Journal profile · SOCIAL WORK
Clinical Social Work Journal
ISSN 0091-1674 · eISSN 1573-3343 · Springer Nature · 4 issues per year
Clinical Social Work Journal: CAS Zone 3 · Sociology (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 1.12; hybrid open access; APC about USD 3,290; median 247 days to acceptance (43 articles, last 24 months); 46 articles in 2025; indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Clinical Social Work Journal is published by Springer Nature 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 Psychotherapy Techniques and Applications, Counseling, Therapy, and Family Dynamics and Social Work Education and Practice, together about 40.8% of its articles. Its main subfields are Clinical Psychology. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Clinical Social Work Journal is an international journal devoted to the advancement of clinical theory, knowledge, and practice. It aims to serve as a resource for practitioners, educators, researchers, and policymakers and invites the submission of manuscripts that conceptualize, discuss, and illustrate creative practice. The Journal is dedicated to exploring the complexities of clinical social work practice that considers the intersectionality of identities, cultural factors, social forces, and historical contexts in understanding clinical issues and applying modalities, methods, and skills. The journal, founded in 1973, publishes leading peer-reviewed original articles germane to contemporary clinical social work practice with individuals, couples, families, and groups, and welcomes submissions that reflect innovations in theoretical/conceptual, practice, empirically-supported research, and interdisciplinary approaches. In addition, the journal welcomes manuscripts from practitioners who seek to share information about innovative practice approaches and models in their agencies and communities.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): SOCIAL WORK
Editor-in-chief Melissa D. GradyPublisher website
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named United States 29, Canada 2, Hong Kong, China 1, Australia 1, Israel 1 (37 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Psychotherapy Techniques and ApplicationsPsychology20.3%
- Counseling, Therapy, and Family DynamicsPsychology11.9%
- Social Work Education and PracticeSocial Sciences8.6%
- Child Therapy and DevelopmentPsychology5.3%
- Attachment and Relationship DynamicsPsychology4.8%
- Counseling Practices and SupervisionPsychology3.9%
- Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional DevelopmentPsychology3.9%
- Child Abuse and TraumaPsychology3.7%
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 | Social Work | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Sociology Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Social Work | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Sociology Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Social Work | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SSCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
SCIEPsycINFOCurrent ContentsPublisher website
Other: Google Scholar, EBSCO, ProQuest, Dimensions, CNKI, Baidu, Naver, OCLC, Portico, CLOCKSS
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
- 1.12LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 1.1Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 2.5Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 4.5LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.57LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.01LetPub ·
- h-index
- 68OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 704OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 1.46OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 9.1%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 32.67%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 42LetPub ·
- Articles per year (publisher)
- 2,025Publisher website ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 410,800Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 2,337 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 33 | 13 | 2 |
| 2025 | 46 | 27 | 51 |
| 2024 | 66 | 30 | 158 |
| 2023 | 52 | 12 | 209 |
| 2022 | 36 | 20 | 362 |
| 2021 | 43 | 33 | 1,083 |
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
247 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 160 days – 321 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 22 days (85 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 280 days
- Sample
- 43 articles with submission and acceptance dates (94 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
- 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 3,290 / EUR 2,690 / GBP 2,390 | — | — |
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)
Open calls for papers1, by deadline
Publisher websiteWhat to prepare8 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- 150–250 words
- Keywords
- ≥ 4
- Reference style
- APA
- First submission
- Free format: the journal's layout is not required
- Suggested reviewers
- Optional
- Highlights
- Optional
- Graphical abstract
- Optional
- Cover letter
- Optional
Article types accepted4
- editorialDouble-blind peer review This journal follows a double-blind reviewing procedure. This means that the author will remain anonymous to the reviewers throughout p…Length not stated
- original researchResearch – This standard article type can be used by authors for submissions in any of the main content areas covered by the journal: original research, clinica…Length not stated
- researchResearch – This standard article type can be used by authors for submissions in any of the main content areas covered by the journal: original research, clinica…Length not stated
- standard articleResearch – This standard article type can be used by authors for submissions in any of the main content areas covered by the journal: original research, clinica…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, Data availability, Publication ethics, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Trial registration / reporting guidelines
- AI use Generative AI Images
Please check Springer’s policy on generative AI images and make sure your work adheres to the principles described therein. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Authorship principles
LLMs do not satisfy authorship criteria Model summary
These guidelines describe authorship principles and good authorship practices to which prospective authors should adhere to. Authorship clarified The Journal and Publisher assume all authors agreed with the content and that all gave explicit consent to submit and that they obtained consent from the responsible authorities at the institute/organization where the work has been carried out, before th…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Conflict of Interest Statement
Also, a note about conflict of interest should be included in the manuscript in a separate section entitled Conflict-of-Interest Statement and placed on the separate title page prepared for double-blind peer review. If no conflict exists, this section should state: The author declares that the author has no conflict of interest. For manuscripts with more than one author, if no conflict exists, thi…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Data availability Data availability statements
Data availability statement required for original research Model summary
All original research must include a data availability statement. This statement should explain how to access data supporting the results and analysis in the article, including links/citations to publicly archived datasets analysed or generated during the study. Please see our full policy here. If it is not possible to share research data publicly, for instance when individual privacy could be com…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Publication ethics Compliance with Ethical Standards
To ensure objectivity and transparency in research and to ensure that accepted principles of ethical and professional conduct have been followed, authors should include information regarding sources of funding, potential conflicts of interest (financial or non-financial), informed consent if the research involved human participants, and a statement on welfare of animals if the research involved an…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright Copyright
Open Choice articles do not require transfer of copyright as the copyright remains with the author. In opting for open access, the author(s) agree to publish the article under a Creative Commons license. Details of the OA licences offered to authors can be found on the individual journal website, in the journal's How to publish with us guide. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access publishing
To find out more about publishing your work Open Access in Clinical Social Work Journal, including information on fees, funding and licences, visit our Open access publishing page. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Double-blind peer review
Double-blind peer review Model summary
This journal follows a double-blind reviewing procedure. This means that the author will remain anonymous to the reviewers throughout peer review. It is the responsibility of the author to anonymize the manuscript and any associated materials. Author names, affiliations and any other potentially identifying information should be removed from the manuscript text and any accompanying files (such as …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Trial registration / reporting guidelines Clinical Trial Registration
The World Health Organization (WHO) definition of a clinical trial is "any research study that prospectively assigns human participants or groups of humans to one or more health-related interventions to evaluate the effects on health outcomes". The WHO defines health interventions as “A health intervention is an act performed for, with or on behalf of a person or population whose purpose is to ass…
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
- Springer Nature
- Frequency
- 4 issues per year
- ISSN
- 0091-1674
- Electronic ISSN
- 1573-3343
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 54, Issue 3 (September 2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Clinical Social Work Journal
What CAS zone is Clinical Social Work Journal in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Clinical Social Work Journal is in Zone 3 of Sociology, and in Zone 3 of the minor category Social Work. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Sociology. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Clinical Social Work Journal?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 1.12; CiteScore 4.5, h-index 68.
How long does peer review take at Clinical Social Work Journal?
Based on the dates recorded on 43 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 247 days (interquartile range 160–321 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 Clinical Social Work Journal?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: 150–250 words; Keywords: ≥ 4; Reference style: APA; First submission: Free format: the journal's layout is not required; Suggested reviewers: Optional; Highlights: Optional; Graphical abstract: Optional; Cover letter: Optional. 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 Clinical Social Work Journal based?
Of the 37 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (29), Canada (2) and Hong Kong, China (1). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Clinical Social Work Journal?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Clinical Social Work Journal is indexed in SSCI and Scopus. The journal's website also lists SCIE, PsycINFO and Current Contents; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Clinical Social Work Journal open access, and what is the APC?
Clinical Social Work Journal is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 3,290.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, OpenAlex, 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 2026-08-25). Last updated: .