Instructions

MANUSCRIPT PREPARATION AND FORMAT

Every manuscript must be prepared in Microsoft Word according to the template, which can be downloaded from the journal website.  The editors reserve the right to edit the format to ensure the journal's standards.

General Rules

  • Articles must be written in good English (either American or British is accepted, but not a mixture of both)
  • Classifications:
    • Research Paper
    • Case Study
    • Literature Review
    • Commentaries
    • Conceptual paper
  • The preferred paper length:
    • Research Paper: 5000-7000 words
    • Conceptual Paper: 4000-5000 words
    • Literature Review: 4000-6000 words
    • Book Review: 2000-3000 words
    • Letter to the Editor/ Subeditorial: 500-1000 words
    • Commentaries: 500-1500 words
  • The manuscript should be formatted for an A4 size page.
  • The body text should have both the left and right margins justified with single-line spacing.
  • The font type should be Cambria and size 11 points.
  • Paragraph spacing before and after is 0 pt, i.e., no blank lines between paragraphs.
  • The first paragraph in each section or subsection is not indented; the following are first-line indented 10mm.

Sections and subsections are formatted to three levels:

1. INTRODUCTION

Heading 1 (Section heading): Cambria; Size - 11; Bold. Double-spaced before and single-spaced after

1.1 Research Methods

Heading 2 (Subheading): Cambria; Size - 11; Bold; capitalise each word, single-spaced before and after

1.1.1 Analysis of Results

Heading 3 (Sub-subheading): Cambria; Size – 1 Bold, Italicized; Centered, Capitalise the first word, single-spaced before and after.

Manuscript Structure

The manuscript should be organised into clearly defined sections: introduction, literature review, methods, results and discussion, limitation and conclusion, acknowledgements (if any), references and appendices (if any). Sections and subsections should be formatted as heading levels 1, 2 and 3. Any subsection, ideally, should not be more than 700 words. Authors are encouraged to write as concisely as possible but not at the expense of clarity.

Title of the Paper

The title should be concise and informative to adequately describe the contents of the paper, as it is often used in information retrieval systems. Avoid abbreviations and formulas wherever possible. The title is centred on the page and is set in boldface (font size 14 pt). The first letter of each word in the title should be capitalised.

Author's Name and Affiliations

The author's name is provided below the title, followed by the author's affiliation. Please state the given name and family name clearly. If more than one author wrote the article, append their name to the first author. If the authors have different affiliations, assign a sequential superscript number (beginning with "1") immediately after the author's name and precede the author's affiliation. However, authors with the same affiliation will bear the same number.

The names and affiliations are centred on the page (font size 10 pt). A blank line is required to separate the title, the author's name list and the affiliation.

Corresponding Author's Email

An email address of the author who is willing to handle correspondence at all stages of refereeing, publication, and post-publication is stated as a footnote on the first page. Clearly indicate by placing an asterisk ("*") after the author's name and before the email address.

The email address should use Cambria font size, 8pt.

Abstract

A concise and factual abstract is required (150 to 200 words) in one (1) paragraph. The abstract should briefly state the research's purpose, methodology, principal result, and conclusions (including implications). The abstract should be presented separately from the article, so it must be able to stand alone. Hence, no citation is needed.

Keywords

Immediately after the abstract, provide between 3 to 5 keywords to clearly describe the subject matter, avoiding general and plural terms and multiple concepts. The keywords are listed in the lower case, alphabetical order, separated by commas, and the left and right margins are justified (font size 10 pt).

Figures and Tables

Figures are numbered consecutively, and the caption is placed centred below the figure. Similarly, tables are numbered consecutively in order of appearance in the text. However, put the caption above the table body. Avoid vertical rules. Be sparing in using tables and ensure that the data presented do not duplicate results described elsewhere in the article. Present figures and tables after the text, referenced as "Figure 1" or "Table 1".

Equation/Formula

Equations are displayed separately from the paragraphs of text. They should be flushed to the left of the page. The equation should be numbered consecutively. All equation numbers must appear in parentheses and on the right-hand side of the equation. Refer to equations in the text as "(1)". The text size of formulas should be 10 points.

Conclusion

A conclusion section is required and should reiterate the key findings while discussing advantages, limitations, possible applications and recommendations for future research.

Acknowledgements

Please acknowledge any organisations that have sponsored or supported this research. Individuals other than the authors who have given direct assistance could be recognised.

References

Responsibility for the accuracy of bibliographic citations lies entirely with the authors. Please ensure that every reference cited in the text is also in the reference list (and vice versa). Citations in the text and reference list should follow the APA 7th referencing style. See the Reference Examples pages on the APA Style website (https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/references/examples).

Citing and Listing of Web References

As a minimum, the full URL should be given. Any further information, if known (author names, dates, reference to a source publication, etc), should also be provided. Web references can be listed separately (e.g., after the reference list) under a different heading if desired or can be included in the reference list.

Examples:

Journal Article

Edwards, A. A., Steacy, L. M., Siegelman, N., Rigobon, V. M., Kearns, D. M., Rueckl, J. G., & Compton, D. L. (2022). Unpacking the unique relationship between set for variability and word reading development: Examining word- and child-level predictors of performance. Journal of Educational Psychology, 114(6), 1242–1256. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000696

Online Magazine Article

Thomson, J. (2022, September 8). Massive, strange white structures appear on Utah's Great Salt Lake. Newsweek. https://www.newsweek.com/mysterious-mounds-great-salt-lake-utah-explained- mirabilite-1741151

Print Magazine Article

Nicholl, K. (2020, May). A royal spark. Vanity Fair, 62(5), 56–65, 100.

 

Online Newspaper Article

Bernstein, J. (2024, June 3). The man who couldn't stop going to college. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/03/magazine/benjamin-bolger-college-harvard-yale.html

Print Newspaper Article

Reynolds, G. (2019, April 9). Different strokes for athletic hearts. The New York Times, D4.

Authored Book

Kaufman, K. A., Glass, C. R., & Pineau, T. R. (2018). Mindful sport performance enhancement: Mental training for athletes and coaches. American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/0000048-000

Edited Book Chapter

Zeleke, W. A., Hughes, T. L., & Drozda, N. (2020). Home–school collaboration to promote mind– body health. In C. Maykel & M. A. Bray (Eds.), Promoting mind–body health in schools: Interventions for mental health professionals (pp. 11–26). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/0000157-002

Online Dictionary Entry

American Psychological Association. (2018). Internet addiction. In APA dictionary of psychology. https:// dictionary.apa.org/internet-addiction