Journal profile · AREA STUDIES
Asia-Pacific Journal-Japan Focus
ISSN 1557-4660 · Japan Focus
Asia-Pacific Journal-Japan Focus: CAS Zone 4 · Sociology (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 0.3 (journal website); fully open access; APC about USD 3,550; 26 articles in 2025; indexed in ESCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Asia-Pacific Journal-Japan Focus is published by Japan Focus and is in Zone 4 of Sociology in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Japanese History and Culture, Korean Peninsula Historical and Political Studies and Vietnamese History and Culture Studies, together about 48.1% of its articles. Its main subfields are Sociology and Political Science, Cultural Studies and Political Science and International Relations. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus is an open access, peer reviewed journal providing critical analysis of the forces shaping the Asia-Pacific and the world. APJJF explores the geopolitics, economics, history, society, culture, international relations and environment of the modern and contemporary Asia-Pacific region.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): AREA STUDIES
Editorial board by country: 1 in mainland China (about 2%); most named Japan 24, United States 20, Australia 7, Germany 2, Canada 2 (60 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Japanese History and CultureSocial Sciences26.5%
- Korean Peninsula Historical and Political StudiesSocial Sciences15%
- Vietnamese History and Culture StudiesSocial Sciences6.6%
- Asian Culture and Media StudiesSocial Sciences6.2%
- Nuclear Issues and DefenseSocial Sciences4.4%
- International Relations and Foreign PolicySocial Sciences3.9%
- Chinese history and philosophySocial Sciences3.5%
- Risk Perception and ManagementSocial Sciences2.9%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Sociology Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Area Studies | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Sociology Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Area Studies | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
Database indexing
ESCIScopusDOAJLetPub
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 (publisher)
- 0.3Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 0.9LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.19LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.61LetPub ·
- h-index
- 25OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 147OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 0.64OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 33.3%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 25.78%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 24LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 3,816 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 41 | 41 | 4 |
| 2025 | 26 | 26 | 15 |
| 2024 | 58 | 58 | 61 |
| 2023 | 55 | 55 | 50 |
| 2022 | 82 | 82 | 102 |
| 2021 | 108 | 108 | 113 |
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
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 12 weeksDOAJ ·
- Peer review
- Double anonymous peer reviewDOAJ
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
Fully open accessDOAJ
Every article is open access; authors usually pay an article processing charge (APC).
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOAJ | GBP 2,460 / USD 3,550 | Yes | CC BY, CC BY-SA, CC BY-ND, CC BY-NC, CC BY-NC-SA, CC BY-NC-ND | |
| OpenAlex | USD 3,550 / GBP 2,460 | — | — |
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)
Article types accepted7, with length limits
- analysisAnalysis*Length not stated
- editorialResearch Article*Research Note*Analysis* APJJF also publishes Reflections & Insights, author perspectives on issues spanning current events, research topics, an…Length not stated
- perspectiveResearch Article*Research Note*Analysis* APJJF also publishes Reflections & Insights, author perspectives on issues spanning current events, research topics, an…main text ≤ 3,000 words
- reflections & insightsAPJJF also publishes Reflections & Insights, author perspectives on issues spanning current events, research topics, and pedagogy, of approximately 3,000 words.Length not stated
- research articleResearch Article*Research Note*Analysis* APJJF also publishes Reflections & Insights, author perspectives on issues spanning current events, research topics, an…Length not stated
- research noteResearch Note*Length not stated
- reviewResearch Article*Research Note*Analysis* APJJF also publishes Reflections & Insights, author perspectives on issues spanning current events, research topics, an…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteOpen access
- Open access
Open access, peer reviewed journal. Model summary
Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus is an open access, peer reviewed journal
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
- Japan Focus
- ISSN
- 1557-4660
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗DOAJ
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗DOAJ
- Aims & Scope ↗DOAJ
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Fee waivers ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗DOAJ
- Editorial board ↗DOAJ
- Plagiarism policy ↗DOAJ
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Asia-Pacific Journal-Japan Focus
What CAS zone is Asia-Pacific Journal-Japan Focus in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Asia-Pacific Journal-Japan Focus is in Zone 4 of Sociology, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Area Studies. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 4 of Sociology. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Asia-Pacific Journal-Japan Focus?
The journal's website gives an impact factor of 0.3; this is the journal's own figure, as LetPub lists none for it; CiteScore 0.9, h-index 25.
Where are the editorial board members of Asia-Pacific Journal-Japan Focus based?
Of the 60 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 1 (about 2%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are Japan (24), United States (20) and Australia (7). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Asia-Pacific Journal-Japan Focus?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Asia-Pacific Journal-Japan Focus is indexed in ESCI, Scopus and DOAJ.
Is Asia-Pacific Journal-Japan Focus open access, and what is the APC?
Asia-Pacific Journal-Japan Focus is a fully open-access journal. APC about USD 3,550.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, OpenAlex, DOAJ, Publisher website; 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: .