AMTA Journals are Going Green!

AMTA’s Music Therapy Journals: Opt-in to Receive Printed Journal Copies!

AMTA’s two peer reviewed journals – the Journal of Music Therapy (JMT) and Music Therapy Perspectives (MTP) have been offered to each member both online and in print versions. Last year, we gathered input from members in a series of focus groups to understand preferences for accessing the journals. Based on that input, it was very clear that members welcome a choice as to how they access the journals.

We want to meet members' needs whether they access the journals online only, print only, or in a mixed or hybrid format and ask for members' cooperation and help as we roll out this change.  Every member will continue to have access to the journals online. The only difference is that members will be given the option to opt-in to receiving the journals in print also. If you wish to have online-only access, there is nothing further you need to do.

If you wish to continue to receive AMTA's journal issues in print form (mailed to your primary address), you will need to take action by "opting in to print." You can make your choice to opt-in to print/mailed journal issues yourself through your account profile with AMTA or the AMTA office can update your preference for you.

Additional information and frequently asked questions may be found below.

To Opt-In to Print:

Option 1: If you would like to opt-in to print issues of the journals, please go to this online form and enter your print preference. We will add your opt-in request to your member account for you. 

OR

Option 2: Log onto the AMTA website and check the indicator box located in your account profile using the following steps:

• Go to www.musictherapy.org
• Choose My AMTA Online Account under Quick Links
• Choose LOGIN to the left and log in with your primary email address and password
• Select the My Information tab and choose Edit/View Information
• Scroll down to the “Please provide the following additional information” section
• Check the “Opt-in for print journals” box
• Scroll to the very bottom and click the Save button (after indicating that you are not a robot)

Should you have any difficulty, please notify AMTA at journals@musictherapy.org, subject line “Journal Access Preference” and provide your name, email, and preference, concern, or question.

FAQs: Member Choice for Journal Access

Q1. If I do not complete the form or I do not change my preferences on my account profile, what happens?

A. You will receive online access to the journals, as usual, but with no print/mailed journal issues.

Q2. If I opt into receiving the print/mailed issues in addition to online access, may I change my mind?

A. Yes. You can go green at any time by making the change yourself online in your account profile or AMTA can do it for you if notify AMTA by telephone (301-589-3300) or email at info@musictherapy.org.  Be sure to include your name and contact information with your request. The change will be made at the next journal issue due out. Similarly, if you decide to add back print/mailed issues that can be done. However, the Business Manager prefers that change occur when you renew your annual membership since the paper and postage budget is set annually.

Q3. May I choose to get one journal online only and one journal print/mailed also?

A. Right now, no. However, we are investigating with the publisher and membership processes exploration of this possibility in the future.

Q4. Can you remind me how I access the journals online?

A. Members can access your online subscription in one of three ways once logged onto the AMTA site:

1. On the homepage under "Quick Links" on the left hand rail, click the link for the "Member Access Portal" of the journal you wish to access. A new window appears -- select “Click here to access the Journal of Music Therapy [or Music Therapy Perspectives] Online.” A new window opens up at the Oxford University Press url/site and the journal homepage. You may now begin browsing or searching.
2. Alternatively, you can find the member access portals under Research>Music Therapy Journals & Publications. Use the member access portal links found at the top of the page in the contents outline, or scroll down to your desired journal and click the links for the member access portal for that journal. Remember, the link will have the words "...AMTA Member Access Portal" in it. Otherwise, you will be accessing the non-member links for the journals. Then follow the remaining steps above in option 1.
3. The last alternative path to the member access portals is in the Member Toolkit: Journal of Music Therapy - AMTA Member Access Portal and Music Therapy Perspectives - AMTA Member Access Portal. Then follow the remaining steps above in option 1.
4. In the event that you encounter problems and these steps do not work, a set of alternate, temporary login credentials can be found in the AMTA Member Toolkit.

Q5. What is the potential savings from a switch away from print/mailed issues?

A. The production process remains the same for most of the process (proof and copy editing, typesetting), but the costs of paper, print/binding, and postage represent a potential savings. On a per-member basis, these elements represent about $2 per issue. Any savings is planned to go right back into the journals to support their continued growth and sustainability. One benefit may be the possibility of an expanded number of articles or page budget. If at least 40% of the membership accepts online only access, the Business Manager estimates the savings may cover an additional 3-5 articles per year, depending on article length.

Q6. With online only access (no print/mailed issues), how do I access archived articles if I have an off year from membership in AMTA?

A. Access to the archive issues is a benefit of membership while you are a current member. During membership, if you anticipate you may have a lag in your membership renewal or if you see/know articles of high interest, you can always download pdf versions of articles and create a digital portfolio of articles with the digital table of contents for issues as they are published online.

Q7. What defines a journal “issue”?

A. An “issue” is a compilation of articles with a table of contents. An individual issue of JMT is created 4x/yr and 2x/yr for MTP. The collection of 4 issues of JMT and 2 issues of MTP each year comprise a “volume”.

Q8. If I choose not to receive the print/mailed issues of each journal, would the online access be arranged and articles arrive online as an issue?

A. Issues are available online. The advance online feature publishes each article as it is ready and in no special order. Then, the Editor prepares the table of contents for each journal afterwards and the digital table of contents is posted online after the advance access versions of the articles in that issue.

Q9. How do I know when a new issue is published?

A. You can sign up for notifications for newly published articles and issues for either or both journals as well as for any other journals published by our partner at Oxford University Press:   Link for eAlerts  The link will ask you to register an account (free of charge) with OUP if you do not already have one. Do not use your AMTA login credential as the eAlerts run from a separate area with our publisher.

Q10. How are accessibility concerns addressed for the journals?

A. In cooperation with our publisher at Oxford University, the journals are part of an ongoing program on accessibility. Details on the program are located at https://academic.oup.com/journals/pages/about_us/legal/accessibility

Feel free to contact AMTA with any questions or requests.

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