Journal profile · SOCIAL SCIENCES, INTERDISCIPLINARY
Advances in Life Course Research
ISSN 1040-2608 · eISSN 1879-6974 · Elsevier
Advances in Life Course Research: CAS Zone 2 · Sociology (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 2.99; hybrid open access; APC about USD 3,320; median 308 days to acceptance (62 articles, last 24 months); 43 articles in 2025; indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Advances in Life Course Research is published by Elsevier and is in Zone 2 of Sociology in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Intergenerational Family Dynamics and Caregiving, Family Dynamics and Relationships and Health disparities and outcomes, together about 33.7% of its articles. Its main subfields are Sociology and Political Science. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Advances in Life Course Research publishes articles dealing with various aspects of the human life course. Seeing life course research as an essentially interdisciplinary field of study, it invites and welcomes contributions from anthropology, biosocial science, demography, epidemiology and statistics, gerontology, economics, management and organisation science, policy studies, psychology, research methodology and sociology. Original empirical analyses, theoretical contributions, methodological studies and reviews accessible to a broad set of readers are welcome. Articles might focus on specific events as well as on whole segments of the life course, including determinants and consequences, social relationships and policy implications, without restrictions over time and space.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): SOCIAL SCIENCES, INTERDISCIPLINARY
Editor-in-chief Juho HärkönenPublisher website
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named United States 17, United Kingdom 9, Italy 8, Netherlands 4, Germany 3 (52 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Intergenerational Family Dynamics and CaregivingSocial Sciences13%
- Family Dynamics and RelationshipsSocial Sciences11%
- Health disparities and outcomesSocial Sciences9.7%
- Gender, Labor, and Family DynamicsSocial Sciences5.7%
- Work-Family Balance ChallengesSocial Sciences5.6%
- Employment and Welfare StudiesHealth Professions4.9%
- Human auditory perception and evaluationEngineering4.6%
- Diverse Scientific and Economic StudiesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance4.5%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Sociology Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Social Sciences, Interdisciplinary | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Sociology Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Social Sciences, Interdisciplinary | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Sociology Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Social Sciences, Interdisciplinary | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SSCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- Impact factor
- 2.99LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 3Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 4.5LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 4.5Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1.12LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.57LetPub ·
- h-index
- 64OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 397OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 3.38OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 6.7%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 60.19%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 39LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 767 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 20 | 15 | 10 |
| 2025 | 43 | 33 | 121 |
| 2024 | 38 | 30 | 210 |
| 2023 | 43 | 25 | 371 |
| 2022 | 40 | 31 | 519 |
| 2021 | 36 | 20 | 531 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
Review time from article dates manuscript dates registered with PubMed · to
308 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 219 days – 385 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 2 days (62 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 314 days
- Sample
- 62 articles with submission and acceptance dates (64 in the window); the latest was accepted on
Only articles that were accepted and published are counted, not the time spent on rejected manuscripts, so this usually runs longer than a publisher's "time to first decision".
Other sources
- Submission to first decision
- 7 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 101 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance
- 349 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 3 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Double anonymous peer reviewPublisher website
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Hybrid open accessLetPub
A subscription journal in which authors can pay to publish their article open access.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAlex | USD 3,320 / EUR 3,110 / GBP 2,660 / JPY 411,780 | — | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 3,370 | — | — |
A hybrid journal charges the APC only when the author chooses open access; publishing under the subscription model is usually free.
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
What to prepare8 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- ≤ 250 words
- Keywords
- 1–7
- Reference style
- APA
- First submission
- Free format: the journal's layout is not required
- Suggested reviewers
- Required
- Highlights
- Optional
- Graphical abstract
- Required
- Cover letter
- Required
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Preprints
- AI use Declaration of generative AI use
Authors must declare the use of generative AI tools in the manuscript preparation process upon submission of the paper.Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies (“AI tools”) have been rapidly adopted in research and scholarly publishing, offering significant benefits while requiring clear standards for responsible and transparent use.Authors preparing a manuscript for this journal may use AI tool…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Group authorship
Group authorship refers to the attribution of an article to a defined and named group of authors whose members have contributed to the work. Examples include research consortia, clinical trial groups, collaborative networks, task forces or working groups, expert panels or consensus groups, and participatory research groups. Group authorship must be declared on the title page at submission. When av…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Declaration of competing interests
All authors must disclose any financial and personal relationships with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence or bias their work. Examples of potential competing interests include:EmploymentConsultanciesStock ownershipHonorariaPaid expert testimonyPatent applications or registrationsGrants or any other fundingAffiliation with the journal as an Editor or Advisory Board …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright License options
Authors will be offered open access user license options which will determine how you, and third parties, can reuse your open access article. We advise that you review these options and any funding body license requirements before selecting a license option.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access
We refer you to our open access information page to learn about open access options for this journal.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer review
This journal follows a double anonymized review process. Your submission will initially be assessed by our editors. If your submission is deemed suitable, it will typically be sent to be reviewed by a minimum of two reviewers for an independent expert assessment of the scientific quality. The decision as to whether your article is accepted or rejected for publication will be made by our editors.Re…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints Preprints
Preprint sharingAuthors may share preprints in line with Elsevier's article sharing policy. Sharing preprints, such as on a preprint server, will not count as prior publication.We advise you to read our policy on multiple, redundant or concurrent publication.
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Elsevier
- ISSN
- 1040-2608
- Print ISSN
- 1569-4909
- Electronic ISSN
- 1879-6974
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗LetPub
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Advances in Life Course Research
What CAS zone is Advances in Life Course Research in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Advances in Life Course Research is in Zone 2 of Sociology, and in Zone 2 of the minor category Social Sciences, Interdisciplinary. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 2 of Sociology. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Advances in Life Course Research?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 2.99; CiteScore 4.5, h-index 64.
How long does peer review take at Advances in Life Course Research?
Based on the dates recorded on 62 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 308 days (interquartile range 219–385 days). Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
What are the manuscript requirements of Advances in Life Course Research?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 250 words; Keywords: 1–7; Reference style: APA; First submission: Free format: the journal's layout is not required; Suggested reviewers: Required; Highlights: Optional; Graphical abstract: Required; Cover letter: Required. A model extracted these from the author guidelines and each was checked against the text; check the latest version on the journal's website before submitting.
Where are the editorial board members of Advances in Life Course Research based?
Of the 52 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (17), United Kingdom (9) and Italy (8). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Advances in Life Course Research?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Advances in Life Course Research is indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Is Advances in Life Course Research open access, and what is the APC?
Advances in Life Course Research is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 3,320.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, OpenAlex; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-26). Last updated: .