Creating knowledge that makes important contributions to society

Purpose – The primary purposes of this article are to: consider strategies for generating new research ideas that make important contributions to society; offer suggestions for improving manuscripts submitted to the Journal of Managerial Psychology ( JMP ); and discuss methods for enhancing the validity of inferences made from research. Design/methodology/approach – The article reviews the challenges facing individuals, organizations, and society in the twenty‐first century. It also provides a review of the limitations of manuscripts submitted to JMP . Findings – Authors need to consider new research issues that may alleviate some of the problems that organizations and their members face in the twenty‐first century. The article also discusses some of the limitations of submissions to JMP , and suggests strategies for overcoming them. Research limitations/implications – This article has implications for the creation and dissemination of new knowledge in managerial psychology. Practical implications – The article provides practical suggestions for enhancing the quality of manuscripts submitted to JMP , and increasing the validity of inferences made from research in the field. Social implications – The article urges authors to conduct research that makes important contributions to society. Thus, it has important implications for enhancing the well being of individuals, organizations, and society as a whole. Originality/value – The article provides a unique contribution to the literature because it considers the extent to which many of the most important research contributions in applied psychology have been triggered by the challenges that affect peoples' lives. It also offers suggestions for generating new research ideas that can be used to ameliorate the problems facing individuals and organizations in today's world.