Academy of Management Learning & Education (AMLE)
STYLE AND FORMAT
Overall Format
All manuscripts submitted to Research & Reviews or Essays, Dialogues, & Interviews should be double-spaced, with 12-point
font and 1-inch margins. The cover page should be uploaded as a separate document; it should include the title, the name and
contact information (i.e., address, telephone, and e-mail) of all authors, and any acknowledgments. This page will not be part of
the manuscript sent out for blind review. The first page should include the title and an abstract of around 75 words. All
manuscripts should reflect the comments and specifications below.
Writing Style
AMLE seeks well-argued, well-written manuscripts that our audience will want to read and remember. Toward that end, we
recommend the approach to writing presented in George D. Gopen and Judith A. Swan’s, “The Science of Scientific
Writing” (American Scientist, 1990, 78: 550–558) and Joseph M. Williams’, Style: Ten Lessons in Clarity and Grace, 6th ed.
(2000, New York: Addison Wesley Longman, Inc.).
Following this approach, we strongly endorse the use of first person when it accurately describes agency. Thus if you did
something, “I” would be appropriate; similarly, if your team did something, “we” would be appropriate. And if you are the sole
agent, there is no need to disguise your contribution with a royal “we.” So, in situations where the first person accurately
describes the agency, “I” and “we” are not only appropriate, they are preferred. (Speaking of pronouns, use the pronoun “he”
only in reference to individuals known to be men. Please do not use the generic “he,” and refrain from using “he/she” or its
variations. Vary pronouns as appropriate.)
Headings
Headings make a manuscript’s structure more visible, which helps the reader understand its organization and flow. All headings
should begin flush against the left margin:
THIS IS A FIRST-LEVEL HEAD
This Is a Second-Level Head
This Is a Third-Level Head
This Is a Fourth-Level Head. Text should follow on the same line.
Please remember that a heading structure is really just a traditional outline without the Roman numerals, capital letters, and so
forth, so within any section, if any headings at the next lower heading level are used, at least two such headings must be used.
Tables and Figures
Tables and figures can enhance both the reader’s understanding of information and the efficiency of its presentation. But just as
too many overhead slides can ruin an oral presentation, too many figures and tables can detract from the overall narrative.
Thus we encourage the judicious use of tables and figures and we discourage their overuse. The proper construction of tables
and figures is a detailed craft, so in preparing them for your manuscript, please follow the detailed instructions presented in the
styles guides of the Academy of Management Journal and Academy of Management Review, both of which are published in the
first issue each year.
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Academy of Management Learning & Education (AMLE)
References
As with AMJ and AMR, AMLE follows the referencing format and practices of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological
Association, 5th ed. closely, although there are minor differences. So in the text, cite the author, year of publication, and if
appropriate, the page numbers within parentheses. For example: (Gopen & Swan, 1990: 552).
An important detail when citing a reference is whether to give the exact page numbers. We ask that authors always give the
exact page number(s) when they quote another source verbatim. This is also good practice when citing a specific finding. Page
numbers are not always necessary, of course, and many times it will simply be a matter for your own judgment. However, we
ask that you put yourself in the place of a reader who would like to check the cited finding or idea. Would your citation allow the
reader to easily locate the cited material once the source was obtained? Or would the reader have to read all of a 500-page
book to track it down?
The reference list itself should be located at the end of the text before any tables or figures that accompany the manuscript.
References should be listed in alphabetical order, and if more than one reference from the same source is listed, list them in
chronological order beginning with the oldest source first. Many types of sources can be listed, of course, and we refer you to
the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th ed., for advice on almost any type of source you would like
to cite. However, we present models of the most common types of sources below:
Articles. A key distinction for articles is whether they are part of a page-numbering sequence that runs through the entire
volume or begins anew with each issue of the periodical. An example of each type is given below, with the form for the volumelength numbering illustrated first, followed by the form for the numbered-by-issue method.
Pfeffer, J., & Fong, C. T. 2002. The end of business schools? Less success than meets the eye. Academy of
Management Learning & Education, 1: 78–95.
Hays, R. H., & Abernathy, W. J. 1980. Managing our way to economic decline. Harvard Business Review, 58
(4): 67–77.
Books. Books can be authored or edited, and an example of each is given below. The third example is for a chapter in an
edited book.
Useem, M. 1989. Liberal education and the corporation: The hiring and advancement of college
graduates. Hawthorne, NY: Aldine de Gruyter.
Boyatzis, R. E., Cowen, S. S., Kolb, D. A., & Associates (Eds.). 1995. Innovation in professinal education:
Steps on a journey from teaching to learning. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Hu, L., & Bentler, P. M. 1995. Evaluating model fit. In R. H. Hoyle (Ed.), Structural equation modeling:
Concepts, issues, and applications: 76–99. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
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