Journal profile · Multiple
International Journal of Art Therapy
ISSN 1745-4832 · eISSN 1745-4840 · Taylor & Francis
International Journal of Art Therapy: CAS Zone 2 · Psychology (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 1.6 (journal website); hybrid open access; APC charged, amount not published; median 159 days to acceptance (48 articles, last 24 months); acceptance rate 21% (journal website); 37 articles in 2025; indexed in ESCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
International Journal of Art Therapy is published by Taylor & Francis and is in Zone 2 of Psychology in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Art Therapy and Mental Health, Child Therapy and Development and Psychotherapy Techniques and Applications, together about 63.2% of its articles. Its main subfields are Clinical Psychology. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
International Journal of Art Therapy is a leading publication of international art therapy literature and official journal of the British Association of Art Therapists. The aims of the journal are: To advance the understanding of how art therapy, delivered by trained art therapists (also known as art psychotherapists), may contribute to effective interventions for service users through publishing: Ethical, high quality research papers. Diverse, innovative practice papers including service user feedback. Original, evidence-informed opinion pieces. To further develop knowledge in the fields of art therapy research, practice, theory, and pedagogy in a global context for: Art therapists. Educators and trainees. Service users and members of the public. Allied health professionals. Mental health practitioners. Other professionals. To include service user and lived experience perspectives in all aspects of this work. Definition of Art Therapy The definition of art therapy used by the journal can be found here. Research and practice papers related to the arts therapies will be considered only if they demonstrate a strong focus on art therapy. Actions for Change The International Journal of Art Therapy ’s actions for change were developed in response to the calls of #BlackLivesMatter, following the murder of George Floyd during the Covid-19 pandemic, urging us all to re-examine the inclusivity of our institutions. Find out more about the ten actions for change and how we are reviewing our progress. Peer Review Integrity All articles in this journal, including those in special issues, have undergone rigorous peer review. All peer review is double anonymized and submission is online via Taylor & Francis submission system. Mentoring We offer mentoring to first-time authors preparing a submission for either the annual special issue or the biannual prize competition. To be eligible for mentoring, authors must provide a complete draft manuscript. Deadlines for mentoring enquiries will be clearly stated in the relevant call for submissions. Disclaimer International Journal of Art Therapy is an ethical research journal with a Basic Data Sharing Policy and is a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Multiple
Editor-in-chief Zoe MoulaPublisher website
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Art Therapy and Mental HealthArts and Humanities36.1%
- Child Therapy and DevelopmentPsychology16%
- Psychotherapy Techniques and ApplicationsPsychology11.1%
- Music Therapy and HealthPsychology9.8%
- Participatory Visual Research MethodsSocial Sciences4.9%
- Art Education and DevelopmentArts and Humanities4.9%
- Urban Green Space and HealthEnvironmental Science2.1%
- Diversity and Impact of DancePsychology2%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Psychology Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Psychology | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Psychology, Clinical | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Rehabilitation | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Psychology Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Psychology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Psychology, Clinical | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Rehabilitation | 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
- 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
ESCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
PsycINFOPublisher website
Other: EBSCO, ProQuest, Educational Research Abstracts online (ERA), ARTbibliographies Modern, Studies on Women and Gender Abstracts
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
- 1.6Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 1.9Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 3.3LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher) 2025
- 3.3Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.36LetPub ·
- SJR (publisher) 2025
- 0.36Publisher website ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.97LetPub ·
- SNIP (publisher) 2025
- 0.97Publisher website ·
- h-index
- 33OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 159OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 1.5OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 25%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 6.41%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 22LetPub ·
- Downloads per year (publisher)
- 216,000Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 469 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 31 | 17 | 9 |
| 2025 | 37 | 16 | 50 |
| 2024 | 30 | 18 | 88 |
| 2023 | 42 | 20 | 184 |
| 2022 | 22 | 10 | 120 |
| 2021 | 32 | 7 | 394 |
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
159 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 126 days – 247 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 22 days (48 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 180 days
- Sample
- 48 articles with submission and acceptance dates (73 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
- 11 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 77 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 24 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)
What to prepare1 items from the author guidelines
- Not considered
- Research and practice papers related to the arts therapies
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteData availability, Open access, Peer review
- Data availability
Basic Data Sharing Policy; COPE member Model summary
International Journal of Art Therapy is an ethical research journal with a Basic Data Sharing Policy and is a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access
Hybrid open access journal Model summary
International Journal of Art Therapy 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 discov…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review
Double anonymized peer review Model summary
All peer review is double anonymized and submission is online via Taylor & Francis submission system.
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
- 1745-4832
- Electronic ISSN
- 1745-4840
- Society / sponsor
- British Association of Art Therapists
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 31, Issue 3 (2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about International Journal of Art Therapy
What CAS zone is International Journal of Art Therapy in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, International Journal of Art Therapy is in Zone 2 of Psychology, and in Zone 2 of the minor category Psychology, Clinical / Rehabilitation. 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 International Journal of Art Therapy?
The journal's website gives an impact factor of 1.6 (2025); this is the journal's own figure, as LetPub lists none for it; CiteScore 3.3, h-index 33.
How long does peer review take at International Journal of Art Therapy?
Based on the dates recorded on 48 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 159 days (interquartile range 126–247 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.
Which databases index International Journal of Art Therapy?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, International Journal of Art Therapy is indexed in ESCI and Scopus. The journal's website also lists PsycINFO; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is International Journal of Art Therapy open access, and what is the APC?
International Journal of Art Therapy 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: .