Author guidelines

The core aim of MATILDA is to support researchers in reasoning about measurement, analysis, and theory in the context of intensive longitudinal data (ILD) research, specifically focusing on studying psychological processes as they unfold over time within and/or between individuals.

1 Content principles

The central message of each MATILDA article should answer one key question:

“Why is it important to consider [article title] in the context of an ILD study?”

All content on the MATILDA article, including explanations of terminology, concepts, and examples, should be in service of this central message. Specifically:

  • MATILDA content focuses on theoretical considerations rather than practical concerns. The emphasis is on how a process behaves, and how to answer research questions in an ILD study, rather than on (important) practicalities (e.g., participant burden, finances, available software functionality, etc.) that may impact measurement and analysis choices.
  • MATILDA content is intended to be educational rather than prescriptive. Articles provide information, describe options, and may present arguments but do not dictate what should be considered the best approach.
  • MATILDA content is written in tutorial style and is clear and comprehensible to a broad audience of (psychological) researchers with varying levels of experience in ILD research. The aim is for content to be understandable for master students in psychology, especially those interested in ILD, who are familiar with basic psychological study designs (like cross-sectional studies) and have a good grasp of multiple linear regression.
  • MATILDA content is highly interconnected, with articles often linking to one another, reflecting the inherently intertwined nature of study aspect and design, which thus requires iterative learning.

2 Structure of MATILDA article

The template article serves as a reference for the intended structure and formatting of an article. The following guidelines outline the key requirements for structuring your article:

  1. An article should cover only one main topic, which is referred to in the title of the article. Although it may be necessary to describe other concepts in the article as well, this should be kept brief and only serves readability; a link should be included to another MATILDA article where the topic is covered in more depth.
  2. Short intro that opens with “This article is about…” followed by a few sentences that present the main topic of the article, and that provides an answer to the question: Why is it important to think about this topic in the context of an ILD study? This sense of importance should be carried through and reinforced throughout the article.
  3. The introduction should conclude with a brief outline of the article, clearly listing the sections in the order they appear. For example, “In this article, you will find: 1)…; 2)…; etc.” Ensure that the numbering aligns with the sections that follow.
  4. Sections and subsections create a clear structure that emphasizes the relevance and importance of the topic, guiding readers on why these details matter in the larger context.
  5. In-text examples may be used to support the main message of a section or subsection. In-text examples should be as succinct as possible. Please note that in-text examples should not refer to example boxes (see below).
  6. Example boxes (in yellow) are used throughout the article to provide examples that can help clarify key points and practical importance of the topic in a lively manner. Importantly, the main text remains comprehensible even without reference to the example boxes. The box should adhere to the following standards:
    1. Have a title that covers its content;
    2. Begin with the first name of a (fictional) researcher, followed by a research question they aim to explore;
    3. Examples may be fictional or based on real studies; in the latter case credits to the original work are clearly noted at the end (e.g., “This example is based on a study by XYZ (year)”);
    4. The placement of the box in-text, immediately following the passage it is intended to clarify.
  7. Links to other MATILDA articles are included to help the reader with relevant jargon that is assumed known on a particular article (e.g., ILD, or processes), or to guide readers to further consider related MATILDA topics that are beyond the scope of the current article.
  8. Towards the end of the article, there is typically a section called To think more about, which covers considerations that are closely related to the topic of the article, but are not directly central to it.
  9. The article is wrapped up with a Takeaway section that summarizes the main take home message of the article. This section should be relatively short and should focus on answering the question “Why is this topic important to consider in the context of ILD research?” (see also Checklist, point 1a).
  10. The article ends with a Further reading section, which consists of one or more Read more box(es) (in blue). These boxes list all MATILDA articles referred to throughout the article, and may also link to additional MATILDA articles, or external resources when relevant (e.g., Shiny apps, additional literature, books, etc.). Multiple boxes can be used to organize the links according to topic; in that case the boxes should have titles that cover their content.

3 Formal requirements

  1. Language and tone
    1. MATILDA uses US English grammar and spelling. For commonly used words that have various spellings, see the specific list (e.g., time series, timescales).
    2. The overall tone of articles is encyclopedia like (i.e., neutral, factual, and professional), whilst remaining accessible to a MATILDA audience (i.e., educational and tutorial).
    3. Normative statements are allowed but should be based on general arguments rather than just the authors’ opinion or (dis)likes; preferably, a balanced presentation is given with pros and cons, which the reader can then weigh themselves.

  2. Format and style
    1. The length of the article should be between 1500-3000 words.
    2. Article titles, heading and subheadings should only capitalize the first letter of the first word, and the first letter of the first word after “:” is used.
    3. All articles (incl landing pages) should have a meaningful title. An article title should not include the word “page”.
    4. Sections and subsections of articles should be numbered. This excludes the introductory paragraph at the top of the article. Numbering is automated by Quarto.
    5. Figures and tables are numbered by Quarto, should include a brief note underneath to describe the content, and should be explained in the text.
      1. Figure format: figures should be provided as separate documents. Preferably, they are in .pdf format but other formats are also allowed if the resolution is at least 72ppi.
      2. Reuse of published figures: published figures may be reused if authors can prove they are owner of the copyright or if the figure comes with a license that permits reuse which should be stated in the figure note (e.g., CC BY or CC BY-NC).
    6. Lists may be used in articles. List elements should be presented as succinct bullet points.
    7. Enumerations in-text should be in format a), b), c) when order does not matter or in format 1), 2), 3) … when consecutive steps are described.
    8. Standards on equations will follow later. Equations should only be used when strictly necessary and simplified as much as possible. Authors are strongly encouraged to describe the content of an equation in text rather than (or in addition to) writing out the equation.
    9. Computer code should be indicated clearly and should include what programming language is used. Make sure that all necessary code is provided for others to run it themselves.
    10. Tags in the form of key words should be provided along with the article.

  3. References and citations
    1. In-text references are mainly used for backing claims (but not needed to the degree that one would include references in an article for a scientific journal); when references seem useful for reading more about a topic, these should be collected in a Read more box.
    2. Authors should be mindful of not violating copyright (including copyright on their own published works, also for figures); when an article is heavily based on a specific paper, this should be indicated at the top of the article.

  4. Authors contribution statement The submission should include an author contribution statement, for example, using the Contributor Role Taxonomy (CRediT).