Author Guidelines
Instructions for authors
Thank you for selecting our journal for your manuscript submission. These guidelines are designed to facilitate a smooth progression of your paper through the peer review, production, and publication stages. Reading and adhering to these instructions closely is essential to ensure your paper aligns with the journal's requirements.
All manuscripts must be submitted online following the instructions below.
Manuscript preparation
General guidelines
- Manuscripts are accepted in English. Authors who are not native English speakers are strongly encouraged to have their manuscripts carefully edited by a native English-speaking colleague or edited by professional language editing services.
- Please submit your manuscript in Word format (.docx for Word 2007 or higher or .doc for older Word versions). Use plain Times New Roman font, size 11, with consistent double spacing, including the abstract, main text, and the end reference list. Additionally, authors are requested to incorporate line numbering across the manuscript.
- Manuscripts should be arranged in the following sequence: title page, abstract, keywords, main text, funding, acknowledgments, references, tables with captions, and figures with captions should be positioned in the order they appear in the text at the end of the document. Headings should be in bold and 12-point font size.
- Authors are requested to submit the manuscript in two files—one with author details and another without. In the file lacking author information, exclude the title page but position the title and running head immediately preceding the abstract. Ensure the removal of any information facilitating the identification of the authors from this file.
- We highly recommend authors utilize the provided template for formatting the manuscript following the journal's requirements (link to template).
Title Page
The title page should include the manuscript title, brief running head, authors’ full name(s), department(s), institution(s), and full mailing address of the corresponding author, including telephone number and email address.
Abstract
The manuscript must have an abstract with a limit of 250 words, followed by three key words not used in the title. The abstract should be unstructured and stand as a single paragraph that briefly summarizes each main section of the paper. Do not include citations in the abstract.
Main body
The main text must begin with an Introduction, placed as the initial section, and conclude with a section dedicated to Conclusions. While the content of the intermediate sections is flexible, it is imperative that the title of each section accurately mirrors the central theme or idea discussed within that respective section. While no specific word limit exists for the main body text, authors are urged to convey their ideas efficiently, avoiding unnecessary verbosity and ensuring a balance between comprehensive coverage and concise expression.
Funding
Within the Funding section, specify any financial support or grants that facilitated the execution of the research.
Acknowledgment
Under this section, specify any support from academic institutions or research organizations, including access to facilities and resources. In this section, you may also recognize colleagues or co-authors for their collaborative efforts and contributions to the work.
References
Cite references in the text by name and year in parentheses (APA 7th style). The list of references should only include works cited in the text that have been published or accepted for publication. Personal communications and unpublished works should only be mentioned in the text.
The last names of the first author of each work should alphabetize reference list entries. Please alphabetize according to the following rules: 1) For one author, by the name of the author, then chronologically; 2) For two authors, by the name of the author, then the name of coauthor, then chronologically; 3) For more than two authors, by the name of the first author, then chronologically.
Please always include DOIs as full DOI links in your reference list if available.
In-text citations: for a single author (Miller, 2017), for two authors (Miller & Smith, 1996), and for more than 2 authors (Miller et al., 2022).
References, examples:
Robinson, G. M., Magnusen, M. J., & Miller, G. (2020). Political Skills for Sport Professionals: Theory, Research, and Career Success Implications. Journal of Applied Sport Management, 12(2). https://doi.org/10.7290/jasm120202
Barth, B., & Beck, E. (2006). Political Skills for Sport Professionals. Meyer & Meyer Verlag.
Robinson, G. M., Magnusen, M. J., & Miller, G., & Smith, G. (2016). Political Skills for Sport Professionals. In Current Research in Sports Management (pp. 327–334).
Smith, T. (2014). Political Skills for Sport Professionals. University of California.
Figures
- Please provide the highest quality figure format possible.
- All figures must be numbered in the order they appear in the manuscript (e.g. Figure 1, Figure 2). In multi-part figures, each part should be labeled (e.g., Figure 1(a), Figure 1(b)).
- Figures should be submitted within the body of the text. If the file size of the manuscript causes problems in uploading it, the large figures should be submitted separately from the text.
Tables
- All tables are to be numbered using Arabic numerals. Tables should always be cited in the text in consecutive numerical order. For each table, please supply a table caption (title) explaining the components of the table. Identify any previously published material by referencing the source at the end of the table caption.
- Footnotes to tables should be indicated by superscript lower-case letters (or asterisks for significance values and other statistical data) and included beneath the table body.