Get your Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology paper right the first time: a ready-made structure with the right abstract and citations, so editors see your science, not formatting slips.
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Authored by Sumalatha Gangadhar | Published on 17 August, 2026
Submitting to Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology goes smoothly when your draft already matches the journal's own rules. Editors screen new manuscripts against the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology guide for authors before peer review, so formatting, structure, and required statements should be right on the first draft rather than repaired during upload. This template sets that structure up for you.
It is a manuscript shell aligned to Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. It covers front matter, the abstract the journal expects, a body organized to the journal's article types, and a reference list in the journal's required style. Confirm current scope and article types on the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology journal page before you draft.
Prepare the title, authors, affiliations, and ORCID iDs. Write the abstract to the journal's rule and word limit, organize the body to the article type, and apply the required reference style from the first citation. Complete every declaration (ethics, competing interests, funding, data availability) the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology guide for authors lists, and cite figures and tables in order.
The common failure modes are formatting or reference style that does not match the guide for authors, missing required statements, and an incomplete portal checklist. Clear all three against the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology guide for authors before you submit.
The shell mirrors what editorial staff check first: article-type fit, the abstract rules, required declarations, and the journal's reference style. For more detail see the author resources. When your draft is ready, upload it through Editorial Manager.
| Element | J Consulting Clin Psychol requirement |
|---|---|
| Abstract | Structured abstract, maximum 250 words, presented in paragraph form. Must include four mandatory sections: (1) Objective - brief statement of purpose; (2) Method - detailed summary of participants (N, age, gender, ethnicity) and descriptions of study design, measures (including names), and procedures; (3) Results - detailed summary of primary findings articulating comparison groups and indicating significance or confidence intervals; (4) Conclusions - description of research and clinical implications. For randomized clinical trials or meta-analyses, abstract must also be consistent with JARS or MARS guidelines respectively |
| Main text | Full-length manuscripts: maximum 35 pages total (including cover page, abstract, text, references, tables, and figures), double-spaced with 1-inch margins and 12-point standard font (e.g., Times New Roman). Papers exceeding 35 pages require justification in cover letter, with absolute maximum of 45 pages. Brief Reports: maximum 265 lines of text including references (excluding title page, abstract, author note, footnotes, tables, figures). Viewpoint papers: maximum 130 lines including references, no more than 10 references, no abstract |
| Declarations | Ethics approval/consent as applicable; competing interests; funding; data availability |
| Figures/tables | Publication-ready; cited in order |
| Supplemental | Upload separately when used |
| Keywords | Up to 5 keywords or brief phrases |
| References | APA Style (7th edition). References listed in alphabetical order. Each listed reference should be cited in text. Examples follow APA format for journal articles, authored books, chapters in edited books, data set citations, and software/code citations |
| Peer review | Masked review (single-blind). Authors' identities are concealed from reviewers. The manuscript must omit authors' names and affiliations on the first page. Reviewer identities are never shared unless the reviewer requests to sign their review |
| Submission | www.editorialmanager.com/ccp/default1.aspx |
Read the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology guide for authors once before drafting and once before upload. Draft the abstract after results are stable. Set the reference style before adding citations. Keep a cover letter that states your contribution and fit to Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology in under a page.
Skim two or three recent J Consulting Clin Psychol papers to calibrate depth and figure style. Make the novelty clear in the first two pages. Deposit data and code when the policy on the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology journal page requires it. Disclose any preprint or conference version with identifiers in the cover letter.
Do one focused pass against the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology guide for authors: scope, length, reference style, required declarations, and figure quality. Then submit through Editorial Manager.