Developing JMHC content-related submission guidelines.

Over the past year, the Editorial Board members, the associate editors and I have engaged in an e-mail-based discussion aimed at provided clarification to potential contributors to the journal through the development of content-related submission guidelines. As with many journals, the JMHC receives a number of submissions that are judged as not appropriate for the journal because of the topic. Sometimes these determinations are made at the editorial office upon receipt of the manuscripts and sometimes the decision is made following the initial round of reviews. In either case, this process can be frustrating and needlessly time consuming for both the authors and the editorial board members who are providing their expertise in reviewing manuscripts as a professional service.

While it is unlikely that any set of guidelines would completely eliminate the possibility that a manuscript would be judged as inappropriate for the journal based on content domain, the consensus of the board members was that a statement of general guidelines would reduce the potential of this occurring. With this in mind, Dr. Michael Accordino drafted an initial guideline statement that was distributed to the editorial board for comment. This statement was as follows:

   Topics suitable for the Journal of Mental Health Counseling
   should relate directly to the practice of mental health counseling
   (e.g. Assessment and diagnosis, psychotherapy, treatment planning
   and utilization review, brief and solution-focused therapy,
   alcoholism and substance abuse treatment, psychoeducational and
   prevention programs, crisis management, and research), theory
   related to the practice of mental health counseling, or
   professional issues that mental health counselors encounter.
   Manuscripts that only look at counselor-counselee dynamics
   are more appropriate for Journal of Counseling and Development
   or Counselor Education and Supervision and are not particularly
   suitable for the JMHC unless there is a strong explicit
   connection made to the practice of mental health counseling.
   Furthermore, any submission to the JMHC must include a discussion
   of implications for mental health counseling practice.

This initial statement of content-related guidelines prompted a number of responses from the members of the editorial board. The major reactions were collated and are paraphrased below. These reactions are not presented in any particular order.

* Research participants in manuscripts relevant to the JMHC should not be college students from undergraduate classes unless a strong case can be made for the relevance of the sample to the practice of mental health counseling.

* There was concern that the list of topics provided in the initial statement may be seen by potential authors as exhaustive and there was a suggestion to broaden the list by using basic ideas rather than identifying specific foci.

* Multicultural issues relevant to practice of mental health counseling should be included in the statement.

* International submissions and mental health issues in other nations (as may be particularly useful for those working with immigrant populations) should be incorporated into the statement.

* The appreciation of both quantitative and qualitative research methodologies in research submitted to the JMHC should be highlighted.

* The identification of brief/solution-focused approaches as examples seems to limit therapy topics to just these treatment modalities.

* Any statement should use the term 'counseling' rather than 'therapy.'

* Include a statement noting openness to consider manuscripts focused on new, innovative, and alternative counseling approaches.

* Manuscripts should focus on practice issues and not specifically on training issues unless those training issues have clear relevance to the practice of mental health counseling.

As a result of the members of the editorial board sharing their reactions to the initial guideline statement, Dr. Karen Scheel drafted the following revised statement in an attempt to integrate the major points identified in that discussion. This revised statement with some minor changes from her original work is as follows:

   Manuscripts suitable for the JMHC are those that provide new
   ideas of timely reviews that are directly pertinent to the
   practice of mental health counseling (e.g. assessment and
   diagnosis, counseling/psychotherapy, treatment planning and
   utilization review, psychoeducational and prevention programs,
   and crisis management), original quantitative and qualitative
   research directly related to the practice of mental health
   counseling, theory directly related to the practice of mental
   health counseling, and professional issues that mental health
   counselors encounter. Multicultural considerations, including
   international ones, are welcome in all four broad areas
   (practice, research, theory, and professional issues).
   Manuscripts that address only counselor-counselee dynamics
   are more appropriate for the Journal of Counseling and
   Development and Counselor Education and Supervision and are
   not particularly suitable for the JMHC unless there is a strong
   explicit connection made to the practice of mental health
   counseling. Furthermore, any submission made to the JMHC must
   include a discussion of implications for mental health counselors.

While I believe that this statement provides more explicit guidance to potential contributors to the JMHC, prior to adopting the statement and making it available to authors, I am offering the opportunity for additional feedback from members of the editorial board and broader feedback and input from the readership. To this end, I would like to receive any comments and/or suggestions related to these submission guidelines prior to January 1, 2007. Ideas can be sent to me via e-mail at [e-mail] or at the following address:

James R. Rogers, Ph.D.

Editor, JMHC

Department of Counseling

The University of Akron 

127 Carroll Hall

Akron, OH 44325-5007

As a final note, I would like to thank the editorial board members for the energy they have devoted to this process. I look forward to receiving additional input, especially from members of the broader readership, into the development of these content-related submission guidelines.

Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to James R. Rogers, Ph.D., Editor, JMHC, Department of Counseling, The University of Akron, 127 Carroll Hall, Akron, OH 44325-5007. E-mail: [e-mail].