Call for papers: Lifestyle behaviors and psychological outcomes

• Kevin M. Crombie, PhD

We are opening submissions for consideration in a special issue titled “Lifestyle Behaviors and Psychological Outcomes.” The special issue is part of an innovative journal titled Translational Issues in Psychological Science (TPS), cosponsored by APA and the American Psychological Association of Graduate Students (APAGS).

For this special issue, we invite manuscript submissions that advance our understanding of the relationship between lifestyle behaviors and psychological outcomes. The scope of the special issue is broadly defined to include modifiable lifestyle behaviors, such as physical activity and exercise, sedentary behavior, sleep, and dietary behaviors. Similarly, psychological outcomes of interest encompass a broad range of domains, including mental health and well-being, mood and affect, stress and stress-related processes, cognitive functioning, emotion regulation, and motivation. We welcome research spanning the lifespan and encourage interdisciplinary work that integrates perspectives from psychology, kinesiology, behavioral medicine, neuroscience, public health, education, and related fields. Submissions may include observational and experimental research, intervention studies, and reviews. We are particularly interested in research that advances understanding of the mechanisms, individual differences, and contextual factors shaping relationships between lifestyle behaviors and psychological outcomes, as well as research involving historically understudied or underserved populations.

We welcome submissions on topics including:

• associations between lifestyle behaviors and psychological outcomes, including potential bidirectional relationships
• biological, psychological, behavioral, and social mechanisms linking lifestyle behaviors with psychological outcomes
• experimental and intervention studies examining the effects of modifying lifestyle behaviors on psychological outcomes
• individual differences and contextual factors that moderate the relationships between lifestyle behaviors and psychological outcomes, including age, sex, gender, socioeconomic conditions, health status, and social or environmental context
• interactions and combined effects among multiple lifestyle behaviors
• innovative methodological approaches to investigating lifestyle behaviors and psychological outcomes, including wearable devices, ecological momentary assessment, neuroimaging, digital health technologies, biomarkers, and intensive longitudinal designs
• translation of lifestyle-behavior research into clinical, educational, community, workplace, or public-health interventions, practices, policies, or recommendations

Manuscripts submitted to TPS should be coauthored by at least one psychologist in training (graduate student, postdoctoral fellow), should be written concisely for a broad audience, and should focus on the practical implications of the research presented in the manuscript. For more information about the journal, including detailed instructions to authors, visit the TPS website.

The deadline for submissions is January 13, 2027.