Submission Guidelines

MANUSCRIPT CRITERIA AND INFORMATION
The WAGER accepts editorials, comments and article submissions in a variety of categories (see below for more details). These submissions will be peer reviewed and should focus on gambling related research, treatment and public policy. The WAGER is published on a weekly basis on the Internet.

In addition to submitted editorials and comments, The WAGER editorial staff will solicit these works. Once accepted for publication, editorials and comments will be sent to discussants for responses to be published along with the original article. This aspect of The WAGER will promote dialogue, discussion and consideration of complex issues in a timely way that is not available to print media.

Manuscript Submission  While manuscripts can represent original and previously unpublished work, in the spirit of dissemination and dialogue, we encourage authors to submit material that reviews or revises previously published works.

Manuscripts should be submitted via e-mail to wager@basisonline.org. Print mail address and telephone and fax numbers also should be included. Tables, figures, and text should be included in the same file if possible.

The preferred format is as a Microsoft Word (98 or 2000) document, sent via email to wager@basisonline.org. Any images should be referenced in the article description and sent as separate TIFF, JPG, or GIF attachments. We reformat all articles during the production phase, so you do not need to worry about web page layout. However, you should note that when writing for the web it works best if you use short paragraphs. If you include artwork with a submission, please send it in BMP, TIFF, or PCX at 72 or (preferably) greater dpi. We will also accept GIF or JPG. When submitting artwork, please zip all files together into a PC .zip. If you have any questions about the content or the technology, please don't hesitate to contact us.

CATEGORIES OF ARTICLES
The WAGER publishes original contributions, editorials, review articles, brief reports, special communications, commentaries, letters to the editor, and many other categories of articles. Topics of interest include all subjects that relate to gambling and gambling related disorders.

Letters discussing a recent The WAGER article are welcome. Letters should be received within 4 weeks of the article's publication and should not exceed 400 words of text and 5 references. Research briefs reporting original research, including case studies or case reports, also are welcome and should not exceed 500 words of text and 6 references. A word count should be provided with each letter.

CRITERIA FOR MANUSCRIPTS
Manuscripts should meet the following criteria: the material is original; the writing is clear; the study methods are appropriate; the data are valid; the conclusions are reasonable and supported by the data; the information is important; and the topic has a gambling interest. From these basic criteria, we assess a paper's eligibility for publication.

AUTHORSHIP INFORMATION
Designate a corresponding author and provide a complete address, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail address. The corresponding author will be identified as such in the published article. Authors are required to identify each author's contributions to the work described in the manuscript.  

1. Authorship Responsibility, Criteria, and Contributions.
All persons listed as authors must meet all the following criteria for authorship:

A.  I certify that

B. I have given final approval of the submitted manuscript.

C.  I have participated sufficiently in the work to take public responsibility for (check 1 of 2 below)

• Part of the content.

• The whole content.

2. Financial Disclosure.
I certify that all my affiliations with or financial involvement (e.g., employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, royalties) with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or in financial competition with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript are completely disclosed below or in an attachment. In addition, all financial and material support for this research and work are clearly identified in the manuscript.

3. Copyright Transfer.
In consideration of the action of The WAGER in reviewing and editing this submission (manuscript, tables, and figures), the author(s) undersigned hereby transfer(s), assign(s), or otherwise convey(s) all copyright ownership, including any and all rights incidental thereto, exclusively to The WAGER, in the event that such work is published by The WAGER.

4. Acknowledgment Statement.
Authors should obtain written permission from all individuals named in an Acknowledgment, since readers may infer their endorsement of data and conclusions.

EDITORIAL REVIEW AND PUBLICATION
Peer Review  The WAGER editors will review all submitted manuscripts initially. Manuscripts with insufficient priority for publication are rejected promptly. Other manuscripts are sent to expert consultants for peer review. Peer reviewer identities are kept confidential. Author identities are not kept confidential. The existence of a manuscript under review is not revealed to anyone other than peer reviewers and editorial staff. Information from submitted manuscripts may be systematically collected and analyzed as part of research to improve the quality of the editorial or peer review process. Identifying information remains confidential.

Rejected Manuscripts  Rejected manuscripts will not be returned to authors unless specifically requested in the cover letter. Original illustrations, photographs, and slides will be returned.

Editing  Accepted manuscripts are copyedited according to APA style and returned to the author for approval. Authors are responsible for all statements made in their work, including changes made by the copy editor and authorized by the corresponding author.

All published manuscripts become the permanent property of The WAGER and may not be published elsewhere without written permission from The WAGER.

MANUSCRIPT PREPARATION
Manuscripts should be prepared in accordance with the current (fourth edition) Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association.

• Submit the original manuscript electronically.

• Double-space throughout, including title page, abstract, text, acknowledgments, references, figure legends, and tables. Start each of these sections on a new page, numbered consecutively, beginning with the title page.

• On the title page, include a word count for text only, exclusive of title, abstract, references, figure legends, and tables.

• Use only standard 10- or 12-point font size.

• On the title page include the full names, highest academic degrees, and affiliations of all authors. If an author's affiliation has changed since the work was done, list the new affiliation as well.

• Use nonproprietary names of drugs, unless the specific trade name of a drug is directly relevant to the discussion.

• Do not use abbreviations in the title or abstract and limit their use in the text.

Abstract  Include a structured abstract of no more than 250 words for full reports of original data, reviews, and consensus statements.

Funding/Support  All financial and material support for the research and the work should be clearly and completely identified. The role of the funding organization in the design, conduct, interpretation, and analysis of the study and review or approval of the manuscript should be specified.

References  In text, tables, and legends, identify references with superscript Arabic numerals. When listing references, follow the APA publication style.

National Research Council. (1999). Pathological gambling: a critical review. Washington D.C.: National Academy Press.

Rosenthal, R. J. (1997). The psychodynamics of pathological gambling: a review of the literature. In D. L. Yalisove (Ed.), Essential Papers on Addiction (pp. 184-212). New York: New York University Press.

Shaffer, H. J., Hall, M. N., & Vander Bilt, J. (1999). Estimating the prevalence of disordered gambling behavior in the United States and Canada: a research synthesis. American Journal of Public Health, 89, 1369-1376.

Authors are responsible for the accuracy and completeness of their references and for correct text citation.

TABLES AND FIGURES
Number all tables and figures in the order of their citation in the text. Include a title for each table and figure-a brief, succinct phrase, preferably no longer than 10 to 15 words.

Tables  Title all tables and number them in order of their citation in the text. Submit all tables with the manuscript.

Illustrations  Label each figure with number, title, name of first author, and a short form of the manuscript title. Original illustrations, photographs, and slides from rejected manuscripts will be returned to authors.

Submit digital files for images and illustrations originally created digitally, excluding standard line and bar graphs. Contact the editors for specific instructions at 617-384-9030.

REFERENCES & RESOURCES
Iverson CL, Flanagin A, Fontanarosa PB, et al. American Medical Association Manual of Style: A Guide for Authors and Editors. 9th ed. Baltimore, Md: Williams & Wilkins; 1998.

Winker MA, Fontanarosa PB. JAMA-EXPRESS: rapid peer review and publication. JAMA. 1999;281:1754-1755.

International Committee of Medical Journal Editors. Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals. JAMA. 1997;277:927-934.

41st World Medical Assembly. Declaration of Helsinki: recommendations guiding physicians in biomedical research involving human subjects. JAMA. 1997;277:925-926.

Electronic reference formats recommended by the American Psychological Association. (1999, November 19). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. Retrieved November 19, 1999 from the World Wide Web: http://www.apastyle.org/elecref.html