Journal rankings · indicator year 2018
Choose a field to open its ranking, or a journal to find its row in its subfield’s list.
Subfield ranking · 2018
Sociology and Political Science journal rankings 2018
1,315 ranked journals · Subfield in Social Sciences
Sociology and Political Science has 1,315 ranked journals in 2018. The median OJR fell 0.05 on 2017 to 1.28, above the world average of 1.00; Q1 starts at OJR 2.48. The top three are International Journal of Research & Method in Education, American Sociological Review, and Proceedings of the International AAAI Conference on Web and Social Media.
Ranks and citation indicators: 2018. Journal access status and listed APC: source snapshot September 23, 2026.
Journals whose main subfield sits in this category and that published at least 30 citable documents (articles, reviews and conference papers) in 2015–2017, the window the 2018 score is computed on.
The OpenJournalRank Indicator (OJR) is a free, publicly available metric of a journal’s field-normalized citation impact, computed from open OpenAlex citation data. It compares citations to a journal’s papers from the previous three years with the world average for papers of the same subfield, year and type, so 1.00 is the world average and values can be compared across fields. It is computed with the NCI3 method.
The middle OJR among ranked journals in this category: half score higher, half lower. 1.00 is the world average for papers of the same subfield, year and type.
The dot is this category, the solid tick is the median of all ranked journals and the dashed line is the world average.
Share of ranked journals in this category that are fully open access, so every paper is free to read. Hybrid journals, which sell subscriptions and open single papers for a fee, are not counted.
Median list price of the article processing charge, in US dollars, among ranked journals in this category that list a price above zero. Journals with a listed APC of $0 and journals with no known price are left out of this median. The At a glance table below gives a second median that includes the $0 prices.
Subfields of Social Sciences (22)
1,315 ranked journals
Filters
Rank is the position by OJR within the list on screen; 1 is the highest. | OJR is field-normalized 3-year citation impact: 1.00 is the world average for papers of the same subfield, year and type, so values compare across fields. The badge is the journal’s quartile in this list. | Citations per paper over a two-year window, counted from OpenAlex. It is not field-normalized, so compare it only between journals of the same field. ▲ or ▼ is the change from 2017. This is OpenJournalRank’s own count, not Clarivate’s Journal Impact Factor. | Citable documents (articles, reviews and conference papers) published in 2015–2017, the window the 2018 OJR is computed on. A journal needs at least 30 to be ranked. | Share of the journal’s 2015–2017 papers that are free to read in any open-access form. The green OA tag next to a title marks a fully open-access journal. | List price of the article processing charge in US dollars. “$0 listed” means the listed price is zero; a dash means no price is listed. | The line is the journal’s OJR from 2009 to 2018. | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1International Journal of Research & Method in EducationRoutledge · United Kingdom | 14.51Q1 | 1.45 7.81 down from 2017 | 99 | 27% | — | ||
2American Sociological ReviewSAGE Publishing · United Kingdom | 13.97Q1 | 9.40 1.33 up from 2017 | 146 | 36% | $3,900 | ||
3Proceedings of the International AAAI Conference on Web and Social MediaOAPublisher not listed | 11.30Q1 | 4.82 1.82 up from 2017 | 126 | 100% | — | ||
4Psychological InquiryTaylor & Francis · United States | 10.33Q1 | 3.90 9.29 down from 2017 | 40 | 32% | — | ||
5Personality and Social Psychology ReviewSAGE Publishing · United States | 9.70Q1 | 13.88 1.30 up from 2017 | 46 | 19% | $3,900 | ||
6Journal of Interactive MarketingSAGE Publishing · United States | 9.54Q1 | 7.33 1.81 up from 2017 | 86 | 26% | $5,400 | ||
7American Journal of SociologyUniversity of Chicago Press · United States | 9.44Q1 | 6.27 0.80 up from 2017 | 138 | 11% | — | ||
8Tourism ManagementElsevier BV · Netherlands | 9.43Q1 | 7.10 1.02 up from 2017 | 651 | 28% | $4,690 | ||
9MIS QuarterlyMIS Quarterly · United States | 9.20Q1 | 6.23 2.72 down from 2017 | 195 | 39% | — | ||
10Journal of Computer-Mediated CommunicationOAWiley · United States | 9.16Q1 | 9.44 3.14 up from 2017 | 78 | 71% | $0 listed | ||
11International Journal of Information ManagementElsevier BV · Netherlands | 8.40Q1 | 9.00 2.42 up from 2017 | 334 | 27% | $3,990 | ||
12Post-Soviet AffairsTaylor & Francis · United Kingdom | 8.33Q1 | 3.42 0.26 down from 2017 | 60 | 37% | — | ||
13CriminologyWiley · United Kingdom | 8.30Q1 | 5.46 0.32 down from 2017 | 96 | 27% | $3,570 | ||
14Global Environmental ChangeElsevier BV · United Kingdom | 8.29Q1 | 12.26 2.39 up from 2017 | 377 | 61% | $6,440 | ||
15Journal of Travel ResearchSAGE Publishing · United States | 7.95Q1 | 5.01 0.77 up from 2017 | 203 | 24% | $3,900 | ||
16Big Data & SocietyOASAGE Publishing · United Kingdom | 7.90Q1 | 8.19 3.25 up from 2017 | 145 | 100% | $2,000 | ||
17World PoliticsCambridge University Press · United Kingdom | 7.68Q1 | 3.40 0.58 up from 2017 | 91 | 53% | — | ||
18Administrative Science QuarterlySAGE Publishing · United Kingdom | 7.62Q1 | 5.65 0.18 down from 2017 | 121 | 35% | $3,900 | ||
19Information & ManagementElsevier BV · Netherlands | 7.52Q1 | 6.82 2.31 up from 2017 | 256 | 25% | $4,540 | ||
20Research in Organizational BehaviorElsevier BV · Netherlands | 7.35Q1 | 7.45 1.64 up from 2017 | 32 | 36% | $2,340 | ||
21Comparative Migration StudiesOASpringer Nature · Netherlands | 7.31Q1 | 4.88 2.69 up from 2017 | 58 | 100% | $1,490 | ||
22Research & PoliticsOASAGE Publishing · United Kingdom | 7.24Q1 | 3.66 0.48 up from 2017 | 149 | 100% | $800 | ||
23The Information SocietyTaylor & Francis · United States | 7.11Q1 | 6.67 3.95 up from 2017 | 93 | 33% | — | ||
24Computers in Human BehaviorElsevier BV · Netherlands | 7.10Q1 | 6.99 1.50 up from 2017 | 2,215 | 29% | $3,780 | ||
25Journal of Information TechnologySAGE Publishing · United Kingdom | 7.04Q1 | 4.28 0.68 down from 2017 | 85 | 67% | $3,900 | ||
26Annals of Tourism ResearchElsevier BV · United Kingdom | 7.00Q1 | 5.03 1.06 up from 2017 | 352 | 38% | $4,060 | ||
27Journal of Destination Marketing & ManagementElsevier BV · Netherlands | 6.87Q1 | 3.96 0.41 up from 2017 | 183 | 27% | $4,320 | ||
28Political PsychologyWiley · United States | 6.86Q1 | 4.37 1.26 up from 2017 | 203 | 32% | $4,250 | ||
29Environmental PoliticsTaylor & Francis · United Kingdom | 6.83Q1 | 7.04 3.78 up from 2017 | 174 | 47% | — | ||
30International Studies QuarterlyOxford University Press · United States | 6.82Q1 | 3.53 0.68 up from 2017 | 173 | 32% | $4,320 | ||
31QMiP BulletinBritish Psychological Society | 6.79Q1 | 6.39 0.88 down from 2017 | 75 | 8% | — | ||
32Transactions of the Institute of British GeographersWiley · United Kingdom | 6.76Q1 | 4.94 1.19 up from 2017 | 140 | 57% | $4,070 | ||
33New Media & SocietySAGE Publishing · United Kingdom | 6.60Q1 | 4.85 1.14 up from 2017 | 400 | 33% | $3,900 | ||
34Cultural AnthropologyOAWiley · United States | 6.55Q1 | 4.25 1.81 up from 2017 | 110 | 100% | — | ||
35Comparative PoliticsCity University of New York · United States | 6.53Q1 | 2.66 0.99 up from 2017 | 91 | 8% | — | ||
36Information and OrganizationElsevier BV · United Kingdom | 6.36Q1 | 5.67 2.87 up from 2017 | 36 | 27% | $3,590 | ||
37International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality ManagementEmerald Publishing Limited · United Kingdom | 6.33Q1 | 6.16 1.17 up from 2017 | 402 | 20% | — | ||
38Business HorizonsElsevier BV · United States | 6.26Q1 | 4.86 0.79 up from 2017 | 252 | 12% | $3,410 | ||
39World DevelopmentElsevier BV · United Kingdom | 6.25Q1 | 5.48 0.99 up from 2017 | 810 | 50% | $5,895 | ||
40Information Communication & SocietyRoutledge · United Kingdom | 6.23Q1 | 4.88 0.43 up from 2017 | 381 | 31% | — | ||
41Security DialogueSAGE Publishing · United Kingdom | 6.19Q1 | 2.97 1.17 down from 2017 | 98 | 39% | $3,650 | ||
42Cooperation and ConflictSAGE Publishing · United Kingdom | 6.18Q1 | 2.43 0.48 up from 2017 | 80 | 44% | $3,650 | ||
43Journal of Peace ResearchSAGE Publishing · United Kingdom | 6.13Q1 | 3.19 0.72 down from 2017 | 185 | 34% | $3,900 | ||
44Internet ResearchEmerald Publishing Limited · United Kingdom | 6.11Q1 | 5.65 0.11 down from 2017 | 173 | 20% | — | ||
45Journal of Applied PsychologyAmerican Psychological Association · United States | 6.09Q1 | 7.17 1.00 up from 2017 | 302 | 20% | — | ||
46Environment and Planning D Society and SpaceSAGE Publishing · United Kingdom | 6.07Q1 | 3.88 0.93 up from 2017 | 225 | 47% | $3,900 | ||
47Journal of Conflict ResolutionSAGE Publishing · United States | 5.97Q1 | 1.80 1.30 down from 2017 | 221 | 8% | $3,650 | ||
48Tourism Management PerspectivesElsevier BV · Netherlands | 5.96Q1 | 3.52 0.68 up from 2017 | 264 | 25% | $3,780 | ||
49The China JournalUniversity of Chicago Press · Australia | 5.90Q1 | 2.18 0.54 up from 2017 | 54 | 9% | — | ||
50Decision Support SystemsElsevier BV · Netherlands | 5.82Q1 | 6.14 0.87 up from 2017 | 352 | 24% | $3,940 |
Subfields of Social Sciences, with Sociology and Political Science highlighted.
- Sociology and Political Science1,315
- Education714
- Political Science and International Relations321
- Communication74
- Gender Studies61
- Health52
- Safety Research51
- Public Administration50
- Urban Studies49
- Law47
- Linguistics and Language47
- Transportation47
- Library and Information Sciences42
- Demography40
- Anthropology38
- Geography, Planning and Development29
- Cultural Studies9
- Development4
- General Social Sciences3
- Human Factors and Ergonomics1
- Archeology0
- Life-span and Life-course Studies0
Journals
Citations made in 2018. Corpus-wide, 81.5% of core-journal articles and reviews published that year have at least one matched reference; the share varies by journal and field.
304 additional Sociology and Political Science journals with metrics are unranked under this release’s eligibility rules: a journal needs at least 30 citable documents in 2015–2017, at least 80% of them with a subfield, and a positive world-average expectation. Ranks are within the whole category; filters hide rows without re-ranking. OJR excludes self-citations.
At a glance
Indicator year: 2018. Publication window: 2015–2017. How these summaries are calculated
- Ranked journals
- 1,315
- Window papers (baseline)
- 466,601 +11.1% from indicator year 2015
- Median OJR
- 1.28 -5.2% from indicator year 2015
- Rising journals (2025)
- 56
Window papers are the baseline paper population: citable papers (articles, reviews and conference papers) from 2015–2017 in all journals of the world-average baseline, including non-core journals, counted by each paper’s own subfield. They are not the papers of the ranked journals alone.
| Measure | Year series | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ranked journals | 588 | 615 | 642 | 679 | 716 | 742 | 776 | 826 | 861 | 899 | 960 | 1,005 | 1,049 | 1,090 | 1,140 | 1,184 | 1,233 | 1,300 | 1,315 | 1,325 | 1,333 | 1,377 | 1,389 | 1,403 | 1,402 | 1,388 | |
| Window papers (baseline) | 127,769 | 139,962 | 155,545 | 173,690 | 189,148 | 206,415 | 224,690 | 248,047 | 274,644 | 301,558 | 326,495 | 347,409 | 369,647 | 386,451 | 401,728 | 420,106 | 443,739 | 460,936 | 466,601 | 478,291 | 498,577 | 539,978 | 579,161 | 604,240 | 617,692 | 634,590 | |
| Median OJR | 0.92 | 0.98 | 0.95 | 0.99 | 1.09 | 1.1344 | 1.27 | 1.34 | 1.380 | 1.3830 | 1.44 | 1.43 | 1.47 | 1.42 | 1.3831 | 1.35 | 1.3317 | 1.3322 | 1.28 | 1.31 | 1.32 | 1.22 | 1.17 | 1.14 | 1.11 | 1.1341 |
How to read these rankings
- OJR, the OpenJournalRank Indicator
- A field-normalized 3-year citation impact, computed from OpenAlex with the NCI3 method. It divides the citations a journal’s papers received by the world average for papers of the same subfield, year and type, so 1.00 is the world average and 2.00 means twice as many citations as expected. Because it is normalized, it can be compared across fields. Read the methodology
- Quartiles
- Q1 to Q4 split the ranked journals of the list you are viewing into four equal groups by OJR. A journal’s quartile depends on the list: the same journal can be Q1 in its subfield and Q2 among all journals.
- Impact factor (2-year)
- Citations per paper over a two-year window, counted from OpenAlex. It is easy to compare with familiar impact factors but is not field-normalized, so compare it only within a field. It is not Clarivate’s Journal Impact Factor. Why it differs from the Journal Impact Factor
- Rank ranges
- Each rank in the latest year carries a likely range from 1,000 resamples of the journal’s papers. Where two journals’ ranges overlap, the data cannot tell them apart, so treat neighbouring ranks as ties.