Should title lengths really adhere to the American Psychological Association’s twelve word limit

Bibliographic Data

ID8722683
AuthorsRobert M Hallock (0000-0002-7912-8714, corresponding author), Kari M Dillner
Year2016
Volume71
Issue3
Pages240-242
Publication date2016-04-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueAmerican Psychologist (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0003-066X • E-ISSN: 1935-990X
PublisherAmerican Psychological Association (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1037/a0040226
PMID27042886
OpenAlexW2416081829
LanguageEN
Citations received5

The publication manual for the American Psychological Association (APA) suggests that title lengths do not exceed 12 words, yet journals do not prevent longer titles. Here, we examined title lengths in APA journals to see how many exceeded the APA's suggested limit. First, we conducted a systematic analysis of 235 articles in the current issues of 23 APA journals. A total of 52% of titles were more than 12 words long. Second, we examined articles from APA journals that were at least 50 years old to examine whether title lengths have changed over time. Our results suggested that the average title lengths have indeed increased with time. One of 2 courses should be taken. Perhaps science is becoming more complex that longer titles are needed in order to convey the primary message to the reader. If this is the case, then the APA's word limit should be increased. On the other hand, however, maybe editor and reviewers should try to enforce the current word limit to force writers to be succinct. Either way, editors should make their preferences clear so that the trend for longer titles does not continue unchecked

Association (psychology · Library science · Limit (mathematics · Linguistics · Word (group theory · Word length · Academic Writing and Publishing · Computer Science · Health Sciences Research and Education · Mathematics · Psychology · scientometrics and bibliometrics research · Philosophy

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