnote with acknowledgements and information about institutional support of the project.
g. Footnote containing address to which readers should address correspondence, followed by the complete postal address of the author. If available, e-mail address should be included.
h. Indication of postal address for maintaining author informed about the status of the manuscript, including fax/telephone number, as well as e-mail address, if available.

3. Page with summary in Portuguese or Spanish
a. The summary should not surpass 150 words in length for research reports (Category 1) or 100 words for those in Categories 2, 3, 4, 5, 9 and 10. Those for submissions in Categories 6 and 7 should be limited to 50 words, while those in Category 8 are not to be accompanied by a summary.
b. The summary need not include bibliographic references. The objective should be clear, informing the reader, when appropriate, of the problem, method and hypotheses. For research reports, the methods should provide brief information about the participants, instruments, and any special procedures utilized. Only the most important results, corresponding to the research objectives, should be mentioned. The summary of a critical review or a theoretical study should include the topic involved (in a single phrase), objective, thesis or construct under analysis, sources used (e.g. author observation, published literature) and conclusions.
c. After the summary, include 3 - 5 keywords in the language of the manuscript, all in lower case letters, separated by a semicolon. For more adequate descriptors, consult the APA thesaurus, thus facilitating future indexing of the work.

4. Page containing abstract in English, comparable in content to the text of the summary
a. The abstract should follow the same format as the summary, including keywords in English, the equivalent of the keywords provided with the summary.
b. It is standard practice for Psico-USF to make a final review of the abstract, and to make corrections if this is deemed necessary. However, authors are advised to have a competent user of the language review the language of the text of the abstract prior to submission of that manuscript for publication. This is a very important part of the paper, since, if the paper is published, it will be made available in all journal indexes.

5. Text structure
a. Titles and subtitles. The organization of the text should be easily recognized and indicated by a system of titles and subtitles which reflect this organization. In the case of research reports, the text should obligatorily include introduction, method, results, and discussion. The manuscripts in the other editorial categories should have appropriate titles and subtitles.
b. Notes: These should be avoided as much as possible. However, if they are necessary, they should be indicated by Arabic numerals in the text and listed after the references on a separate page entitled Notes.
c. Figures and Tables. The suggested location for the insertion of figures and tables should be indicated in the text and the actual figures and tables presented on separate pages. When referring to figures and tables in the text, the word Figure (or Table) should be capitalized and accompanied by equivalent number. No other terms (such as Graph) should be used.
d. Author references. Reference to authors should be made in agreement with the APA norms, as in Item V. The names of all authors of a paper should be cited, followed by the date of publication, the first time the work is cited in a paragraph. If an exact quote is used, this should be indicated by the use of quotations marks, and the reference to the author should include the page number where the citation was originally published. An exact quotation of 40 or more words should be blocked off, starting a new line and indented 5 spaces from the margin in the position of a new paragraph. The quotation should maintain the same Times New Roman 12 of the rest of the text. Emphasis in quotation should be limited to underlining.
e. Psico-USF recommends that all authors revise their texts, paying special attention to links between sections and the subtitles utilized. Paragraphs of a single sentence should be avoided. The objective(s) of the study should be made explicit. Only bibliographic items actually consulted and mentioned in the text should be included in the references.

6. Appendices
The appendices should be presented on a separate page after the references and numbered consecutively. They should be indicated in the text, identified by numbers (1, 2, 3 etc.), and given an adequate title. Use appendices only if they are absolutely necessary for the comprehension of the text.

7. Figures
The figures should be accompanied by titles and keys, one per page (on paper) as well as a computer file when prepared electronically. The titles should be presented below the figures, always in small letters. To guarantee the quality of the printing, the figures containing drawings should be submitted as photo-ready copy. Do not make figures using colors or special patterns that may be confusing in final published form. Since the published text cannot exceed 8.3 cm in width for simple figures and 17.5 cm for more complex ones, authors should be careful to guarantee that the key is still easy to read even if reduction is necessary.

8. Tables
The tables should be elaborated in Microsoft Word and be in black and white; they should not exceed 17.5 cm by 23.5 cm. The titles of tables containing a maximum of 15 words should be typed above the tables and provide a clear indication of the content. The first letter of each important word in the title should be capitalized, with all other letters in small case. Do not use capital letters, bold face type or italics in a table.

The references should start a new page. Use double space and do not leave a blank space between the individual entries. All references should be listed in alphabetical order by the author's last name, and this should not be replaced by underlining for multiple entries by the same author. The references should follow the orientation of the American Psychological Association Publication Manual, as the examples below.

Texts with more than one author:

Two authors: include both last names whenever referring to the work in the text, separated by & (as in the example below), and accompanied by the date of publication between parentheses.
"O método proposto por Siqueland e Delucia (1969)", mas "o método foi inicialmente proposto para o estudo da visão (Siqueland & Delucia, 1969)".
Three to five authors: the first time the reference to a text appears, cite the names of all of the authors, separated by commas, with an & between the names of the next-to-the-last and last authors, followed by the date of the study between parentheses. Starting with the second reference, use only the last name of the first author, followed by the expression "and collaborators" and the date. Six or more authors: cite only the last name of the first author, followed by "and collaborators" and the date from the very first mention.

Article from a scientific journal
Sisto, F. F. (2000). Relationships of the Piagetian cognitive development to human figure drawing. Child Study Journal, 30(4), 225-232.

Article from a scientific journal in press
Indicate in the location of the date the fact that the article is in press. Include the name of the periodical in italics following by the title of the article. Do not refer to the date or number of the volume, issue or pages until the article is actually published. In the text, when citing an article in press, include the information that it is in press in parentheses.
Noronha, A. P. P. (no prelo). Problemas graves e freqüentes no uso dos testes psicológicos. Psicologia: Reflexão e Crítica.

Book
Baptista, M. N. & Assumpção Jr., F. B. (1999). Depressão na adolescência. Uma visão multifatorial. São Paulo, SP: EPU. Edited Book.
Sisto, F. F., Sbardelini, E. T. B. & Primi, R. (Orgs.). (2001). Contextos e questões da Avaliação Psicológica. São Paulo, SP: Casa do Psicólogo.

Chapter of book
Capitão, C. G. (2001). Uma breve avaliação da violência sexual: a vingança de édipo. Em F. F. Sisto, E. T. B. Sbardelini & R. Primi (Orgs.). Contextos e Questões da Avaliação Psicológica. (pp. 63-75). São Paulo: Casa do Psicólogo.

Paper presented in a congress, but not published.
Santarem, E. M. M. (1998). Efeito da fluoxetina sobre a polidipsia induzida por esquema enquanto possível modelo animal de comportamento compulsivo e sobre a resposta operante de pressionar a barra.

Trabalho apresentado no I Congresso de Pesquisa e Extensão e IV Encontro de Iniciação Científica, Bragança Paulista, SP.

Paper presented in a congress, with the abstract/summary published in the Annals
Santos, A. A. A. (2000). Remediação e prevenção: experiência em uma universidade. Anais do V Congresso de Psicologia Escolar e Educacional, Itajaí, 37.

Unpublished theses or dissertations
Güntert, A. E. V. A. (1996). Crianças com nódulo vocal: estudo da personalidade por meio da prova de Rorschach. (Tese de Doutorado). São Paulo: Universidade Federal de São Paulo - Escola Paulista de Medicina.