Child Development Perspectives (CDP) emphasizes brief, well-synthesized reviews of research, typically focusing on emerging and novel lines of inquiry in developmental science. Papers should be written to be accessible and informative to the broad developmental community. The journal sometimes publishes essays on policy, statistics methods, and other topics suitable for the readership. Papers are welcome from all fields that inform contemporary developmental science. Manuscripts reporting new empirical findings are not appropriate for CDP.
Many articles appearing in CDP are commissioned by editorial staff, but CDP also encourages submissions of articles that are not commissioned. Authors are encouraged to contact Rebecca M.B. White, Interim Editor in Chief, at cdp@srcd.org if they are not sure whether their article topic is appropriate. Both types of articles undergo peer review.
Authors are asked to make their submissions accessible to the full spectrum of the CDP readership, which includes scientists, students, policy makers, and the media. Plain language is preferred whenever possible; jargon should be avoided. Because of the international nature of the readership, authors should avoid writing that assumes the reader is a citizen of or is intimately familiar with the author’s country. Submissions to CDP should briefly describe the national and racial/ethnic origins of samples in the articles reviewed to the extent that this information is available. In addition, authors should address issues of generalizability in the context of this information or absence thereof.
CDP is instituting a new occasional feature called Two Views, which will consist of a pair of papers, published side-by-side, on an important or emerging topic in the field. Two scholars with different views on a topic of interest will be commissioned to contribute short pieces outlining their views. These papers will be invited and will undergo peer review. Authors may contact the Interim Editor, Rebecca M.B. White, at cdp@srcd.org with proposals or suggestions.
English Language Editing Services
Authors have the option, but are not required, to use the services noted below to translate or proofread their text pre-submission. This option may be particularly helpful to non-native English speakers. Please note that this list is not exhaustive, and SRCD does not endorse – and is not responsible for the quality of – any product or service mentioned.
Ethics and Integrity
- Ethical Standards for Research with Children
- Policy on Scientific Integrity, Transparency, and Openness
Sociocultural Policy
As developmental science becomes more global, and the role of context in human development becomes more evident, it is necessary that SRCD publications provide, in addition to age, an indication of the unique characteristics of the sample and the “socioeconomic and cultural place” from which their findings originate. Accordingly, it is now required that manuscripts to be published in SRCD journals specify clearly in the appropriate section(s) (e.g., Method, Discussion) and in an abbreviated form in the Abstract: (1) the dates of data collection (if applicable); (2) the theoretically relevant characteristics of the particular sample studied, for example, but not limited to: race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, language, sexual orientation, gender identity (inclusive of non-binary options), religion, generation, family characteristics; and (3) the place(s) from which that sample was drawn, including country, region, city, neighborhood, school, etc. and all other context variables that are relevant to the focus of the publication, except when it violates expectations of privacy and confidentiality by an institutional review board or the setting itself. Additionally, selection and recruitment procedures should be clearly specified in the Method section.
The Sociocultural Policy is the product of a recognition that current policies and practices were not reflecting the state of the scholarship in terms of addressing diversity and replicability. As such, the Sociocultural Policy reflects current gaps in the science and is a dynamic policy. The Society will conduct ongoing reviews and re-evaluations of the Sociocultural Policy’s effectiveness over time and its efficacy in advancing the Society’s strategic goals. The Sociocultural Policy, procedures, and rationale will be revisited on a biannual basis to reflect changing demographics, an increasingly global society, and relevant contemporary issues.
Note for Child Development Perspectives authors: The Sociocultural Policy applies primarily to original reports of data. Submissions to CDP should briefly describe the national and racial/ethnic origins of samples in the articles reviewed to the extent that this information is available. In addition, authors should address issues of generalizability in the context of this information or absence thereof. When discussing existing data (e.g., in literature reviews) or in Child Development Perspectives papers, space limitations and the availability of information in the original research reports may be a consideration. In these cases, authors should strive to provide as much information as possible about the characteristics of samples that are relevant to the generalization and interpretation of results. Authors who are submitting to Child Development Perspectives should consult with the Editor if they wish further guidance.
Formatting Requirements
Format and Style
Manuscripts submitted to Child Development Perspectives should be prepared as Microsoft Word files (.doc, .docx, or .rtf), not as .pdf or .tex files.
In addition, all manuscripts must align with APA Style rules including:
- Double-spacing throughout (abstract, body text, references)
- Using 12-point, Times New Roman font
- One-inch margins throughout
- Please follow all guidelines on format, style, and ethics provided in the Publication Manual (7th ed.) of the American Psychological Association.
All submissions are screened using iThenticate, a software tool that examines originality in scholarly writing. For more information, please see the Committee on Publication Ethics' Text Recycling Guidelines: https://publicationethics.org/text-recycling-guidelines.
Word Count
All submissions are limited to 3,250 words (the word count includes the main text plus notes, acknowledgments, and appendices but not the abstract, tables, figure legends, or references).
Cover Letter
For author-initiated papers, the cover letter should indicate why the topic is particularly well suited for CDP.
Figures and Tables
Tables or figures are generally limited to no more than four figures and tables total, but additional tables or figures may be included in online Supplemental Materials. Color figures publish online and in print free of charge. More technical information on figures (accepted file types, image quality, etc.) is available at Wiley-Blackwell Author Services. Individual figures must be in EPS, PDF, PNG, or TIFF format, with resolution of at least 300 dpi; individual tables must be Microsoft Word documents.
Manuscript Submission and Review Process
How to Submit
Manuscripts should be submitted online through the Child Development Perspectives ScholarOne Portal.
Submit to Child Development Perspectives
Full instructions and support are available on the site and a user ID and password can be obtained on the first visit. If for some reason you cannot submit online, please contact the SRCD Editorial Office by telephone (202-800-0668) or by e-mail (cdp@srcd.org).
Corresponding Author Responsibilities
A corresponding author’s submission to CDP implies that all coauthors have agreed to the content and form of the manuscript. The corresponding author is responsible for informing all coauthors, in a timely manner, of manuscript submission, editorial decisions, reviews, and revisions. Authors will be asked to complete a Conflict of Interest Declaration immediately following the manuscript’s acceptance for publication.
Manuscript Review
On receipt, a manuscript is evaluated by journal staff for its conformity to the overall guidelines and policies of the journal. Title pages and other identifying information are removed to facilitate blind review. The corresponding author will be notified of an editorial decision, typically within 8 weeks. Manuscripts accepted for publication are often edited extensively to improve readability and accessibility. Inquiries and suggestions regarding editorial policy may be directed to Rebecca M.B. White, Interim Editor in Chief of Child Development Perspectives, at cdp@srcd.org.
Correction to Authorship
In accordance with industry best practices, Child Development Perspectives allows authors to correct authorship on a submitted or accepted articles if a valid reason exists to do so. All authors – including those to be added or removed – must agree to any proposed change. To request a change to the author list, please complete the Request for Changes to a Journal Article Author List Form and submit with your revised manuscript or to the editorial office, cdp@srcd.org. Authorship changes will not be considered without a fully completed Author Change form and manuscripts in process may not move forward with partial forms. Note, correcting the authorship is different from changing an existing author’s name.
Accepted Manuscript and Publication Information
Note to NIH Grantees
Pursuant to NIH mandate, through Wiley-Blackwell SRCD will post the accepted version of contributions authored by NIH grant-holders to PubMed Central upon acceptance. This accepted version will be made publicly available 12 months after publication. For further information, see www.wiley.com/go/nihmandate.
iThenticate Notification
Powered by Turnitin’s text comparison tool iThenticate, CrossRef’s Similarity Check enables the SRCD Editorial Office to assess the originality of all submitted manuscripts. iThenticate finds and reports overlaps in text through the use of text-searching algorithms, checking a document against an extensive database of published scholarly writing. Its reports highlight material that matches documents in the iThenticate database and their percentage of similarity. The reports allow editors to judge the appropriateness of any substantial overlap between documents, which can range from authors using identical language across manuscripts to report precise details of methods to more concerning cases of recycling text.
For more information, please see the Committee on Publication Ethics' Text Recycling Guidelines: https://publicationethics.org/text-recycling-guidelines.