Editorial Statement

Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy is an international multidisciplinary journal for the publication of original research of an experimental, or clinical nature that contributes to the theory, practice and evaluation of cognitive and behavioural therapies. As such the scope of the journal is very broad, and articles relevant to most areas of human behaviour and human experience which would be of interest to members of the helping and teaching professions will be considered for publication.

As an applied science the concepts, methodology and techniques of behavioural psychotherapy continue to change. The journal seeks both to reflect and to influence those changes. While the emphasis is placed on empirical research, articles concerned with important theoretical and methodological issues as well as evaluative reviews of the behavioural literature are also published. In addition, given the emphasis of behaviour therapy on the experimental investigation of the single case, the journal from time to time publishes case studies using single case experimental designs.

For the majority of designs this should include a baseline period with repeated measures; in all instances the nature of the quantitative data and the intervention must be clearly specified. Other types of case report can be submitted for the Brief Clinical Reports section.

Articles should concern original material that is neither published nor under consideration for publication elsewhere. This applies also to articles in languages other than English.

Article Types

Main* Reports of original research employing experimental or correlational methods and using within or between subject designs. Review or discussion articles that are based on empirical data and that have important new theoretical, conceptual or applied implications.

Empirically Grounded Clinical Interventions* This section is intended for reviews of the present status of treatment approaches for specific psychological problems. It is intended that such articles will draw upon a combination of treatment trials, experimental evidence and other research, and be firmly founded in phenomenology. It should take account of, but also go beyond, treatment outcome data.

Brief Clinical Reports* Material suitable for this section includes unusual case reports and accounts of potentially important techniques, phenomena or observations; for example, descriptions of previously unreported techniques, outlines of available treatment manuals, descriptions of innovative variations of existing procedures, details of self-help or training packages, and accounts of the application of existing techniques in novel settings. The BCR section is intended to extend the scope of the clinical section. Submissions to this section should be no longer than 1800 words and should include no more than six references, one table or figure, and an extended report that contains fuller details. There are no restrictions on the size or format of the extended report as it will be published online only. It may, for instance, be a treatment manual, a fully detailed case report, or a therapy transcript. If a submission is accepted for publication as a Brief Clinical Report, the author(s) must be prepared to send the fuller document to those requesting it, free of charge. The extended document will also be mounted on the journal’s website as a PDF format (the document will not be copyedited).

Study Protocols* Protocols of proposed and ongoing trials in behavioural and cognitive therapies will be considered. Your study must be registered and have ethical approval, and proof of this will be required. The abstract should be structured under the following four headings; Background, Aims, Method, Discussion.

Please use the Standard Protocol Items: Recommendations for Interventional Trail (SPIRIT) checklist for protocols of randomised controlled trials (see the reporting standards section below). Manuscripts should be under 2000 words at the point of first submission, and include no more than 15 references, and no more than three tables/figures in total. A PDF with additional, unlimited text, figures and tables may be included designated for online only publication.