Focus and Scope

JACOBS publishes research that advances the scientific understanding of cognition, emotion, and behavior and that translates this understanding into effective practice. The journal covers all branches of psychology, as well as studies from neighboring disciplines in which psychological processes are central to the research question.

The journal's name reflects its founding emphasis on the cognitive behavioral tradition, that is, the study of how thoughts, emotions, and actions interact and how they can be changed. Today this emphasis is understood broadly. JACOBS welcomes basic and applied work from any theoretical orientation, provided it is empirically rigorous and speaks to real problems in clinical, educational, organizational, health, and community settings.

Subject Areas

Manuscripts are welcome in, but not limited to, the following areas:

Area Representative topics
1. Cognitive psychology and cognitive science Attention, perception, memory, language, reasoning, judgment and decision-making, metacognition, cognitive biases, executive functions, cognitive aging, cognitive neuroscience, and psychophysiology.
2. Clinical psychology and psychotherapy Psychopathology across the lifespan; cognitive behavioral therapy and contextual approaches (ACT, DBT, MBCT, schema therapy, compassion-focused therapy); transdiagnostic processes; psychological assessment and diagnosis; treatment outcome and process research; group therapy; digital and low-intensity interventions.
3. Counseling and guidance School and university counseling, career development, group counseling, psychoeducation, crisis intervention, help-seeking attitudes and behavior, counselor training and competence.
4. Developmental psychology Child and adolescent development, parenting and family processes, attachment, emerging adulthood, aging, neurodevelopmental conditions, children with special needs and their families.
5. Educational and school psychology Learning and motivation, self-regulated learning, academic self-efficacy, academic stress and procrastination, student wellbeing, bullying and school climate, inclusive education, teacher wellbeing.
6. Social and cultural psychology Social cognition, attitudes, prejudice and intergroup relations, prosocial behavior, close relationships, social media and online behavior, cross-cultural and indigenous psychology, psychology of religion and spirituality.
7. Industrial and organizational psychology Work motivation and engagement, burnout, leadership, organizational behavior and culture, occupational health psychology, personnel selection and assessment, consumer behavior.
8. Health psychology and behavioral medicine Health behavior change, stress and coping, adjustment to chronic illness, sleep, eating behavior, substance use and addictive behaviors, psychosomatic conditions, sport and exercise psychology.
9. Positive psychology and wellbeing Hedonic and eudaimonic wellbeing, resilience, gratitude, mindfulness, self-compassion, meaning in life, flourishing, character strengths.
10. Community psychology and public mental health Mental health literacy, stigma, prevention and promotion programs, disaster and trauma psychology, gender and family issues, migration, poverty, cyberpsychology, environmental psychology, forensic and legal psychology.
11. Psychometrics and research methods Test construction, cross-cultural adaptation and validation, measurement invariance, item response theory, structural equation and multilevel modeling, Bayesian methods, qualitative methodology, research synthesis.

Interdisciplinary Contributions

Research that combines psychology with education, health sciences, nursing, public health, medicine, social work, management, communication, information technology, sport science, tourism, or religious studies is welcome when a psychological construct, process, or intervention is at the core of the study.

Methodological Scope

JACOBS is methodologically pluralistic. The journal considers experimental and quasi-experimental studies, randomized controlled trials, longitudinal and cross-sectional studies with a clear theoretical rationale, single-case experimental designs, qualitative studies (phenomenology, grounded theory, thematic and narrative analysis, ethnography), mixed-methods research, psychometric studies, and research syntheses (systematic reviews, meta-analyses, and scoping reviews).

Priority Contributions

  • Intervention studies with comparison groups, adequate sample sizes, fidelity monitoring, and follow-up measurement.
  • Studies that test mechanisms, mediators, and moderators of psychological change.
  • Cross-cultural adaptation and validation of instruments with complete psychometric evidence.
  • Preregistered studies, replications, and well-powered studies reporting null results.
  • Implementation and dissemination research on evidence-based practice in schools, clinics, workplaces, and communities.

Outside the Scope

  • Studies in which the central research question is not psychological.
  • Descriptive surveys that report frequencies without a theoretical framework or appropriate inferential analysis.
  • Reports of community service, training, or outreach activities without a research design and systematic outcome evaluation.
  • Undergraduate or graduate theses submitted without substantial reworking into the format and depth of a journal article.
  • Opinion pieces or essays that are not based on systematic evidence.
  • Research involving human participants that lacks ethical approval or informed consent where these are required.