Journal profile · PHILOSOPHY
Ethical Theory and Moral Practice
ISSN 1386-2820 · eISSN 1572-8447 · Springer Nature · 5 issues per year
Ethical Theory and Moral Practice: CAS Zone 2 · Philosophy (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 1.5 (journal website); hybrid open access; APC about USD 2,290; median 238 days to acceptance (57 articles, last 24 months); 54 articles in 2025; indexed in AHCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Ethical Theory and Moral Practice is published by Springer Nature and is in Zone 2 of Philosophy in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Philosophical Ethics and Theory, Political Philosophy and Ethics and Free Will and Agency, together about 44.1% of its articles. Its main subfields are Philosophy and Cognitive Neuroscience. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Ethical Theory and Moral Practice is a double-anonymous peer-reviewed philosophical journal which aims to publish the best work produced in all fields of practical philosophy. It welcomes high-quality, rigorous and original, submissions regardless of the traditions or schools of thought from which they derive. As an editorial priority, however, published papers should be accessible to the philosophical community at large and as free as possible of unnecessary jargon. Ethical Theory and Moral Practice publishes work on ethical theories that address practical problems, as well as work that presents or examines empirical findings regarding moral practices relevant for ethical theorizing. The journal therefore actively seeks to promote cross-fertilization across areas of practical philosophy—such as moral, political, legal, and social philosophy—and more empirical disciplines, such as medicine, economics, sociology, political science, and psychology. It welcomes work in applied ethics provided that it can offer theoretical or normative contributions to larger philosophical debates. The journal also considers historically-oriented contributions provided they are not mainly exegetical and can offer insights for current debates in practical philosophy. The journal endorses the BPA/ SWIP-UK Good Practice for Journals. Further details are available in our Review Policy document.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): PHILOSOPHY
Editor-in-chief Lubomira RadoilskaPublisher website
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named United Kingdom 7, Netherlands 7, United States 6, Sweden 5, Italy 3 (37 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Philosophical Ethics and TheoryArts and Humanities16.3%
- Political Philosophy and EthicsSocial Sciences15%
- Free Will and AgencyNeuroscience12.8%
- Psychology of Moral and Emotional JudgmentNeuroscience9.7%
- Epistemology, Ethics, and MetaphysicsArts and Humanities8.3%
- War, Ethics, and JustificationArts and Humanities6.8%
- Ethics in medical practiceHealth Professions6.4%
- Emotions and Moral BehaviorPsychology2.6%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Philosophy Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Philosophy | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Philosophy | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Philosophy Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Philosophy | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Philosophy | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Philosophy Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Philosophy | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Philosophy | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
AHCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
ERIH PLUSCurrent 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 (publisher) 2025
- 1.5Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 1.6Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 3.6LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.94LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 2.07LetPub ·
- h-index
- 69OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 623OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 0.84OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 6.7%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 72.31%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 40LetPub ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 450,300Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 1,874 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 50 | 27 | 2 |
| 2025 | 54 | 39 | 27 |
| 2024 | 48 | 35 | 98 |
| 2023 | 73 | 56 | 402 |
| 2022 | 93 | 56 | 705 |
| 2021 | 119 | 65 | 785 |
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
238 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 114 days – 293 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 17 days (89 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 263 days
- Sample
- 57 articles with submission and acceptance dates (114 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
- 20 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Double anonymous peer review, Open 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 2,290 / EUR 3,190 | — | — |
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 prepare5 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- 150–250 words
- Keywords
- ≥ 4
- Reference style
- Author–date
- Suggested reviewers
- Optional
- Cover letter
- Required
Article types accepted4, with length limits
- book reviewEthical Theory and Moral Practice invites submissions for papers of different length. • Papers: The word count should not exceed 8.000 words (incl. bibliography…Length not stated
- letterEthical Theory and Moral Practice invites submissions for papers of different length. • Papers: The word count should not exceed 8.000 words (incl. bibliography…Length not stated
- reviewEthical Theory and Moral Practice invites submissions for papers of different length. • Papers: The word count should not exceed 8.000 words (incl. bibliography…main text ≤ 3,000 words
- review articleEthical Theory and Moral Practice invites submissions for papers of different length. • Papers: The word count should not exceed 8.000 words (incl. bibliography…main text ≤ 3,000 words
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, Data availability, Publication ethics, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review
- 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
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 Disclosures and declarations
All authors are requested to include information regarding sources of funding, financial or non-financial interests, study-specific approval by the appropriate ethics committee for research involving humans and/or animals, informed consent if the research involved human participants, and a statement on welfare of animals if the research involved animals (as appropriate). The decision whether such …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Data availability Data availability statements
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 Ethical Theory and Moral Practice, including information on fees, funding and licences, visit our Open access publishing page. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer Review Taxonomy
Ethical Theory and Moral Practice and Springer Nature are participating in a pilot of NISO/STM's Working Group on Peer Review Terminology. The National Information Standards Organization (NISO) and STM, the International Association of Scientific, Technology and Medical Publishers have recognized a need to identify and standardize definitions and terminology in peer review practices in order to he…
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
- 5 issues per year
- ISSN
- 1386-2820
- Electronic ISSN
- 1572-8447
- Society / sponsor
- Societas Ethica
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 29, Issue 3 (July 2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Ethical Theory and Moral Practice
What CAS zone is Ethical Theory and Moral Practice in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Ethical Theory and Moral Practice is in Zone 2 of Philosophy, and in Zone 2 of the minor category Philosophy. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 2 of Philosophy. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Ethical Theory and Moral Practice?
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 3.6, h-index 69.
How long does peer review take at Ethical Theory and Moral Practice?
Based on the dates recorded on 57 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 238 days (interquartile range 114–293 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 Ethical Theory and Moral Practice?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: 150–250 words; Keywords: ≥ 4; Reference style: Author–date; Suggested reviewers: Optional; 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 Ethical Theory and Moral Practice 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 Kingdom (7), Netherlands (7) and United States (6). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Ethical Theory and Moral Practice?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Ethical Theory and Moral Practice is indexed in AHCI and Scopus. The journal's website also lists ERIH PLUS and Current Contents; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Ethical Theory and Moral Practice open access, and what is the APC?
Ethical Theory and Moral Practice is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 2,290.
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 2026-08-26). Last updated: .