Journal profile · Psychology-Social Psychology
Evolutionary Psychological Science
ISSN 2198-9885 · Springer Nature · 4 issues per year
Evolutionary Psychological Science: CAS Zone 4 · Psychology (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 1.2 (journal website); hybrid open access; APC about USD 2,390; median 137 days to acceptance (77 articles, last 24 months); 36 articles in 2025; indexed in ESCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Evolutionary Psychological Science is published by Springer Nature and is in Zone 4 of Psychology in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior, Evolutionary Game Theory and Cooperation and Psychology of Moral and Emotional Judgment, together about 48.4% of its articles. Its main subfields are Sociology and Political Science. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Evolutionary Psychological Science is an international, interdisciplinary journal that publishes empirical research, theoretical contributions, literature reviews, and commentaries addressing human evolved psychology and behavior. The journal especially welcomes submissions on non-humans that inform human psychology and behavior, as well as submissions that address clinical implications and applications of an evolutionary perspective. Evolutionary Psychological Science is informed by all the social and life sciences, including anthropology, biology, criminology, law, medicine, philosophy, political science, and the humanities, and welcomes contributions from these and related fields that contribute to the understanding of human evolved psychology and behavior. Submissions should not exceed 10,000 words, all inclusive. Publishes empirical and theoretical work informed by an evolutionary psychological perspective Welcomes work on non-human animals that may inform human psychology and behavior Welcomes work addressing clinical issues that is informed by an evolutionary perspective Publishes work across the social, behavioral, and life sciences
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Psychology-Social Psychology
Editor-in-chief Todd K. ShackelfordPublisher website
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named United States 33, Canada 3, United Kingdom 2, Macau, China 1, Denmark 1 (43 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Evolutionary Psychology and Human BehaviorPsychology30.7%
- Evolutionary Game Theory and CooperationSocial Sciences9.4%
- Psychology of Moral and Emotional JudgmentNeuroscience8.3%
- Consumer Behavior in Brand Consumption and IdentificationBusiness, Management and Accounting5.2%
- Social and Intergroup PsychologySocial Sciences4.5%
- Sexuality, Behavior, and TechnologyPsychology4.5%
- Cultural Differences and ValuesPsychology4.3%
- Marriage and Sexual RelationshipsSocial Sciences3.8%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Psychology Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Psychology | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Psychology, Multidisciplinary | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Psychology Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Psychology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Psychology, Multidisciplinary | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
Database indexing
ESCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
PsycINFOPublisher 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
- 1.2Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 1.3Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 2.8LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.46LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.75LetPub ·
- h-index
- 34OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 179OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 1.31OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 8.3%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 29.35%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 32LetPub ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 252,700Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 489 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 38 | 13 | 6 |
| 2025 | 36 | 12 | 27 |
| 2024 | 39 | 16 | 115 |
| 2023 | 29 | 15 | 121 |
| 2022 | 40 | 17 | 332 |
| 2021 | 39 | 13 | 314 |
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
137 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 90 days – 193 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 15 days (77 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 161 days
- Sample
- 77 articles with submission and acceptance dates (88 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
- 5 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 2,390 / EUR 3,290 | — | — |
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 prepare4 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- 150–250 words
- Keywords
- ≥ 4
- Reference style
- Author–date
- Suggested reviewers
- Optional
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, Data availability, Publication ethics, License & copyright, Open access, 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
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 Evolutionary Psychological Science, including information on fees, funding and licences, visit our Open access publishing page. Back to top
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
- 2198-9885
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 12, Issue 2 (June 2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Evolutionary Psychological Science
What CAS zone is Evolutionary Psychological Science in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Evolutionary Psychological Science is in Zone 4 of Psychology, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Psychology, Multidisciplinary. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Psychology. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Evolutionary Psychological Science?
The journal's website gives an impact factor of 1.2 (2025); this is the journal's own figure, as LetPub lists none for it; CiteScore 2.8, h-index 34.
How long does peer review take at Evolutionary Psychological Science?
Based on the dates recorded on 77 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 137 days (interquartile range 90–193 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 Evolutionary Psychological Science?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: 150–250 words; Keywords: ≥ 4; Reference style: Author–date; Suggested reviewers: 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 Evolutionary Psychological Science based?
Of the 43 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (33), Canada (3) and United Kingdom (2). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Evolutionary Psychological Science?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Evolutionary Psychological Science is indexed in ESCI and Scopus. The journal's website also lists PsycINFO; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Evolutionary Psychological Science open access, and what is the APC?
Evolutionary Psychological Science is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 2,390.
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: .