Affective Science
Special Issue on: Interventions to Modify Psychological Well-Being: What Works, What Doesn’t Work, and an Agenda for Future Research
Call for Papers
Editors: Laura D. Kubzansky, Department of Social & Behavioral Sciences, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health; Eric S. Kim, Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Judith Tedlie Moskowitz, Medical Social Sciences, Northwestern University
Theme of the Special Issue: Individuals as well as healthcare systems, employers, school districts, and governments are increasingly interested in initiatives that can improve the psychological well-being of the people they serve, and the people within their organizations. However, many knowledge gaps undermine our research community’s ability to meet these growing requests for tools that can improve psychological well-being in meaningful, durable, and scalable ways.
The goal of this special issue is to showcase novel empirical evidence examining interventions that can modify psychological well-being, particularly those that have the potential to be scaled at the population level. We are interested in key aspects of how these interventions play out, but particularly welcome papers that speak to the theme of “What Works, What Doesn’t Work, and an Agenda for Future Research.” Around this theme we invite papers that address: meaningful effect sizes, durability and scalability of interventions, efficacy across diverse populations and settings, effective modes of delivery, mechanisms of effect, methodological innovations, brief-touch/micro interventions, and informative null effects. We are also interested in work that seeks to refine or develop conceptual models that specifically include or address why or how interventions are likely to be broadly effective. We define psychological well-being as overall positive state of one’s emotions, life satisfaction, sense of meaning and purpose, and ability to pursue self-defined goals (which others have referred to as emotional well-being: https://www.nccih.nih.gov/grants/concepts/consider/emotional-wellbeing-high-priority-research-networks). We welcome contributions from multiple disciplines including – but not limited to – psychology (health, social, personality, biological, developmental, clinical, cultural, organizational & industrial, cognitive, etc.), public health (social & behavioral sciences, epidemiology, health policy, global health), neuroscience, communication science, economics, sociology, and computer science. At Affective Science, affective processes are broadly construed, and include emotion, mood, stress, motivation, reward processes, and affective evaluations.
We are especially seeking Research Articles, although in exemplary cases, the other types of Articles described below will be considered.
- Specifications for full length empirical articles: limit to 2,000 words (including all introductory and discussion material in the main text, any footnotes, and acknowledgements). Abstract to be no longer than 150-250 words. Method and Results have no word limits. There are no limits on figures, tables, or references.
- Specifications for theoretical/conceptual/opinion articles: limit to 4,000 words (including all main text, any footnotes, and acknowledgements). Abstract to be no longer than 150-250 words. There are no limits on figures, tables, or references.
- Specifications for the brief report: limit to 750 words (including all introductory and discussion material in the main text, any footnotes, and acknowledgements). Abstract to be no longer than 150-250 words. Method and Results have no word limits. Maximum of two figures or tables and 20 references.
- Supplemental materials/results may be submitted with the article and will be part of the review process. We will not publish supplemental material that is un-reviewed (SOM-U).
Proposals are due October 1, 2021. Authors who are invited to submit a full article will be notified by November 1, 2021. Full manuscripts will be due by March 1, 2022, with the plan to finalize the special issue by December 1, 2022.
Proposals should be a maximum of two-pages double spaced. For research articles, a description of the question, participants, design, methods, and results are required. Data collection must be completed and data must be fully analysed at the time of submission. For theoretical articles, include a synopsis of the major themes of the paper. Proposals can be submitted to emowbforaffectivescience@gmail.com.
Any questions can be directed to Laura Kubzansky, Eric Kim, or Judy Moskowitz at emowbforaffectivescience@gmail.com.