JPS sponsors one annual Special Issue of Cognitive Development, the society’s journal, which is distributed to all JPS members as well as others interested in its topics.  Each Special Issue is organized by a Guest Editor (or Co-Editors) with the approval of the JPS Board.  Once approved the process of generating, receiving, reviewing and revising manuscripts typically consumes 1 ½ to 2 years.  The deadline for final editing of the issue is April 1 of the publication year.

Special Issues should reflect the interests and goals of the Society, specifically those of knowledge and development. They should be of consistently high quality and may represent “cutting edge” areas or themes typically neglected in major journals. Thematic issues may emerge from JPS meetings and themes or may anticipate themes that will later be a conference topic.

At this time we are inviting proposals for the 2012 or 2013 volumes.

The attached Guidelines provide more information on the proposal and approval process.

For more information, visit: www.piaget.org/Journal/

For questions or further clarification please contact Katherine Nelson knelson@gc.cuny.edu.

Guidelines for Annual Special Issue Proposals
The following guidelines are for prospective Guest Editors who are formulating a proposal and for Editors of Special Issues of Cognitive Development. Proposals for the 2012 and 2013 Special Issues are now invited.
Focus
The Special Issue represents the annual contribution of the Society to the journal, which is sent to all members, and it should reflect the interests of the JPS membership. Theoretical and empirical scholarship on topics in the study of knowledge and development are appropriate. Typically these will include a series of related articles but other formats will be considered when justified.
Process
Submission: The potential guest editor (or co-editors) should submit a two-three page proposal to the Publications Committee Chair for review by the publications committee and consideration by the JPS Board.
The proposal should include:
▪ suggested title
▪ description of the theme
▪ statement regarding the relevance and interest of the theme to the JPS membership and general readers of Cognitive Development with a brief summary of current scholarship in the area justifying Special Issue treatment
▪ summary statement of the guest editor’s background relevant to the proposal together with a current c.v.
▪ list of potential invited contributors, their relation to the theme, and brief description of their prospective papers
▪ list of three to four experts in the field with a brief description of their backgrounds who could potentially act as an ad hoc review committee
▪ timeline indicating when the guest editor will receive the articles, have them reviewed, receive acceptable revisions, and the proposed date for when the entire volume would be ready for publication.
Review and Assembly: All manuscripts will be submitted directly to the Guest Editor. The Guest Editor will then obtain two independent reviews for each manuscript to be returned to the Guest Editor who will write an action letter to each author. Authors’ revisions, based on the reviewers’ and editor’s recommendations will be returned to the Guest Editor who will make a decision as to the readiness of the paper for publication and will request further revision if necessary. The Guest Editor is responsible for ensuring that all manuscripts meet the quality criteria of the journal and are prepared according to APA style and in accord with the editorial guidelines of Cognitive Development (see inside back cover of the journal). The completed Special Issue will be sent to the JPS Special Issue Chair for review and will then be sent on to the editor of Cognitive Development for publication.
For more information, please contact Katherine Nelson (knelson@gc.cuny.edu).