Journal profile · POLITICAL SCIENCE
Behavioral Sciences of Terrorism and Political Aggression
ISSN 1943-4472 · eISSN 1943-4480 · Taylor & Francis
Behavioral Sciences of Terrorism and Political Aggression: CAS Zone 3 · Sociology (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 1.5 (journal website); JCR Q2 (journal website); hybrid open access; APC charged, amount not published; median 168 days to acceptance (52 articles, last 24 months); acceptance rate 21% (journal website); 25 articles in 2025; indexed in ESCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Behavioral Sciences of Terrorism and Political Aggression is published by Taylor & Francis and is in Zone 3 of Sociology in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Terrorism, Counterterrorism, and Political Violence, Political Conflict and Governance and Social and Intergroup Psychology, together about 55.7% of its articles. Its main subfields are Sociology and Political Science. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Terrorism as a tactic has been used by political and ideological actors and groups for thousands of years. Behavioral Sciences of Terrorism and Political Aggression addresses the complex causation and effects of terrorist activity by bringing together timely, scientifically and theoretically sound papers addressing terrorism from a behavioral science perspective. The Journal publishes empirical and theoretical papers, letters to the Editor and invited visionary pieces by leading experts in the field, which have a strong base in behavioral science research. The articles will also draw in insights from related disciplines, including anthropology, criminology, economics, history, political science, nonlinear dynamic systems, linguistics and sociology. In particular, the Journal seeks to further the understanding of key questions within terrorism research, including: What are the conditions that lead to the use of terrorist tactics? How can future terrorist attacks be predicted? How can terrorist attacks be prevented, or at least reduced? How are terrorists recruited? How can would-be terrorists and potential supporters be diverted? What is the impact of terrorism on societies that have been attacked? What are the effects of counterterrorism efforts on societies where such efforts are ongoing? How can recovery from the effects of terrorism on individuals and groups be expedited? Peer Review Integrity All submitted manuscripts are subject to initial appraisal by the Editor, and, if found suitable for further consideration, to double anonymized peer review by independent, anonymous expert referees. Disclaimer
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): POLITICAL SCIENCE
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named United States 2, United Kingdom 1, Ireland 1 (4 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Terrorism, Counterterrorism, and Political ViolenceSocial Sciences37.9%
- Political Conflict and GovernanceSocial Sciences10.5%
- Social and Intergroup PsychologySocial Sciences7.3%
- Crime Patterns and InterventionsSocial Sciences4.2%
- Suicide and Self-Harm StudiesPsychology3.6%
- Migration, Health and TraumaPsychology3.4%
- Death Anxiety and Social ExclusionPsychology3.1%
- Crime, Illicit Activities, and GovernanceSocial Sciences3%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Sociology Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Political Science | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Sociology Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Political Science | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
JCR / CiteScore quartiles on the journal's website
- JCR Q2 · best quartile · 2025
- CiteScore Q1 · 2025
Publisher-reported: JCR figures are Clarivate's and CiteScore figures Scopus's to confirm; both are a different system from the CAS zones.Publisher website
Database indexing
ESCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
Naver, E-Lib Bremen, International Political Science Abstracts, National Center for PTSD (PILOTS Database)Publisher website
As the journal's website lists them, not checked against each database; for Web of Science editions the records above apply.
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) 2025
- 1.5Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 1.8Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 5.1LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher) 2025
- 5.1Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.79LetPub ·
- SJR (publisher) 2025
- 0.79Publisher website ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.26LetPub ·
- SNIP (publisher) 2025
- 1.26Publisher website ·
- h-index
- 32OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 120OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 1.26OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 6.7%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 28.79%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 21LetPub ·
- Downloads per year (publisher)
- 110,000Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 384 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 25 | 10 | 7 |
| 2025 | 25 | 11 | 32 |
| 2024 | 27 | 13 | 58 |
| 2023 | 25 | 10 | 128 |
| 2022 | 29 | 9 | 221 |
| 2021 | 30 | 7 | 357 |
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 Crossref · to
168 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 123 days – 219 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 15 days (52 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 187 days
- Sample
- 52 articles with submission and acceptance dates (61 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
- Acceptance rate (publisher)
- 21%Publisher website ·
- Submission to first decision
- 31 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 73 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 16 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Publisher website | Yes, amount not published | — | — |
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)
Article types accepted3
- empirical and theoretical papersThe Journal publishes empirical and theoretical papers, letters to the Editor and invited visionary pieces by leading experts in the field, which have a strong …Length not stated
- invited visionary piecesThe Journal publishes empirical and theoretical papers, letters to the Editor and invited visionary pieces by leading experts in the field, which have a strong …Length not stated
- letters to the editorThe Journal publishes empirical and theoretical papers, letters to the Editor and invited visionary pieces by leading experts in the field, which have a strong …Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteOpen access, Peer review
- Open access Open access
Behavioral Sciences of Terrorism and Political Aggression is a hybrid open access journal that is part of the Taylor & Francis 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…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer Review Integrity
All submitted manuscripts are subject to initial appraisal by the Editor, and, if found suitable for further consideration, to double anonymized peer review by independent, anonymous expert referees. Model summary
All submitted manuscripts are subject to initial appraisal by the Editor, and, if found suitable for further consideration, to double anonymized peer review by independent, anonymous expert referees.
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
- Taylor & Francis
- ISSN
- 1943-4472
- Electronic ISSN
- 1943-4480
- Society / sponsor
- Society for Terrorism Research
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 18, Issue 3 (2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗LetPub
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Behavioral Sciences of Terrorism and Political Aggression
What CAS zone is Behavioral Sciences of Terrorism and Political Aggression in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Behavioral Sciences of Terrorism and Political Aggression is in Zone 3 of Sociology, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Political Science. 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 Behavioral Sciences of Terrorism and Political Aggression?
The journal's website gives an impact factor of 1.5 (2025); this is the journal's own figure, as LetPub lists none for it; CiteScore 5.1, h-index 32.
How long does peer review take at Behavioral Sciences of Terrorism and Political Aggression?
Based on the dates recorded on 52 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 168 days (interquartile range 123–219 days); the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 21%. 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 JCR quartile is Behavioral Sciences of Terrorism and Political Aggression in?
The journal's website gives JCR Q2 (best quartile). JCR quartiles are Clarivate's to confirm and a different system from the CAS zones; in the CAS ranking the journal is in Zone 3 of Sociology.
Where are the editorial board members of Behavioral Sciences of Terrorism and Political Aggression based?
Of the 4 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (2), United Kingdom (1) and Ireland (1). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Behavioral Sciences of Terrorism and Political Aggression?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Behavioral Sciences of Terrorism and Political Aggression is indexed in ESCI and Scopus.
Is Behavioral Sciences of Terrorism and Political Aggression open access, and what is the APC?
Behavioral Sciences of Terrorism and Political Aggression is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC charged, amount not published.
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 2026-08-25). Last updated: .