Home › Frontiers in Child Neurodevelopment › Author Guidelines

Author Guidelines — Frontiers in Child Neurodevelopment

About this journal

Aims Frontiers in Child Neurodevelopment (FCN) aims to advance understanding of the neural foundations of child development by publishing rigorous, open-access research that bridges neuroscience, psychology, pediatrics, education, and related disciplines. The journal seeks to illuminate both typical developmental pathways and the neurological variations that underlie atypical trajectories, translating findings into informed clinical practice, early detection, and effective interventions. FCN champions methodological rigor, transparent reporting, and interdisciplinary collaboration, encouraging studies that link brain structure and function to behavior, cognition, language, social communication, and motor development across early childhood, school age, and adolescence. The journal prioritizes studies with translational potential, reproducibility, and actionable implications for families, clinicians, educators, and policy makers. The editorial framework emphasizes robust study design, longitudinal data, multimodal imaging and measurement approaches, data sharing, and attention to diversity, equity, and ethics in pediatric neurodevelopment research. By fostering rapid dissemination and constructive peer review, FCN aims to become a leading resource for understanding how the developing brain enables learning, adaptation, and resilience in diverse populations. Scope FCN covers experimental, clinical, and translational research that advances knowledge of how children's brains develop, adapt, and sometimes diverge from typical patterns. It welcomes studies that connect neural mechanisms to behavior and outcome, across healthy development and neurodevelopmental conditions, with emphasis on multimodal data, longitudinal designs, and real-world relevance. • Neural mechanisms and developmental trajectories underlying cognition, language, social communication, and motor skills from infancy through adolescence • Developmental neuroimaging, electrophysiology, neuroinformatics, and advanced analytics to map brain-behavior relations • Genetic, epigenetic, and environmental factors shaping brain development and risk for neurodevelopmental disorders • Characterization, assessment, and neural correlates of developmental disorders (e.g., autism, ADHD, language and learning impairments) • Brain connectivity, plasticity, critical periods, and intervention windows influencing skill acquisition and remediation • Impact of early-life adversity, sleep, nutrition, pain, medical illness, and stress on brain development • Translational and clinical studies informing diagnosis, prognosis, intervention, and personalized approaches • Educational neuroscience, curricula, and interventions linking brain function to learning outcomes Article Types • Original Research Articles • Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses • Methods and Software Papers • Short Communications / Brief Reports • Clinical Trials and Interventional Studies • Case Reports and Case Series • Commentaries, Perspectives, and Viewpoints Audience FCN serves researchers and clinicians in pediatric neurology, developmental neuroscience, psychiatry, psychology, pediatrics, rehabilitation, education, and allied disciplines, as well as families, caregivers, educators, and policy makers involved in child health and development. The journal supports interdisciplinary dialogue, clinical translation, and evidence-based practice, promoting accessibility and engagement for scientific communities and the public.

Before you submit

• Manuscripts must be original, unpublished work not under consideration elsewhere.
• All authors must approve the submitted version and agree to the ICMJE authorship criteria.
• Declare all funding sources, conflicts of interest, and any AI assistance used.
• Ensure ethics approval and informed consent are stated where human or animal subjects are involved.

Manuscript structure

1. Title page (title, all authors with affiliations, corresponding author, ORCID iDs)
2. Abstract (structured where appropriate) and 3–8 keywords
3. Main text: Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, Conclusion
4. References in a consistent style; DOIs where available
5. Tables and figures supplied as separate, high-resolution files

Peer review

Frontiers in Child Neurodevelopment uses double-blind peer review. At least two independent reviewers assess each manuscript.

Licensing and fees

Articles are published open access under CC BY 4.0. The article processing charge is USD 400; waivers are available for authors from low-income countries.

Publication frequency: Biannual. Publisher: AIR JOURNALS.

Submit

Start a submission to Frontiers in Child Neurodevelopment · Journal home