About this journal
Aims and scope
Policy Studies is a long-standing, international journal focussing on public policy and governance at all levels and across all continents. It publishes original articles which are assessed through a rigorous peer review process.
The journal aims to:
- Enable theoretical, methodological and empirical advances in the study of public policy and governance that have consequences of broad, international significance.
- Enable cutting-edge research to be connected to the real-world policy problems and vice versa.
- Identify ‘what works’ in improving the formation and delivery of policy through rigorous research.
- Identify the state of the art of research in public policy
- Trace new developments affecting public policy and governance including, but not limited to, those arising from technological, political, economic, informational, or demographic shifts.
- Breakdown geographical and disciplinary silos by encouraging inter-disciplinarily, historical, comparative and global approaches to the study of policy.
- Encourage diversity and opportunity in the academy.
-
The journal takes a pluralistic approach and encourages submissions irrespective of the methodological approach and the country of study. Although the journal is traditionally based in political science, a multi-disciplinary approach to the study of public policy is encouraged. Articles published are predominantly original research articles, but review articles that assess the state of the field are also welcome.
Peer review policy
All research articles in this journal have undergone rigorous double anonymized peer review, based on initial editor screening and anonymised refereeing by two anonymous referees.
Journal metrics
Usage
- 173K annual downloads/views
Citation metrics
- 2.2 (2023) Impact Factor
- Q2 Impact Factor Best Quartile
- 2.4 (2023) 5 year IF
- 5.4 (2023) CiteScore (Scopus)
- Q1 CiteScore Best Quartile
- 1.285 (2023) SNIP
- 0.586 (2023) SJR
Speed/acceptance
- 9 days avg. from submission to first decision
- 73 days avg. from submission to first post-review decision
- 10 days avg. from acceptance to online publication
- 25% acceptance rate
Understanding and using journal metrics
Journal metrics can be a useful tool for readers, as well as for authors who are deciding where to submit their next manuscript for publication. However, any one metric only tells a part of the story of a journal’s quality and impact. Each metric has its limitations which means that it should never be considered in isolation, and metrics should be used to support and not replace qualitative review.
We strongly recommend that you always use a number of metrics, alongside other qualitative factors such as a journal’s aims & scope, its readership, and a review of past content published in the journal. In addition, a single article should always be assessed on its own merits and never based on the metrics of the journal it was published in.
For more details, please read the Author Services guide to understanding journal metrics.
Journal metrics in brief
Usage and acceptance rate data above are for the last full calendar year and are updated annually in February. Speed data is updated every six months, based on the prior six months. Citation metrics are updated annually mid-year. Please note that some journals do not display all of the following metrics (find out why).
- Usage: the total number of times articles in the journal were viewed by users of Taylor & Francis Online in the previous calendar year, rounded to the nearest thousand.
Citation Metrics
- Impact Factor*: the average number of citations received by articles published in the journal within a two-year window. Only journals in the Clarivate Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE), Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Arts and Humanities Citation Index (AHCI) and the Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI) have an Impact Factor.
- Impact Factor Best Quartile*: the journal’s highest subject category ranking in the Journal Citation Reports. Q1 = 25% of journals with the highest Impact Factors.
- 5 Year Impact Factor*: the average number of citations received by articles in the journal within a five-year window.
- CiteScore (Scopus)†: the average number of citations received by articles in the journal over a four-year period.
- CiteScore Best Quartile†: the journal’s highest CiteScore ranking in a Scopus subject category. Q1 = 25% of journals with the highest CiteScores.
- SNIP (Source Normalized Impact per Paper): the number of citations per paper in the journal, divided by citation potential in the field.
- SJR (Scimago Journal Rank): Average number of (weighted) citations in one year, divided by the number of articles published in the journal in the previous three years.
Speed/acceptance
- From submission to first decision: the average (median) number of days for a manuscript submitted to the journal to receive a first decision. Based on manuscripts receiving a first decision in the last six months.
- From submission to first post-review decision: the average (median) number of days for a manuscript submitted to the journal to receive a first decision if it is sent out for peer review. Based on manuscripts receiving a post-review first decision in the last six months.
- From acceptance to online publication: the average (median) number of days from acceptance of a manuscript to online publication of the Version of Record. Based on articles published in the last six months.
- Acceptance rate: articles accepted for publication by the journal in the previous calendar year as percentage of all papers receiving a final decision.
For more details on the data above, please read the Author Services guide to understanding journal metrics.
*Copyright: Journal Citation Reports®, Clarivate Analytics
†Copyright: CiteScore™, Scopus
Editorial board
Editor:
Toby S. James - School of Politics, Philosophy, Language and Communication Studies, University of East Anglia, UK and Queens University, Canada
Editorial Board:
Nana Akua Anyidoho - University of Ghana, Ghana
Rossana Castiglioni - Universidad Diego Portales, Chile
May Chu - Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
Sara Connoll y - University of East Anglia, UK
Patrick Dunleavy - London School of Economics, UK
Alan Finlayson - University of East Anglia, UK
Rachel M. Gisselquist - United Nations University, Finland
Hussein Kassim - University of Warwick, UK
Patrick Le Galès - Sciences Po, France
Wei Liu - Renmin University of China, China
Kate Mattocks - University of East Anglia, UK
M. Jae Moon - Yonsei University, South Korea
Pippa Norris - Harvard University, USA
Christopher Pepin-Neff - Sydney University, Australia
M. Ramesh - National University of Singapore, Singapore
María Celeste Ratto - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Argentina
Farhana Sultana - Syracuse University, USA
Diane Stone - European University Institute, Italy
Paul 't Hart - University of Utrecht, Netherlands
Kathleen Thelen - Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA
Giuseppe Veltri - University of Trento, Italy
Ariadne Vromen - Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University, Australia
Li Zhang - Tsinghua University, China
Updated 23-08-2023
Abstracting and indexing
Policy Studies is indexed and abstracted in CSA Worldwide Political Science Abstracts; Criminal Justice Abstracts; EconLit; Education Research Abstracts Online; Family Studies Database; Gay and Lesbian Abstracts; Higher Education Abstracts; International Bibliography of the Social Sciences; International Political Science Abstracts; OCLC; Periodicals Index Online; Research into Higher Education Abstracts; SCOPUS; Social Care Online (SCIE); Social Services Abstracts and Sociological Abstracts.
Open access
Policy Studies is a hybrid open access journal that is part of our Open Select publishing program, giving you the option to publish open access. Publishing open access means that your article will be free to access online immediately on publication, increasing the visibility, readership, and impact of your research.
Why choose open access?
- Increase the discoverability and readership of your article
- Make an impact and reach new readers, not just those with easy access to a research library
- Freely share your work with anyone, anywhere
- Comply with funding mandates and meet the requirements of your institution, employer or funder
- Rigorous peer review for every open access article
Article Publishing Charges (APC)
If you choose to publish open access in this journal you may be asked to pay an Article Publishing Charge (APC). You may be able to publish your article at no cost to yourself or with a reduced APC if your institution or research funder has an open access agreement or membership with Taylor & Francis.
Use our APC finder to calculate your article publishing charge
News, offers and calls for papers
Calls for papers
Society information
Individual, associate and student members of the Regional Studies Association may choose to select a subscription to this title as part of their Regional Studies Association membership benefits which will enable full text access.
6 issues per year
Advertising information
Would you like to advertise in Policy Studies?
Reach an engaged target audience and position your brand alongside authoritative peer-reviewed research by advertising in Policy Studies.
Taylor & Francis make every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the "Content") contained in our publications. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents (including the editor, any member of the editorial team or editorial board, and any guest editors), and our licensors, make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors, and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Content should not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sources of information. Taylor & Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims, proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to, or arising out of the use of the Content. Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions .
Ready to submit?
Start a new submission or continue a submission in progress
Go to submission site (link opens in a new window) Instructions for authors