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Western Undergraduate Psychology Journal

Mission Statement

First, to create an environment that will foster a students writing, creativity, and critical thinking skills.

Second, to encourage students to be more daring in their classes, by giving them an additional incentive.

Third, to recognize students who have demonstrated innovation and excellent writing skills.

Roles -----------------------------------------------------------------2

General Responsibilities -----------------------------------------------------------------2-3

Selection Process ----------------------------------------------------------------- 3-5

Minimum Qualifications ----------------------------------------------------------------- 5

Submission and Review Process -----------------------------------------------------------------5-7

Discipline ----------------------------------------------------------------6-7

Resignations -----------------------------------------------------------------7

Copyright/Privacy -----------------------------------------------------------------7

Amendments -----------------------------------------------------------------7-8

Note:

1.x General Statements

2.x Regarding chief editor

3.x Regarding executive editors

4.x Regarding main editors

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Roles

1.1The editorial board contains one chief editor, 2 executive editors, and up to 14 main editors (amaximum of two per-area of Psychology).

General Responsibilities

1.1Responsibilities: When a person is responsible for a particular action, it is their duty to carry out theassigned responsibilities to the best of their abilities. If they cannot do so themselves, they may

request help, from external sources or within the editorial board.

1.2The chief editor, executive editors, and main editors must commit (fulfilling all of theirresponsibilities listed in this constitution) to the editorial board from September to April.

1.3The outgoing chief editor and executive editors might be requested for consultation during thesummer (May to August), to ensure a successful transition.

1.4The chief and executive editors must attend all editing workshops during their term of office.1.5Specific guidelines and responsibilities regarding the submission process are listed under the

Submission Process section.

2.1Any responsibilities not specifically listed below reside with the chief editor.2.2The chief editor is responsible for all recruitment and call for submission announcements. Here are

some sample recruitment techniques:

A) Announcements in senior level Psychology coursesB) Poster advertisementsC) Emails through the Western serverD) Collaboration with the undergraduate clubE) Announcements on the department website

2.3The chief editor is responsible for constructing an effective communication network within theeditorial board.

2.4The chief editor is responsible for deciding the minimum qualifications for all manuscriptsubmissions (e.g., page limits). Nonetheless certain guidelines should be followed, which are listed

under the Submission Process section.

2.5The chief editor is responsible for securing support from faculty or senior graduate students, 1minimum per area of psychology, as they will serve to give the final stamp of approval before

publication.

2.6The chief editor is responsible for deciding disciplinary actions for those who fail to fulfill theirresponsibilities; specific guidelines are listed under the Discipline section.

2.7The chief editor is responsible for notifying all successful submissions to the corresponding authors.The method of notification (e.g., emails or phone calls) is also decided by the chief editor.

2.8The chief editor is responsible for finding the necessary resources to publish the journals (e.g.,money for paper publication).

3.1The executive editors are responsible for selecting and assigning main editors.3.2The executive editors are responsible for maintaining the integrity of communication between the

main editors.

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3.3The executive editors are responsible for organizing a minimum of 2 editing workshops per year, 1per semester. The workshops should be led by a senior graduate student or a faculty member in

Psychology. The purpose of the editing workshops is to teach the newly recruited editors how to

properly review and criticize submitted manuscripts.

4.1Each main editor is assigned to an area of psychology, 2 editors maximum per area. Their specificresponsibilities will be listed in the Submission Process section.

4.2The assignments of main editors to areas of psychology are rough assignments; they may receivepapers outside of the area designated to them depending on the volume and types of papers

submitted to the journal.

4.3Must attend at least 1 editing workshop per year.Selection Process

1.1Both the chief and executive editors are selected on an annual basis near the end of each schoolyear. The exact date is to be decided between the incumbent chief editor and the Psychology

department.

1.2 It is recommended that the undergraduate chair or/and the department chair will represent thePsychology department. If they are unavailable, professors who are members of the Psychologys

Undergraduate Affairs Committee are preferred.

1.3 Both the chief and executive editors are restricted to one year terms, unless there are no otherqualified candidates to replace them.

1.4The declaration of no other qualified candidates, so that the incumbent chief and executive editorsmay maintain their position for longer than a one-year term, must be approved by the Psychology

department or/and the current editorial board.

2.1The incoming chief editor should be selected near the end of February, which means recruitmentannouncements should begin in mid-January.

2.2The chief editor is selected through an application interview process.2.3A submitted application will provide the following (additional information can be requested if it is

deemed to be appropriate by the incumbent chief editor):

A) Academic transcriptB) ResumeC) Personal statement on why he or she is qualified to become the chief editorD) 1 letter of recommendationE) Sample writing piece

2.4All candidates that have completed the application will be given an interview; with a minimum of 2judges attending the interview (must include the incumbent chief editor and 1 facultyrepresentative from the Psychology department).

2.5The basic interview questions are decided by the chief editor. Faculty members are free to ask theirown questions during the interview.

2.6The chosen candidate should have the following characteristics:A) Competitive academic standing (E.g., mostly As in advanced level Psychology courses)B) Demonstrated leadership skills based on other activities (E.g., mentorships)

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C) Demonstrated perseveranceD) Drive for innovation (E.g., making significant or noticeable impacts on the past organizations

they have been involved in)

E) Effective communication skills (E.g., responding to inquiries in a timely and meaningful fashionregardless of the status of the sender)

F) Humility and Intellectual curiosity (E.g., always willing to accept constructive criticisms, andoften to seek them during or/and after difficult decisions)

G) Effective management skills (E.g., demonstration of people and time managements skills withspecific past examples)

2.7The final selection of the incoming chief editor will be decided by a voting process involving theincumbent chief editor and faculty members that have attended the interviews.

2.8The final decision must be a unanimous decision between the interviewers. If the interviewers wereunable to achieve a unanimous decision, the entire editorial board will vote on the top 2 contenders

chosen from the interview process. The person receiving a majority vote will claim the chief editor

position.

3.1The new incoming executive editors should be selected near the end of March, which meansrecruitment announcements should begin as soon the new chief editor is selected.

3.2The selection of the executive editors is mainly decided by the incoming chief editor. However he orshe should consult the outgoing chief and executive editors, or faculty members that are involved in

this process.

3.3The selection process for the executive editors should be similar to the chief editor selection process(e.g., similar application package listed in 2.3). Whether interviews are necessary is decided by the

incoming and outgoing chief editor, and outgoing executive editors.

3.4The chosen candidate should have the following characteristics:A) Competitive academic standingB) Past leadership experienceC) Effective team management skillsD) Highly reliable

4.1The selection of main editors can be either conducted at the end of the school year, or duringSeptember (the following school term). The exact recruitment date is to be decided by the incoming

chief and executive editors.

4.2The selection of the main editors will be mainly decided by the executive editors. Nonetheless theyshould consult the previous executive editors or/and the incoming and outgoing chief editor.

4.3The selection criteria for the main editors will be less stringent than for the executive positions, butnonetheless the chosen candidates should have the following characteristics:

A) Reliable (able to finish assigned tasks on time without constant reminders)B) Willing to learnC) Effective communication skills (responding to inquires in a timely fashion)D) Good academic standing

4.4Once chosen as a main editor, he or she may remain as a main editor for as long they like, providedthat they fulfilled their responsibilities.

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5.1The entire selection process of the executive positions is transparent. That is, if the unsuccessfulcandidates want to know why they were not selected, the people responsible for the selection must

respond in a timely fashion (respond within 72 hours).

Minimum Qualifications

1.1All candidates must be in good academic standing (not in academic probation).1.2Although there are no specific restrictions for the editors to be a current undergraduate student at

Western, preference will be given to those who are. That is, they may be graduate students from

Western, not students from other universities.

2.1The chief editor must be in (or graduated with) the program leading to an honor s specialization inPsychology.

2.2The chief editor must be going into at least his or her graduating year upon accepting the position(4th year and above).

3.1The executive editors must be in (or graduated with) the program leading to a major or an honorsspecialization in Psychology.

3.2The executive editors must be going into his or her senior years upon accepting the position (3 rd yearand above).

4.1The main editors should be in (or graduated with) the program leading to a major or an honorsspecialization in Psychology. Exceptions for this are allowed, which is decided on a case-by-case

scenario.

Submission and Review Process

1.1Any submission must have received a minimum of 80%, if written for a specific course.1.2The submissions are not restricted to students at Western.1.3All submissions must be previously unpublished.1.4All types of original manuscripts will be allowed, for example:

A) Empirical researchB) Theoretical essaysC) Literature reviews

1.5Preference will be given to empirical research papers.1.6Authors must be willing to make substantive revisions to their manuscripts according to the editors

comments, and respond to requested changes within a week. If they fail to do so, their manuscript

will be rejected.

1.7No editors are allowed to make direct substantive changes to the submitted manuscripts, and allminor changes should be tracked and approved by the author.

1.8All editors are given 2 weeks to process each manuscript. That is, they are given 4 weeks to process2 manuscripts even if they are assigned at the same time.

2.1All submissions will be first received by the chief editor.2.2The chief editor will try his/her best to assign each manuscript to main editors according to the area

of Psychology that the manuscript falls under.

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2.3 If particular area(s) of psychology receive higher volume of submission than average, main editorsmight be assigned papers outside of their designated area.

4.1The main editors will be asked to process each manuscript in no more than 14 days. If the maineditor believes the paper is of good quality or requiring minimum revisions, they will pass the

manuscript, along with their comments, to the executive editor responsible for that area of

Psychology.

4.2 If the main editor believes the manuscript is of mediocre quality and requires substantive changes,they are to contact the author directly with their concerns, after consulting with an executive editor

or the chief editor. If the author does not respond in a timely fashion or refuses to make substantive

changes, the manuscript is to be rejected.

4.3 If the main editors believe the quality of the manuscript is such that it does not warrant publication,they are to consult the executive editor responsible for that area of Psychology or the chief editor

before rejecting the manuscript.

3.1Once a manuscript is received by the executive editor they are given the same responsibilities as themain editor listed in 4.1 to 4.3; they will pass the manuscript to the chief editor if they deemed it

was of good quality.

2.4Once a manuscript is received by the chief editor from the executive editors he or she will be askedto make comments within 14 days before passing it on to a faculty member or a senior graduate

student.

2.5The specific responsibilities of faculty members or senior graduate students are not clearlydelineated because it is unrealistic to set a strict guideline for all faculty members and senior

graduate students to follow; that is, they all have very different schedules. It is up to the chief editor

to make sure the final approval process is finished in a timely manner.

2.6The chief editor may override an acceptance decision by consulting the executive editor.2.7The deadline for submissions and release of publication is decided by the chief editor. Nonetheless

it is recommended to have the deadline for submissions near the end of January and the release of

publication at the end of March.

5.1Depending on the volume of submissions, when a manuscript gains the stamp of approval from afaculty member or a senior graduate student, the manuscript might be immediately accepted for

publication, or enter the good pile if a large amount of manuscripts received the stamp of

approval; to which after the submission deadlines the editorial board will gather up and select the

top manuscripts from the good pile for publication.

5.2All rejections must contain a reasonable and short summary on why the manuscript was rejected.5.3All publication will be online. Whether publications will be available in hardcopies is dependent on

the budget.

5.4All rejections from the chief editor, faculty members, and senior graduate students are final.5.5Rejections from the lower levels can be appealed through the chief editor.Discipline

1.1Editorial staffs who fail to meet their responsibilities as listed in this constitution will be given awarning at first offence.

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1.2The second offence will result in their removal from editorial work.1.3All those who are unable to meet their responsibilities, but were able to give a legitimate rationale

prior to the assignment due date will be excused. For example:

A) Multiple exams within the weekB) Severely illC) Sensitive personal issues

2.1 If the chief editor fails to live up to his or her responsibilities, the editorial board may move toremove him or her. The vote will require a 2/3 vote within the editorial board.

3.1 If the chief editor is removed, the editorial board must elect a new chief editor immediately,preferably among the two executive editors.

Resignations

1.1Anyone seriously considering resignation should speak to the chief editor immediately so they mayfind an appropriate replacement.

Copyright/Privacy

Western Undergraduate Psychology Journal (WUPJ) retained the copyright to all volumes and their

contents. Publishing in WUPJ does not require a copyright transfer and the author retains full use of

their article; this policy applies retroactively to all past issues of WUPJ. In addition, the author must

grant the first publication rights of the article to WUPJ and agree to adopt a Creative Commons

license for the article in order to facilitate knowledge sharing.

The license specifies that:

The author grants the permission for the reader to copy, distribute, and transmit the article.

The reader must provide attribution to the author and WUPJ when reusing the article.

The reader may not reuse the article for commercial purposes.

The reader may not alter, translate, or build upon the article (e.g., creating an abridged version)

without the author's permission.

The license ensures the widest dissemination of the article. WUPJ will generate license for the article

automatically during the publication process. Should the author decide to re-publish the article

elsewhere in the future, the author must acknowledge WUPJ as the source of first publication in the re-

published version.

The author must also grant permission for WUPJ, Western Libraries, and The University of WesternOntario to archive the article online, to make it publicly accessible for download, and to preserve it for

perpetual online access.

Amendments

1.1Major amendments to the constitution require a majority vote within the editorial board.

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1.2Minor amendments (e.g., sentence structure, grammar mistakes) to the constitution require aconsensus between the chief editor and the executive editors.

1.3All amendments to the constitution should be documented, that is, the older version should bearchived for reviewing purposes.