The Executive Committee of the European Association of Personality Psychology (EAPP) is seeking a new Editor-in-Chief for the European Journal of Personality (EJP).
Application deadline: 1st August 2023
Start date: 1st October 2024 (phase-in period starts January 2024)
Length of term: 4 years (October 2024 – September 2028)
The Journal
The EJP, published in collaboration with Sage, is an official EAPP outlet that publishes a diverse range of empirical, review, theoretical, and methodological articles that are consistent with its aims and scope and meet its Evaluation Criteria. The most notable topics covered in the EJP include – but are not limited to – the structure, assessment, causes, and consequences of personality differences between people, variability and developmental changes within individuals, and the interactions of these with experiences. The EJP publishes research from, and is read, across the world, and also reaches out through the EJP-Blog, Personality Psychology Podcast, and social media with the help of the EJP’s Research Communication Assistant. The EJP consistently attracts excellent papers and thus has the highest impact factor of all purely personality-psychological journals (2-year impact factor, IF: 7.0; 5-year IF: 7.0).
The EJP is strongly committed to open science, having implemented clear guidelines for the published work’s transparency, publishing Registered Reports, encouraging pre-registrations, and otherwise complying with the Transparency and Openness Promotion (TOP) Guidelines. It has thus achieved one of the highest TOP Factor scores in psychology. For further information about the journal’s policies, including Submission Guidelines, Evaluation Criteria, Open Science Policy, and common reasons for desk-rejection, see the journal website.
Responsibilities and Tasks
The Editor-in-Chief (EiC) is responsible for leadership of the journal, liaison with the publisher (Sage) and the publishing association (EAPP), the coordination and processing of content for publication, and promotion of the published research and the journal. The EiC takes ultimate responsibility for editorial decision-making and for the journal’s ongoing development. They ensure that the journal’s activities adhere to principles of transparent and ethical publishing, including actions to promote diversity, fairness, equality, inclusion, and non-discrimination. The EiC is supported by up to ten Associate Editors, a Research Communications Editor (responsible for the EJP Blog, social media accounts, and the coordination of further research communications activities), an Editorial Board, a pool of committed reviewers, and the editorial and production staff at Sage (including a peer-review assistant). The EiC reports to the EAPP Executive Committee (of which they are an ex-officio member) and to the EAPP membership at annual meetings.
The EiC has the unique opportunity to shape the field of personality research by leading one of its major outlets and working with capable editors, reviewers, and authors around the globe. The EiC role is not remunerated. However, Sage provides an annual financial contribution of £1,500 to support this position.
The main tasks and responsibilities of the EiC are described as follows.
Leadership tasks
Building and maintaining a dedicated team of Associate Editors to ensure consistency in the application of the journal’s policies
Fostering smooth collaboration between different parties involved in the journal (e.g., Associate Editors, Editorial Board, Executive Committee of the EAPP, the Personality Science Editor, and Sage)
Building a community around the journal, including a diverse range of authors, reviewers, and readers from across the world
Journal development
Developing strategies to enhance the quality and reputation of the journal, and working with the Associate Editors, the EAPP Executive Committee, and Sage to implement these
Ensuring that the journal’s content meets the highest research standards, making original, transparent and robust contributions to knowledge in the field
Finding and implementing solutions to improve the editorial workflow
Evaluating and updating the journal’s policies and guidelines (e.g., Evaluation Criteria), and optionally contributing editorials
Working with Research Communications Editor and Sage to find optimal strategies to disseminate the work published in the journal
Manuscript handling
Processing manuscript submissions via the online submission system (mc.manuscriptcentral.com/per), including quality checks for each individual article against the Submission Guidelines, Evaluation Criteria and Open Science Policy; deciding on and carrying out desk rejections (with articulated reasons), un-submission of papers not complying with journal policy and invitations to resubmit; and assigning manuscripts to Associate Editors
Handling of selected regular individual articles, including assigning manuscripts to referees for peer-review, making editorial decisions on submissions, and maintaining clear and efficient communications with authors, peer reviewers, and the publisher
Making the first decisions and providing feedback on Registered Reports
Seeking and handling target articles and their commentary
Meetings and conferences
Being an ex-officio member of the Executive Committee of EAPP and participating in its meetings and ongoing workflows
Participating in further EAPP-sponsored activities such as Expert Meetings and Summer Schools, and fostering links of these activities to EJP
Promoting the work of the journal to the EAPP members and the wider academic community and representing the journal at relevant events and conferences
Desirable Candidate Qualities
Candidates are expected to continue supporting the EJP’s high standards, visibility, reputation, and the upward trajectories of these. To successfully manage the above-mentioned tasks and responsibilities and further develop the journal’s position in the field and broader publication landscape, candidates will be selected considering the following criteria:
Extensive experience in editorial work in an international publishing context, sound understanding of journal quality markers, and wide experience with peer-review
Sound knowledge of contemporary challenges and debates in personality research and related areas, and an excellent track record of research and publication
Ability to attract key scientists as editors, editorial board members, authors, reviewers, and guest editors for special issues
Ability for strategic forward-thinking as well as receiving and incorporating feedback from multiple stakeholders (e.g., editorial team, authors, reviewers, readers, Sage representatives, members of the EAPP Executive Committee, the public)
Evidenced commitment and ability for effective shared decision-making and managing multiple individual and collective tasks to tight deadlines
Full working proficiency in English
A strong dedication to maintain and further develop EJP’s quality, impact, visibility, international readership, and reputation in the field
A strong commitment to diversity and inclusion ensuring that the EJP includes a socio-culturally diverse range of editors, reviewers, and authors, as well as topics and methodologies representative of perspectives and practices from across the world
Application Process
The newly appointed EiC will work with the current EiC, René Mõttus, in a phased transition period starting in January 2024 before assuming sole responsibility in October 2024. Potential applicants are welcome to contact the current EiC (rene.mottus@ed.ac.uk) for informal discussion about the role. Applicants for the role of EiC should submit (a) their CV, (b) a two-page summary of their strategy for the journal, and (c) a cover letter outlining their skills, experience, and interest in relation to the responsibilities and the ideal candidate profile outlined above.
These documents should be sent to the EAPP secretary (secretary@eapp.org). The deadline for applications is 1st August 2023 at 23:59 CEST.
The search committee (John Rauthmann, Anu Realo, Anne Reitz, and René Mõttus) will evaluate all applications in the strictest confidence. The applications will be judged on their merits without regard to gender, race, religion, disability, nationality, biological age, sexual orientation, or other group identity memberships. Shortlisted candidates might be invited to an additional online interview with members of the search committee in September or October 2023. The search committee will prepare a proposal based on which a final decision will be made by the EAPP Executive Committee by November 2023. The applicants will be informed about the decision by 1st December 2023 the latest.
With best regards,
The EAPP Executive Committee