One of the great differences between being the editor-in-chief of the Canadian Journal on Aging/La Revue canadienne du vieillissement and being a regular reader of the journal is that, as editor-in-chief, you must read everything in the journal. Six years ago when I began the editorial work on my first issue of the CJA/RCV, I had no idea that I would read papers ranging from the basic sciences to the most recent theoretical arguments coming out of the humanities, and how these extremes (plus everything in between) can be used to elucidate our understanding of the aging process, what they mean for the individual, for the individual’s family and friends, and for society. I had no idea that I would be asked to make decisions on the colours of covers, to deal with differences between hyphens and em dashes, or that I would face a whole host of other arcane grammatical and stylistic points. In a world of instant electronic information, you might be surprised at the reassurance an editor-in-chief can find in sifting through his old copy of the Oxford English Dictionary, the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, or – most mysteriously of all – a photocopied set of pages called the “style manual” of the CJA/RCV that has been solemnly passed down from editor-in-chief to editor-in-chief.
As I complete my term as editor-in-chief (no cheers or sighs of relief, please), I am proud of what my various associate, section, book review, and guest editors and I have accomplished. I thank all of them for their hard work and support. I also thank a group of young scholars who worked as my editorial assistants. I have often wondered whether their experiences inspired them or made them question the sanity of their professor. Over these six years, the impact rating of the journal has gone up, and with our new partnership with Cambridge University Press and through Project Muse, the CJA is, more importantly, gaining an ever-growing readership and respect for the high quality of the research published in its pages. This development is more a testament to the quality and dedication of researchers across Canada and to our international colleagues who have chosen to publish in the CJA/RCV than to anything an editor-in-chief does to change a word here or there. Finally, I thank all those who submitted their work to the journal whether I ultimately told them I planned to publish their work or regrettably not. Sometimes, these decisions took longer than you or I would have preferred, but everyone accepted my decisions graciously. I am also proud that the financial future of the CJA/RCV is secured looking forward and that the CJA/RCV plays a key role in the mission of the Canadian Association on Gerontology.
The new editor-in-chief will inherit a healthy list of papers to be published in 2011 as part of the CJA/RCV’s 30th anniversary. He or she, however, will also face the growing challenges of finding editors to carry out the difficult process of making decisions on the manuscripts submitted and, most challenging of all, finding referees to carry out the peer review process that ultimately ensures the quality of the CJA/RCV. If my six years are anything to judge by, the benefits to be gained far outweigh the costs. Please make the next editor-in-chief’s job as rewarding as mine has been, and say yes if you are asked to be an editor or to referee a paper.
In 2011, I will go back to reading the CJA/RCV like most of you, without having to think about a misplaced modifier or whether a clause requires a comma or a semi-colon. The past six years have, however, given me a new and lasting perspective on gerontology, on its richness and importance. Thank you for that opportunity.
As always, please contact me at mark.rosenberg@queensu.ca if you have any thoughts about this editorial or any other aspect of the CJA/RCV.
