Submissions
Categories of Articles
We accept a broad range of articles and submissions. To determine the correct placement within The Alexander Journal’s categories, please consult the following list of guidelines:
Alexander Technique Practice, Performance, and Education
Articles in this category provide value to the reader by offering insights and practical teaching strategies. They ask questions about methodology and solve problems.
They are often based on a particular teacher’s specialty or area of expertise.
- Article about principles
- Article about procedures
- Article about applications in a particular field, such as the arts
Specific guidelines for Alexander Technique Practice articles:
- Describe the methods and procedures with sufficient clarity and detail so that reader can implement the author’s findings and intentions.
- Consider the value of your insight for the reader.
- Avoid vague critiques, i.e., be specific always, but especially if critiquing others, citing as much supporting evidence for your views as is possible.
A history research article makes an original contribution to historical knowledge.
They are guided by a historical question, problem, particular insight from or disagreement with another scholar’s previous claim. They are grounded in evidence from primary sources, meaning materials produced during the period your article addresses. This type of article is in conversation with existing scholarship, which often involves secondary sources. Your article should offer a fresh and insightful way to think about a historical problem or insight.
Some examples of topics that fall under the History category:
- FM Alexander, his life and work
- Significant people and events in the history and development of the Alexander Technique
- Scientific, medical, health, and social history of ideas (e.g., economic, education, institutional, and religious), fashions, trends, and arts relevant to the history and development of the Alexander Technique
- Criticism
Specific guidelines for Alexander Technique History articles:
- Clearly state sources for quotations and distinguish between what is fact and what is hearsay (apocryphal)
- Avoid hagiographic (adulatory) retelling of FM's or other well-known teacher’s words
- If your article criticizes another author or teacher, please be respectful and support your observations with evidence from primary and secondary sources
Alexander Technique Quantitative Research
Quantitative Research is used to study the area of interest by generating numerical data or data that can be transformed into usable statistics. It can quantify attitudes, opinions, behaviors, and other defined variables – and generalize findings into hypotheses based on results from a sample population. Quantitative Research uses measurable data to formulate hypotheses and uncover patterns in research. Quantitative research design and data collection methods are generally more structured than Qualitative methods. Quantitative data are analyzed by numerical comparisons and statistical inferences. Data is usually reported through statistical analysis.
Basic:
- How things work, the mechanism, what is the effective element(s)
- Functional and associated anatomy, physiology, and psychology
- Psychophysical processes
Efficacy:
- Clinical studies and trials that evaluate the effectiveness of Alexander Technique lessons, classes, and demonstrations in various settings
Specific guidelines for Alexander Technique Quantitative Research articles:
- Based on measurable research methods with documented sources
- References current peer-reviewed sources
- References current review articles whenever possible and avoids cherry-picking to “prove” the author’s argument
- Presents in language understandable primarily to someone who is not an Alexander Technique teacher
Alexander Technique Qualitative Research
Qualitative Research is primarily exploratory research. It is used to understand underlying reasons, opinions, and motivations and provide new insights. It assumes a dynamic and negotiated reality. It provides insights into the area of interest. Qualitative research helps generate hypotheses and further investigates and understands quantitative data. It can also help to develop ideas or hypotheses for potential quantitative research. It answers the hows and whys instead of how many or how much. Qualitative Research is also used to uncover trends in thought and opinions, and dive deeper into the problem. One of the strengths of qualitative research is its ability to explain processes and patterns of human behavior that can be difficult to quantify. Qualitative data is looking for themes and patterns that can be difficult to quantify, and it is essential to ensure that the context and narrative of qualitative work are not lost by trying to quantify something that is not meant to be quantified.
This area includes mixed methods and others, e.g., case studies, participatory, multimodal, creative methods, arts-based approaches, community-based research, historical and archival.
Specific guidelines for Other Research Methods articles based on the type of articles:
- Based on traditional and measurable research methods with documented sources
- References current peer-reviewed sources
- References current review articles whenever possible and avoids cherry-picking to “prove” the author’s argument
- Presents in language understandable primarily to a layperson
This broad category can include items of interest to the Alexander Technique Community in general and items of historical interest to be preserved for posterity. Their inclusion is at the discretion of the Editors. These items are not peer-reviewed.
- Professional priorities
- Keynotes and Lectures
- Reviews of books
- Reviews of workshops
- Reviews of previously published research of interest in scientific and other journals.
Summaries and Reviews of Research Already Published
Guidelines for Summaries are as follows:
- Give a context (scientific, historical, pedagogical) for the question or hypothesis animating the study or studies in question
- Describe what the researchers did, including explaining how they studied the phenomena they are exploring
- Describe their results and discuss the implications of their findings
Guidelines for all categories of articles:
- Avoid rebuke
- Avoid partisan bias or prejudice
- Maintain objectivity
