ISSN 0120-338X
printed version

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15446/fyf

INSTRUCTIONS TO AUTHORS

• Publishing norms
• Ethics & publication good practices
• Sending of manuscripts

Norms for authors

Forma y Función has subscribed the Open Journal System agreement, which has open access. For this reason it is necessary that authors interested in publishing previously unpublished papers in Forma y Función send us a letter where they agree to assign copyright to Forma y Función upon publication of their papers. Likewise they must express their agreement as to the principles of open access, public accessibility, and reproduction by users-readers of materials published by the journal, provided the source is cited.
Original and unpublished papers submitted for publication of each number of Forma y Función will be subjected to the following norms:

Support

Authors should send a copy of the manuscript to the following email address: revff_fchbog@unal.edu.co. The paper’s file should be in .doc or .docx format. If special fonts are used, a PDF file should be sent, accompanied by the corresponding typefaces.

First Page

All papers should contain the following information:

• Title in the original language, in English and in Portuguese (if the title of the article is in English or in any other language, it should include a translation into Spanish and Portuguese).
• Author’s “Pen Name” (name used by the author in his/her publications).
• Author’s institutional affiliation.
• In a footnote introduced by an asterisk, author’s email, together with an author’s profile, including last academic degree or studies, and additional academic activities or affiliations..
• If the paper is a result of research advancement or is funded by an institution, relevant data should be included (institution’s name, project’s name, code, dates, etc.) in a footnote introduced by double asterisk.
• If the article does not derive from research, its origin should also be indicated in a footnote introduced by double asterisk..

Acknowledgments may be expressed in a footnote introduced by three asterisks. If acronyms or abbreviations used for institutions or topics are widely recognized, they should be included in parentheses..

Second Page

The second page should contain the following elements::
Abstract in the original language, in English and in Portuguese, 150 words/990 characters maximum (if the original article is in English or in any other language, it should include an abstract in Spanish and in Portuguese). The abstract includes the research topic, methodology used, and conclusions.
5-7 key words, preferably descriptors from specialized thesauri, with the corresponding translations should be included.

Format of the article’s body

• Single space between paragraphs, i.e. no empty line in-between.
• Notes should be introduced by bullet points with French indentation.
• The paper should not be longer than 35 pages, including bibliographical references, written in letter-sized pages, Times New Roman 12 points, justified, and spaced 1,5.
• Pages should not be numbered.
• The document should not include ornamental graphs (templates, frameworks, or institutional logos). Colors should not be used either to highlight a text; capital letters, italics or bold types should be used instead.
• Titles should be written on the left margin of the page in bold face and italics, up to five heading levels, according to the keys provided in the following chart:
• Paper’s maximum extension is 35 pages, letter-size, including bibliographical references.

Footnotes should be introduced by Arabic numbers.

Tables

• Original editable files of tables should be submitted (format files .xls o .xlsx)
• All tables included should be mentioned in the text body, numbered and titled.
• If required, the source where the table or diagram was taken should be acknowledged.
• The table's title should be centered above it.

Graphics

• Editable files of all graphic material used should be submitted (photographs, maps and diagrams in .jpg, .tiff, .psd o .ai format).
• Titles of all graphic elements should be included below them, as a photo caption describing the image and acknowledging the source.
• Photographs' optimal resolution should be 1,100 x 860 pixels in order to guarantee their printed and digital quality. Otherwise, withdrawal of this material may be called for.

Bibliographical references

Footnotes should not be used for bibliographical citation. Forma y Función uses the citation and bibliographical system of the American Psychological Association (APA), third/sixth edition translated from English. For this reason, authors are advised to use this system. As a rule, all bibliographical references should contain the following data:

Complete Book

Eco, U. (1984). Semiotics and the Philosophy of Language. London: McMillan Press.

Book's Chapter

Acero, I. (2003). La lexicografía plurilingüe del español. En A. Medina Guerre (coord.), Lexicografía española (pp. 175-204). Barcelona: Ariel.

Journal's Article

Ponce de León Romeo, R. (2000). Las propuestas metodológicas para la enseñanza del latín en las escuelas portuguesas de la Compañía de Jesús a mediados del siglo XVI. Cuadernos de Filología Clásica. Estudios Latinos, 19, 233-257.

Online Material

Colombia, Ministerio de Educación Nacional. (2003). Decreto 2566 del 10 de septiembre de 2003. Consultado el 24 de octubre del 2007 en http://www.mineducacion.gov.co.

Note: all data are not always available; only relevant information should be indicated. Otherwise, the required field may be omitted. It is always recommended to review citations, as these cannot be corrected or complemented by the journal.

Several bibliographical entries by the same author should always be registered on his/her name.

In order for an article to be published, the author should present it according to the publications norms above mentioned (valid for similar international publications).

For additional information on citation and bibliographical issues, authors are referred to the following link: http://citationmachine.net/index2.php

Author's Biography

Papers should be accompanied by authors' brief academic biography (institutional affiliation, academic unit and position, publications, ongoing projects, etc.) on a separate file.

Peer Review Process

Forma y Función uses a peer review process, i.e. all articles submitted for publication are sent to expert peer reviewers from several international universities. Peer reviewers will decide if the submitted papers are to be published in Forma y Función. They take into account the methodology used, rigorous analysis and interpretation of gathered data, theoretical disciplinary soundness, as well as formal aspects above-mentioned. If required, a third peer reviewer's concept may be required.

As soon as the peer review process is complete, the decision will be communicated to authors. If the decision is positive, comments will be disclosed to authors. After author's review of his/her article's final version, the publication process will begin.

Note: peers' reviews are confidential, and anonymity of both authors and reviewers is secured.

Forma y Función follows Colombian ‘Good Practice Guidelines for Journals Editors’ (http://publicationethics.org/files/u2/Best_Practice.pdf), as well as Habeas Data Law (Statutory Law 1266 of 2008) for handling personal information in databases. The journal also abides by the ‘Deontological and Bioethical Code for Exercising Psychology in Colombia’ (http://www.tribunales.colpsic.org.co) and the American Psychological Association (http://www.apa.org/ethics/code) when research involves human beings.

Special attention is paid to the following points:

Authors

Manuscript preparation. Papers submitted to Forma y Función are expected to have been carefully reviewed by authors in order to avoid unintended mistakes. This previous review by authors should also ensure compliance with the above-mentioned formal criteria.

Points to bear in mind. According to their nature, some papers require a detailed description of procedures, so that, for example, an experiment may be replicated.  When researching on people, it should be explicit that data were gathered with informed consent and privacy rights were respected. If possible, unused formats used for informed consent can be attached.

On Plagiarism, Self-Plagiarism and Paper’s Contribution. Manuscripts submitted to Forma y Función should be originally written and signed by the authors. No articles previously published can be published again in the journal, even if they were originally written in other language. It is not considered self-plagiarism if authors base their proposals on a theoretical or methodological framework worked out in a different paper of his/hers, provided a new contribution is made in the paper. Contributions or conclusions should not be the same of other published papers, their own or by other authors. We recommend following the manual for publications by the American Psychological Association (6th ed.).

If a paper is submitted to Forma y Función, authors accept not to send the same paper to another journal. In case the author is not interested in continuing the peer review process, a communication stating this should be sent to the journal.

Forma y Función has a section dedicated to translations. In this case, translators of papers and book chapters should send an authorization letter by the original authors in order for the translations to be considered for publication.

On Authorship and Co-Authorship. The paper’s authors should have participated in the research process, and the writing of text submitted to the journal, its revision and edition. This means that all authors are responsible for requests made by Forma y Función regarding the submitted manuscript. No person who has not participated in the above-mentioned process is to appear as the paper’s author. Collaborators, i.e. not properly authors, are to be mentioned in the acknowledgements section in the corresponding footnote.

Timely and Fluid Communication. Authors should comply with the agreed deadlines as well with the tasks derived from the reviewing process (peer reviewers’ remarks), editing style (revision and approval of suggestions made in the process) and layout (revision and approval of final proofreading).

Reviewers

Review acceptance. Forma y Función Editorial Committee invites well-known reviewers who are experts in the topics of the submitted papers. If the reviewer deems not to able to review the paper or does not have time for it, the topic is not of his/her interest or a possible conflict of interest emerges, he/she should contact the Editorial Committee and explain this situation.

Meticulousness and Rigorousness. The reviewer should attempt to be as rigorous as possible so that the editor may make a decision based on the concept regarding the acceptance or rejection of the manuscript. No offensive language should be used in the reviews. Concepts should be comprehensive and useful for both authors and editor.

Time Compliance. Forma y Función suggests a 15-days maximum deadline for submitting reviews. If required by the reviewer, additional time can be allotted extraordinarily or a new reviewer can be assigned.

On the Use of Submitted Materials. Documents sent by Forma y Función to reviewers are confidential.  The review is only for assessing purposes. Citation of the manuscript or use of its contents is not lawful or authorized.

Originals should be submitted to:  revff_fchbog@unal.edu.co or revistaformayfuncion@gmail.com