Submission guidelines

 Types of articles 

  • Regular article: The document has a maximum limit of 8,000 words, not including references, tables, or figures. For systematic reviews and meta-analyses, the maximum limit is 10,000 words, excluding references, tables, and figures. The article may have a maximum of 4 figures, 4 tables, and up to 60 references. The abstract should be between 150 and 250 words, and the manuscript should include 4 to 6 keywords.
  • Short article: This type of article has a limit of 3,000 words. The abstract should not exceed 150 words. The document may have a maximum of two figures or tables and up to 20 references.
  • Letter to the editor: A short manuscript presenting methodological reflections, responses or extensions of previous studies, or informed opinions on recent developments in psychometric research. It may include observations or critical comments on articles previously published in API. The document has a maximum length of 1,500 words, including references. It may include a table only if strictly necessary and up to 10 references. It does not include an abstract or keywords.
  • Editorials: Brief, thoughtful contributions written by the Editor-in-Chief, members of the Editorial Board, or invited experts. Their purpose is to guide, contextualise, or comment on current issues in psychometrics and psychological measurement. The document has a maximum length of 1,500 words, including references. It may include a table only if strictly necessary and up to 15 references. It does not include an abstract or keywords.

Letters and editorials are subject to editorial review and, when necessary, peer review at the discretion of the Editor-in-Chief.

File format

In order to ensure uniformity, readability, and correct layout of the manuscripts received, API establishes the following general rules:

  • File format: Submit the document in editable format (.doc or .docx).
  • Font and size: Times New Roman, 12 points, black.
  • Line spacing and margins:5 line spacing throughout the document. 2.5 cm margins on all four sides.
  • Alignment and indents: Text aligned to the left, without full justification. 1.25 cm indent at the beginning of each paragraph.
  • Page numbering: Consecutive numbering in the lower right margin from the cover page.
  • Headings and subheadings: Follow APA 7th edition format. Do not use underlining or colours.
  • Language and style: Spanish or English, using academic language and an impersonal style.

Other aspects: Create tables using the table function; do not use spreadsheets or spaces for indents.

Peer review

The API journal follows a double-blind review process. To facilitate this process, the following must be sent separately:

  • Cover page (with author details).
  • Anonymised manuscript.
  • Cover letter.

Cover page

The cover page must include:

  1. Article title: Brief, clear and informative.
  2. Authors' names: First and last names, without titles or degrees.
  3. Affiliation: Department (if applicable), institution, city and country, indicated with superscripts.
  4. Corresponding author: Name, postal address, telephone number and email address.
  5. Statements:
  • Authors' contributions (CRediT taxonomy).
  • Conflict of interest.
  • Funding

Author contribution: The corresponding author should declare the contributions of co-authors using the CRediT roles (Conceptualisation, Data curation, Formal analysis, Funding acquisition, Investigation, Methodology, Project management, Resources, Software, Supervision, Validation, Visualisation, Writing – original draft, Writing – review and editing). For information on the roles of contributors, see https://credit.niso.org/.

Conflict of interest: Authors must declare any financial or non-financial interests, directly or indirectly related to the work submitted for publication.

Funding: If the research was supported by grants, awards, scholarships, or other financial support, the name of the funding agency and the project or grant number, if applicable, should be indicated.

Data availability: This section indicates whether the study data are available and where they can be accessed. For more information on the role of the corresponding author, review the Data Availability section.

Ethics statement: Include the approval of the ethics committee when the study involves human subjects. 

Acknowledgements: This section acknowledges non-financial or technical support, content reviewers, assistance with data collection or translation, as well as collaborating institutions.

 

Manuscript

Manuscripts submitted to the Journal must be structured according to the IMRyD format (Introduction, Method, Results, and Discussion). The elements to be included in the suggested order are described below:

  • Abstract: Provide a concise and objective summary of no more than 250 words, written in a single paragraph, without citations or undefined abbreviations. It should include a summary of: (a) Objective, (b) Method, (c) Results, and (d) Conclusions.
  • Keywords: Provide between 4 and 6 keywords for indexing. Avoid keywords composed of several words (with ‘and’ or ‘of’).
  • Body of the manuscript: Introduction, Method, Results, Discussion, Limitations, and Conclusions.
  • Tables: All tables must be numbered consecutively with Arabic numerals (Table 1, Table 2, etc.) and explicitly mentioned in the text. Each table should have a brief, descriptive title at the top, in italics and with an initial capital letter. Tables should:

 

    • Be in editable format (no images).
    • Use single line spacing within cells and 1.5 line spacing between the title and the table.
    • Not contain vertical lines or shading.
    • Use horizontal lines only at the top, bottom, and after the header, in accordance with APA 7.

 

  • Figures: All figures must be numbered consecutively with Arabic numerals (Figure 1, Figure 2, etc.) and explicitly mentioned in the text. Figures must be high resolution (minimum 300 dpi) and in an editable format (.tiff, .svg or transparent .png). The title is placed below the figure, in italics and with an initial capital letter. Axes, labels and captions must be clear, legible and consistent with the text (Times New Roman, 12 pt). Colours should only be used when they facilitate interpretation, maintaining sufficient contrast for greyscale printing.
  • References: These must strictly follow the APA 7th edition format. Only include sources cited in the text.
  • Appendices: These must contain supplementary materials (e.g., instrument items, R codes, extensive tables, equations or supplementary results). Each appendix must be numbered (Appendix A, Appendix B, etc.) and referenced within the main text. If the materials are extensive, they may be stored in an open repository (e.g., OSF) and cited using their DOI link.