Journal profile · SOCIAL WORK
International Journal of Social Welfare
ISSN 1369-6866 · eISSN 1468-2397 · Wiley-Blackwell
International Journal of Social Welfare: CAS Zone 4 · Sociology (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 1.85; hybrid open access; APC about USD 3,520; median 240 days to acceptance (87 articles, last 24 months); acceptance rate 11% (journal website); 70 articles in 2025; indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
International Journal of Social Welfare is published by Wiley-Blackwell and is in Zone 4 of Sociology in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Social Policy and Reform Studies, Employment and Welfare Studies and Social Work Education and Practice, together about 37.5% of its articles. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
The International Journal of Social Welfare publishes original articles in English on social welfare and social work that focus on contemporary social issues such as poverty and inequality, child welfare, health, mental health, migration and immigrants, and aging. We are particularly interested in papers speaking to topics that are either closely related to social welfare issues and social work practice or hold significant implications for building knowledge on social welfare and social work policy, research, or practice. Our interdisciplinary approach and comparative perspective promote examination of the most pressing social welfare issues of the day by researchers from the various branches of the applied social sciences. We strongly encourage our prospective authors to review some of our published volumes and papers to understand the scope of IJSW better, for example see our recent best paper winners from 2020 and 2021.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): SOCIAL WORK
Editor-in-chief Åke BergmarkPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 2 in mainland China (about 20%); most named Hong Kong, China 3, Mainland China 2, Sweden 2, Taiwan, China 1, Japan 1 (10 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Social Policy and Reform StudiesSocial Sciences18.1%
- Employment and Welfare StudiesHealth Professions10%
- Social Work Education and PracticeSocial Sciences9.5%
- Homelessness and Social IssuesHealth Professions7.8%
- Intergenerational Family Dynamics and CaregivingSocial Sciences5.5%
- Healthcare innovation and challengesSocial Sciences4.2%
- Research in Social SciencesSocial Sciences4%
- Housing, Finance, and NeoliberalismEconomics, Econometrics and Finance3.8%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Sociology Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Social Work | Zone 4 |
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 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SSCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
Current ContentsPublisher website
Other: EBSCO, ProQuest
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
- 1.85LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 1.9Publisher website ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 1.9Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 2.8LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 2.8Publisher website ·
- CiteScore (publisher) 2025
- 2.8Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.59LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.04LetPub ·
- h-index
- 80OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 780OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 2.38OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 10.5%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 63.64%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 53LetPub ·
- Articles per year (publisher) 2025
- 62Publisher website ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 197,262Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 2,122 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 44 | 22 | 18 |
| 2025 | 70 | 48 | 103 |
| 2024 | 83 | 63 | 348 |
| 2023 | 61 | 43 | 320 |
| 2022 | 60 | 34 | 345 |
| 2021 | 60 | 20 | 486 |
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
240 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 165 days – 305 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 19 days (88 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 257 days
- Sample
- 87 articles with submission and acceptance dates (126 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)
- 11%Publisher website ·
- Acceptance rate (publisher) 2025
- 11%Publisher website ·
- Submission to first decision
- 10 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to first decision 2025
- 10 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance 2025
- 251 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication 2025
- 18 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 3,520 / EUR 2,890 / GBP 2,380 | — | — |
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 prepare6 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- ≤ 150 words
- Keywords
- 5–8
- Manuscript length
- ≤ 8,000 words
- Reference style
- APA
- First submission
- Free format: the journal's layout is not required
- Cover letter
- Required
Article types accepted4, with length limits
- original articleOriginal Article (6,000 - 8,000 words): Comparative studies of social welfare policies and social work practices Empirical and theoretical analyses of contempor…main text ≤ 8,000 words
- research noteResearch Note (approx. 3,000 words): Presentations of innovative research in progress, or describe and discuss methodological approaches, or advance new ideas D…Length not stated
- reviewOriginal Article (6,000 - 8,000 words): Comparative studies of social welfare policies and social work practices Empirical and theoretical analyses of contempor…Length not stated
- review articleOriginal Article (6,000 - 8,000 words): Comparative studies of social welfare policies and social work practices Empirical and theoretical analyses of contempor…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteLicense & copyright, Open access, Peer review
- License & copyright Copyright
If your paper is accepted, the author identified as the formal corresponding author for the paper will receive an email prompting them to log in to Author Services; where via the Wiley Author Licensing Service (WALS) they will be able to complete the licence agreement on behalf of all authors on the paper. If the open access option is not selected the corresponding author will be presented with th…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access
Online-only format since 2015 Model summary
Effective with the 2015 volume, this journal will be published in an online-only format.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review
Double-blind peer review policy Model summary
Important: the journal operates a double-blind peer review policy. Please anonymise your manuscript and prepare a separate title page containing author details.
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
- Wiley-Blackwell
- ISSN
- 1369-6866
- Electronic ISSN
- 1468-2397
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 35, Issue 4 (October 2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about International Journal of Social Welfare
What CAS zone is International Journal of Social Welfare in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, International Journal of Social Welfare is in Zone 4 of Sociology, and in Zone 4 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 International Journal of Social Welfare?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 1.85; CiteScore 2.8, h-index 80.
How long does peer review take at International Journal of Social Welfare?
Based on the dates recorded on 87 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 240 days (interquartile range 165–305 days); the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 11% (2025). 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 International Journal of Social Welfare?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 150 words; Keywords: 5–8; Manuscript length: ≤ 8,000 words; Reference style: APA; First submission: Free format: the journal's layout is not required; 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 International Journal of Social Welfare based?
Of the 10 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 2 (about 20%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are Hong Kong, China (3), Mainland China (2) and Sweden (2). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index International Journal of Social Welfare?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, International Journal of Social Welfare is indexed in SSCI and Scopus. The journal's website also lists Current Contents; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is International Journal of Social Welfare open access, and what is the APC?
International Journal of Social Welfare is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 3,520.
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: .