Get your Journal of Consumer Research paper right the first time: a ready-made structure with the right abstract and citations, so editors see your science, not formatting slips.
4.2
Authored by Sumalatha Gangadhar | Published on 17 August, 2026
Submitting to Journal of Consumer Research goes smoothly when your draft already matches the journal's own rules. Editors screen new manuscripts against the Journal of Consumer Research 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 Consumer Research. 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 Consumer Research 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 Consumer Research 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 Consumer Research 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 ScholarOne (Manuscript Central).
| Element | J Consumer Res requirement |
|---|---|
| Abstract | Unstructured abstract with a maximum of 200 words. Must address: Topic/Issue, Approach/Methods, Results/Findings, and Implications/Conclusions. No citations, links, tables, or figures allowed in the abstract. The abstract must be entered in ScholarOne during Step 1 and also included in the manuscript file |
| Main text | Maximum 60 double-spaced pages for the entire manuscript, including: manuscript title, consumer relevance and contribution statement (for new submissions only), abstract and keywords, main text with tables and figures embedded, appendixes, and references. Web appendix does not count toward page limit |
| Declarations | Ethics approval/consent as applicable; competing interests; funding; data availability |
| Figures/tables | Publication-ready; cited in order |
| Supplemental | Upload separately when used |
| Keywords | 3 to 6 keywords required, listed in a separate paragraph after the abstract. Not specified whether they must be MeSH terms or editor-assigned; author-provided |
| References | Author-date citation style following the Chicago Manual of Style. In-text citations include author surname and publication date (e.g., Kinsey 1960). References listed alphabetically in the reference list with hanging indent formatting |
| Peer review | Double-anonymous review (double-blind). Authors and reviewers are never informed of each other's identities throughout the review process |
| Submission | mc.manuscriptcentral.com/jconres |
Read the Journal of Consumer Research 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 Consumer Research in under a page.
Skim two or three recent J Consumer Res 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 Consumer Research journal page requires it. Disclose any preprint or conference version with identifiers in the cover letter.
Do one focused pass against the Journal of Consumer Research guide for authors: scope, length, reference style, required declarations, and figure quality. Then submit through ScholarOne (Manuscript Central).