Instruction for Authors

1. Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría will give preference to the publication of papers related to the field of psychiatry. Papers submitted for publication must be original and must not have been previously published elsewhere.

2. Authorship – Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría adheres to ICMJE recommendations on defining the roles of authors and contributors. All authors must have made a substantial contribution to the study design, data generation, analysis, and/or interpretation of the results. All authors have read and approved the manuscript. Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría declines any responsibility for possible conflicts arising from authorship of the papers published in the journal.

Ethical Responsibilities – Protection of Persons and Animals. When describing experiments involving human subjects, it must be stated whether the procedures followed were approved by the corresponding Ethics Committee, whether written informed consent was provided by patients, and whether the study adheres to the World Medical Association’s Declaration of Helsinki. When describing experiments with animals, it should be indicated whether the study followed the guidelines of an institutional or international research council, or national laws regulating the care and use of laboratory animals, such as the ARRIVE guidelines 2.0, the AVMA Guidelines for the Euthanasia of Animals, etc. When describing clinical trials, it should be specified whether the trial has been registered with a clinical trial registry platform and includes the registration identifier.

Preprints – Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría accepts manuscripts that have been posted on a non-profit preprint server prior to submission. Authors are required to provide the preprint's DOI and license terms on the first page of the manuscript. Preprints will undergo the same peer-review process as other submissions. If the manuscript is accepted for publication, it is the author's responsibility to ensure that the preprint server reference is updated, including the DOI and the URL link to the published version of the article on the journal’s website.

The authors are responsible for obtaining the permissions to reproduce in Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría any type of material that has been previously published. Said permissions must be requested from the author and/or publishing company that has published said material and should be attached to the manuscript. For inquiries, please contact editorial@actaspsiquiatria.es.

3. Authors are recommended to adhere to the minimum reporting guidelines hosted by the EQUATOR Network when preparing their manuscript. Papers sent to the Journal should be included in one of the following categories:

- Article. Articles are intended to publish original research or investigative reports that present novel data and exert a positive impact within their respective fields. The main body of an Article must include the following sections: Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, Discussion, and Conclusions, with no restriction on word count. The abstract, limited to 200–400 words, should follow a structured format comprising Background (including Aims), Methods, Results, and Conclusions. An article is recommended to include 3–5 keywords, and there is no limitation on the number of figures and tables.

- Review. Review articles are comprehensive overviews of a specific hot topic aligned with addressing the aims and hypothesis through the literature. This includes specific and comprehensive systematic, critical, or bibliographic reviews on subjects or areas related to the disciplines covered by the Journal with a word limit of 3000-8000 words (including only the main body of the text, that is, not counting the tables, figures, summaries or references).
The number of words in the abstract needs to be controlled between 200 and 400, and the number of keywords needs to be controlled between 3 and 5. 

- Systematic Review. The Systematic Review papers encompass meta-analyses, systematic reviews, and systematic reviews with a meta-analysis. Authors are encouraged to complete the flow diagram and include it with their submission. For the Systematic Review papers, there is a word limit of 3000-8000 words (including an abstract but excluding references, tables, and figures). The number of words in the abstract (structured) needs to be controlled between 200 and 350, and the number of keywords needs to be controlled between 3 and 5.
The article is required to explicitly state compliance with the PRISMA or MOOSE standard and checklist, with the checklist provided as an online supplement.

- Case Report. Reports on clinical observations are particularly interesting due to their novel contribution to clinical knowledge and therapeutic management of specific medical conditions. The maximum extension permitted is 2500 words. Authors are encouraged to prepare manuscripts in accordance with CARE guidelines. Only cases that exhibit exceptional interest and novelty are taken into consideration.

- Letter. Letters typically publish short research reports or opinion articles, including comments on a specific article or issue recently published in Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría, forward-looking and exploratory viewpoint articles, and brief reports on investigations and research data. Additionally, important data that may attract broad interest among readers or stimulate further research in the field can also be published in the form of letters before completing a full study.

- Editorial. Editorials are opinion articles from the editor or an invited author. When contributed by an invited author, editorials can also introduce the subject being brought into focus in a special issue or thematic section. The maximum number of references is 15, and the combined maximum number of figures and tables is 1.

They ought to be concise and centered, ensuring a clear and direct message. The body of the Editorial can be continuous text or structured into distinct subsections. Editorials on topics of current interest are encouraged.

4. Submission

Manuscripts should be submitted as Microsoft Word files in 12-point Times New Roman font with 1.5 line spacing. Papers must be written in English. For each author, please provide the full name and surname, affiliation (including complete address information: city, zip code, state/province, and country), and the corresponding author's email address. This information will be published in the journal to facilitate communication between readers and authors.

For Original Articles, the abstract should be structured as Background, Methods, Results, and Conclusion, briefly describing the content of each section. Four to six keywords related to the subject in each paper must be added in all the papers.

The text should be organized as follows: Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion and Conclusions. Authors are free to choose second-level headings. In most cases, this structure is not required for Review Articles, Case Reports and Letters.

Manuscripts can include tables and figures, which should be presented on pages separate from the text. Tables and figures must have an explanatory footnote and corresponding Arabic number in order of appearance in the text.

Figures must have the number and explanatory text in the same document as well as the name and surname of the first author. Figures should be sent as a separate file, in TIFF or JPEG format, preferably with minimum resolution of 300 dpi.

Availability of Data and Materials. This section should include where and how to access data that support the results and analysis. If your manuscript does not include any data, please state 'Not Applicable.'

Author Contributions. The detailed contributions of each author to the manuscript should be detailed, with initials used to indicate each author’s role.

Ethics Approval and Consent to Participate. For research involving humans or animals, detailed information on ethical approval should be provided, which must include the name of the Ethics Committee and the ethics approval number.

Acknowledgment. This section should acknowledge individuals who provided help during the research, any support not covered in the funding section, and any important disclaimers.

Funding. The entities or institutions that have financed or collaborated in the work should be included. Mention the registry number and financing entity or institution for research projects.

Conflict of Interest. Authors must disclose any relationships between the authors and any public or private entities that could result in a conflict of interest.

5. References

Authors are responsible for citing references accurately and should attest that the references cited support the associated statements. The reference list is sorted numerically. The reference list should be limited to only those citations essential to the presentation. Please use [numbers] for the references in the text. Each reference should contain the following information: the first 6 authors followed by “et al.” if there are more than 6; title of the article, the standard journal title; year; volume (issue number in parentheses), and corresponding page numbers (do not abbreviate the page number).

Examples:

Articles: Gili M, Lopez-Navarro E, Homar C, Castro A, García-Toro M, Llobera J, et al. Psychometric properties of Spanish version of QIDS-SR16 in depressive patients. Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría. 2014;42: 292-299. 

Books: Ketter TA. Advances in Treatment of Bipolar Disorders. Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Publishing; 2015.

Book chapter: Figueroa Quintana A, Soutullo Esperón C, Hernández Otero I. Depresión, Antidepresivos y Suicidio: Riesgos y beneficios de los ISRS. In Soutullo C (ed. ) Majadahonda: Comunicación y Ediciones Sanitarias (pp. 115-141). Spanish Scientific: Madrid. 2013.

Electronic material: Moore A. Paracetamol: widely used and largely ineffective. 2018. Available at: http://uk.cochrane.org/news/paracetamol-widely-used-and-largely-ineffective (Accessed: 23 May 2018).

6. Informed consent and patient information

When articles are based on studies involving patients or volunteers, written informed consent should be obtained from participants (or their parents/legal guardians if applicable), along with appropriate ethical approval. A detailed statement should be included in the manuscript to comply with all relevant laws and regulations regarding personal information privacy and/or security. If the text of the article includes any personal details of patients, or images of them or of other people for publishing in Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría, the author must have their permission, consent and any assignment rights necessary for this. The author must keep a written consent record, although it is not necessary to send this to Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría. If a legal conflict is envisaged, the author must provide this information if required, as well as copies of it or evidence that the relevant consent has been obtained. All images must belong to the authors or have necessary consent for publication in Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría. Formal consent is not required for the use of entirely anonymous images, such as X-rays, ultrasound images, pathology slides, or laparoscopic images, provided they do not contain identifying marks or accompanying text that may identify individuals.

7. Peer review

Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría uses a review system consisting of anonymous submissions to reviewers. After receiving the article, the Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría editorial committee makes an initial assessment of it. Its content is then checked to be of interest and in keeping with the editorial line and proven scientific facts published in each issue. When an article passes this initial internal review process, each manuscript is then submitted for peer review by at least two reviewers who evaluate both the appropriateness of the article content, as well as the scientific quality of the submitted text. They then provide the authors with their review conclusions. Both reviewers and authors will always be anonymous and their identity will never be disclosed. The Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría editorial committee always decides if the article is acceptable for publication or if it is going to be rejected. Editors will never take part in this process if the articles have been written by themselves or by a family member of the editorial team or its research groups; or even if there is a close professional relationship between the author and the parties involved in the editorial process. Articles are reviewed anonymously by other independent reviewers in all cases. If there is any conflict of interest between an editor and the article content, Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría ensures the review is carried out independently, and selects reviewers other than the usual editors; resulting in a review process free of any conflict.

8. Artificial Intelligence (AI) Policy

Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría supports the ICMJE recommendations regarding the use of AI-assisted technologies (such as Large Language Models [LLMs], chatbots, or image creators). If authors use AI-assisted technologies to produce the submitted work, they must disclose the use of AI in the Methods, Acknowledgments, or other appropriate sections of the manuscript at the time of submission. AI may not be listed as authors or co-authors. Authors must be responsible for the accuracy, integrity, and originality of their manuscript, including any submitted material generated by AI. Editors reserve the final decision on whether the use of AI in a submitted manuscript is appropriate or permissible.
Reviewers should keep the manuscript, related materials, and the information contained therein strictly confidential. Reviewers should not upload manuscripts to software or other AI technologies where confidentiality cannot be assured. Reviewers should transparently disclose the use of AI tools to the journal.

9. Editorial process

Upon receipt of the manuscript, all authors will receive an acknowledgment of receipt. The Editorial Office will perform an initial review of the manuscript, checking its structure, style, and the presence of plagiarism in the text and scientific content. After completing the initial check, the manuscript will be sent to the editorial committee for evaluation, and will be peer reviewed by at least two reviewers. Following the evaluation, the authors will be informed of the outcome regarding acceptance for publication, along with any suggested modifications. Once the final version of the manuscript is accepted for publication, the authors will receive galley proofs for final corrections, which should be returned to the journal within 2 days.

10. Corrections, expressions of concern and retractions

Upon publication, should revisions to the final version be deemed necessary, the journal's editorial team will undertake careful consideration, with the approval of the editor-in-chief, to ensure adherence to the journal's policies and the guidelines outlined by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). Any requisite alterations will be accompanied by a post-publication notice, which will be permanently linked to the original article. These modifications may include Corrections and Version Control. This practice of linking post-publication notices to the original article serves to uphold transparency regarding any changes made and safeguard the integrity of the academic record.

11. Misconduct

Upon receipt of direct allegations of misconduct from informants, Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría will adhere strictly to the procedures outlined by COPE. Upon identification of concerns regarding ethical misconduct, the editorial committee will promptly initiate an investigation following COPE guidelines. Throughout ongoing investigations or while awaiting resolution, if the evidence remains inconclusive, Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría may opt to issue expressions of concern to notify readers of the situation. In the event that the investigation confirms misconduct, Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría will promptly issue a retraction notice, which will be published in the journal. The article's record will be updated accordingly to reflect the retraction, and it will be clearly marked as such in the journal's archives. Furthermore, relevant indexes will be revised to indicate the retraction.

12. Article processing charge

All articles published in Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría are freely accessible online upon publication. Upon acceptance of a manuscript, Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría will charge a €1500 Article Processing Charge (APC) and will not accept refunds of any kind. For waivers or discounts, please contact the journal editorial office before submitting your manuscript. Further payment information can be obtained by contacting the editorial office.

13. Open Access

All articles published in Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría are open-access. Therefore, readers can access the articles online for free and without restrictions. From 2025, articles will be published under the CC BY license in Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría, and authors will retain the copyright to their works.

14. Copyright and Permission

Until December 2024, most articles published in Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría retain the copyright annotation “© Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría.” Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría retains copyright and grants any third party the right to freely use most articles, provided the article remains intact and proper credit is given to the original author, citation details, and journal.
From 2025, Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría will publish articles under the open-access the CC BY license. Authors will retain copyright and grant third parties the right to unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, as long as the original author and source are credited.

15. Digital archive

Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría has collaborated with CLOCKSS and Portico,  ensuring the long-term preservation, usability, and accessibility of scholarly content through rigorous management policies and actions. Our commitment extends to supporting open-access initiatives, ensuring that content remains available despite any access interruptions. We prioritize upholding the integrity of digital data and preventing unauthorized alterations.