JMFT Annual Report 2019

Abstract

One of the things I have struggled with as Editor of the Journal of Marital and Family Therapy (JMFT) is that we receive our previous year's metrics in August of the following year. So, everything you read in this report is already dated and does not necessarily reflect the current times. So, in August of 2020, I am writing about JMFT's 2019 performance and keeping an eye on what 2021 might bring. Who would have thought that the year 2020 would have brought a global pandemic requiring our entire field to change the way it practices? It also brought much needed attention to the persistent institutional racial inequality that continues in our world. And, here in the United States, we are quickly approaching another national election day. Our road to that day will, no doubt, be fraught with bifurcation along political lines, divisive statements from elected officials, and even worse, conflict between family members, friends, and fellow citizens because they do not see eye to eye on the problems and challenges we face in our contemporary society. I feel fortunate to professionally associate with people who have dedicated their professional lives to healing and repairing relationships. It is my hope that JMFT continues to be a publication that supports your work and efforts in facilitating healthy dialogue and healing distressed relationships. In 2019 (January 1-December 31) JMFT received 125 total original submissions, a 1.5% decrease from the previous year's 127 submissions. This number of submissions is down from when I took over the Editor's duties in 2018. However, in August of 2020 we had already passed 2019's total submissions. Soliciting articles on special topics may have contributed to this increase. Our rejection rate went up slightly from 73.2% to 79.2% in 2019. This also had the added effect of reducing the number of manuscripts in the queue that are waiting to show up in print. I believe that the increase in rejected manuscripts translates to an increase in the quality of our published work. Our submissions came from 24 different countries. This represents a slight increase from last year. Additionally, the number of manuscripts we received from countries outside of North America, increased by 2.1% in 2019. I am hopeful that this trend can continue and JMFT will expand its global footprint. The time from initial processing by the editorial assistant to a first decision was about 41 days, with approximately one third of all submitted manuscripts receiving an initial decision in less than 30 days. I continue to be committed to providing authors with a quick and respectful peer review process. I am grateful for the host of reviewers we have who share this vision and dedication to this aspect of publishing in JMFT. The JMFT Doctoral Apprentice Reviewer Program continues to play an important role in the professional socialization of the next generation of family therapy scholars. In the last year, 34 graduate students from 14 COAMFTE-accredited programs provided 41 reviews. Faculty members mentor apprentice r...