The journal's focus is on empirical research reports; however, specialized theoretical, methodological, and review papers are also published. For example, the journal's most highly cited paper, cited over 90,000 times, is a statistical methods paper discussing mediation and moderation. Articles typically involve a lengthy introduction and literature review, followed by several related studies that explore different aspects of a theory or test multiple competing hypotheses. Some researchers see the multiple-experiments requirement as an excessive burden that delays the publication of valuable work, but this requirement also helps maintain the impression that research that is published in JPSP has been thoroughly vetted and is less likely to be the result of a
type I error or an unexplored
confound. The journal is divided into three independently edited sections.
Attitudes and Social Cognition addresses those domains of social behavior in which cognition plays a major role, including the interface of cognition with overt behavior, affect, and motivation.
Interpersonal Relations and Group Processes focuses on psychological and structural features of interaction in dyads and groups.
Personality Processes and Individual Differences publishes research on all aspects of personality psychology. It includes studies of individual differences and basic processes in behavior, emotions, coping, health, motivation, and other phenomena that reflect personality. The journal has implemented the Transparency and Openness Promotion (TOP) Guidelines. The TOP Guidelines provide structure to research planning and reporting and aim to make research more transparent, accessible, and reproducible. == Abstracting and indexing ==