Journal profile · AREA STUDIES
Critical Asian Studies
ISSN 1467-2715 · eISSN 1472-6033 · Taylor & Francis
Critical Asian Studies: CAS Zone 3 · Sociology (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 2.12; JCR Q1 (journal website); hybrid open access; APC charged, amount not published; median 178 days to acceptance (63 articles, last 24 months); acceptance rate 12% (journal website); 45 articles in 2025; indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Critical Asian Studies 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 Southeast Asian Sociopolitical Studies, Vietnamese History and Culture Studies and Asian Studies and History, together about 29.8% of its articles. Its main subfields are Sociology and Political Science and Political Science and International Relations. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Critical Asian Studies is a peer-reviewed quarterly journal that welcomes unsolicited essays, reviews, translations, interviews, photo essays, and letters about Asia and the Pacific, particularly those that challenge the accepted formulas for understanding the Asia and Pacific regions, the world, and ourselves. Published now by Routledge, part of the Taylor & Francis Group, Critical Asian Studies remains true to the mission that was articulated for the journal in 1967 by the Committee of Concerned Asian Scholars: to develop a humane and knowledgeable understanding of Asian societies and their efforts to maintain cultural integrity and to confront such problems as poverty, oppression, and imperialism to create alternatives to the prevailing trends in scholarship on Asia, which too often spring from a parochial cultural perspective and serve selfish interests and expansionism In this spirit Critical Asian Studies welcomes submissions that challenge the accepted formulas for understanding the Asia and Pacific regions, the world, and ourselves. Peer Review Statement: All submitted research articles undergo an initial editor screening, followed by double-anonymized peer review with at least two independent referees.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): AREA STUDIES
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named United States 3, Japan 1, Singapore 1 (5 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Southeast Asian Sociopolitical StudiesSocial Sciences11.7%
- Vietnamese History and Culture StudiesSocial Sciences9.1%
- Asian Studies and HistorySocial Sciences9%
- Chinese history and philosophySocial Sciences6.6%
- Japanese History and CultureSocial Sciences6.6%
- Asian Geopolitics and EthnographySocial Sciences6.2%
- China's Socioeconomic Reforms and GovernanceSocial Sciences5.8%
- Cambodian History and SocietySocial Sciences5.4%
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 | Area Studies | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Sociology Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Area Studies | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Sociology Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Area Studies | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
JCR / CiteScore quartiles on the journal's website
- JCR Q1 · best quartile · 2025
- CiteScore Q2 · 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
SSCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
Alternative Press Index, America: History and Life, Bibliography of Asian Studies, Historical Abstracts, IBR (International Bibliography of Book Reviews), IBZ (International Bibliographie der Zeischriften Literatur), International Development Abstracts, International Development Index, International Political Science Abstracts, Left Index, Political Science Abstracts, Sage AbstractsPublisher 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
- 2.12LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 2.2Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 2.7Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 2.9LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher) 2025
- 2.9Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.62LetPub ·
- SJR (publisher) 2025
- 0.62Publisher website ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.62LetPub ·
- SNIP (publisher) 2025
- 1.62Publisher website ·
- h-index
- 56OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 391OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 1.95OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 4.5%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 17%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 40LetPub ·
- Downloads per year (publisher)
- 259,000Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 1,000 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 30 | 15 | 2 |
| 2025 | 45 | 20 | 60 |
| 2024 | 38 | 18 | 158 |
| 2023 | 27 | 11 | 182 |
| 2022 | 35 | 5 | 211 |
| 2021 | 36 | 7 | 520 |
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
178 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 94 days – 240 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 16 days (63 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 202 days
- Sample
- 63 articles with submission and acceptance dates (79 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)
- 12%Publisher website ·
- Submission to first decision
- 5 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 66 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 17 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 accepted8
- essaysCritical Asian Studies is a peer-reviewed quarterly journal that welcomes unsolicited essays, reviews, translations, interviews, photo essays, and letters about…Length not stated
- interviewsCritical Asian Studies is a peer-reviewed quarterly journal that welcomes unsolicited essays, reviews, translations, interviews, photo essays, and letters about…Length not stated
- lettersCritical Asian Studies is a peer-reviewed quarterly journal that welcomes unsolicited essays, reviews, translations, interviews, photo essays, and letters about…Length not stated
- photo essaysCritical Asian Studies is a peer-reviewed quarterly journal that welcomes unsolicited essays, reviews, translations, interviews, photo essays, and letters about…Length not stated
- research articleResearch Article | Published online: 13 Sep 2026Length not stated
- review articleReview Article | Published online: 15 Sep 2026Length not stated
- reviewsCritical Asian Studies is a peer-reviewed quarterly journal that welcomes unsolicited essays, reviews, translations, interviews, photo essays, and letters about…Length not stated
- translationsCritical Asian Studies is a peer-reviewed quarterly journal that welcomes unsolicited essays, reviews, translations, interviews, photo essays, and letters about…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteOpen access, Peer review
- Open access Open access
Critical Asian Studies 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. Model summary
Critical Asian Studies 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? Increase the discoverability and …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review
All submitted research articles undergo an initial editor screening, followed by double-anonymized peer review with at least two independent referees. Model summary
All submitted research articles undergo an initial editor screening, followed by double-anonymized peer review with at least two independent 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
- 1467-2715
- Electronic ISSN
- 1472-6033
- Society / sponsor
- Bulletin of Concerned Asian Scholars
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 58, Issue 3 (2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗LetPub
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Critical Asian Studies
What CAS zone is Critical Asian Studies in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Critical Asian Studies is in Zone 3 of Sociology, and in Zone 3 of the minor category Area Studies. 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 Critical Asian Studies?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 2.12; CiteScore 2.9, h-index 56.
How long does peer review take at Critical Asian Studies?
Based on the dates recorded on 63 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 178 days (interquartile range 94–240 days); the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 12%. 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 Critical Asian Studies in?
The journal's website gives JCR Q1 (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 Critical Asian Studies based?
Of the 5 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (3), Japan (1) and Singapore (1). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Critical Asian Studies?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Critical Asian Studies is indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Is Critical Asian Studies open access, and what is the APC?
Critical Asian Studies 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 2026-08-26). Last updated: .