Journal profile · CRIMINOLOGY & PENOLOGY
Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology
ISSN 2199-4641 · eISSN 2199-465X · Springer Nature · 4 issues per year
Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology: CAS Zone 3 · Sociology (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 1.48; hybrid open access; APC about USD 3,390; median 176 days to acceptance (57 articles, last 24 months); 18 articles in 2025; indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology is published by Springer Nature 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 Crime Patterns and Interventions, Criminal Justice and Corrections Analysis and Psychopathy, Forensic Psychiatry, Sexual Offending, together about 54.1% of its articles. Its main subfields are Sociology and Political Science and Clinical Psychology. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
The Journal of Developmental and Life Course Criminology seeks to advance knowledge and understanding of developmental dimensions of offending across the life-course. Research that examines current theories, debates, and knowledge gaps within Developmental and Life Course Criminology is encouraged. The journal welcomes theoretical papers, empirical papers, and papers that explore the translation of developmental and life-course research into policy and/or practice. Papers that present original research or explore new directions for examination are also encouraged. The journal also welcomes all rigorous methodological approaches and orientations. The Journal of Developmental and Life Course Criminology encourages submissions from a broad array of related disciplines including but not limited to psychology, statistics, sociology, psychiatry, neuroscience, geography, political science, history, social work, epidemiology, public health, and economics.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): CRIMINOLOGY & PENOLOGY
Editor-in-chief Miguel Basto-Pereira ISPAPublisher website
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named United States 24, United Kingdom 6, Netherlands 5, Australia 4, Canada 2 (45 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Crime Patterns and InterventionsSocial Sciences25.8%
- Criminal Justice and Corrections AnalysisSocial Sciences19.5%
- Psychopathy, Forensic Psychiatry, Sexual OffendingPsychology8.7%
- Child Abuse and TraumaPsychology8%
- Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional DevelopmentPsychology7%
- Homelessness and Social IssuesHealth Professions6.4%
- Bullying, Victimization, and AggressionPsychology3.3%
- Intimate Partner and Family ViolenceSocial Sciences2.9%
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 | Criminology & Penology | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Sociology Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Criminology & Penology | 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 | Criminology & Penology | 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
SCIEPsycINFOCurrent 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
- 1.48LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 1.5Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 2.2Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 2.9LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.54LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.83LetPub ·
- h-index
- 33OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 124OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 1.12OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 13.3%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 41.79%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 25LetPub ·
- Articles per year (publisher)
- 2,025Publisher website ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 163,200Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 319 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 34 | 23 | 13 |
| 2025 | 18 | 11 | 17 |
| 2024 | 23 | 12 | 54 |
| 2023 | 27 | 12 | 102 |
| 2022 | 33 | 13 | 321 |
| 2021 | 30 | 15 | 269 |
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
176 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 124 days – 274 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 21 days (57 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 214 days
- Sample
- 57 articles with submission and acceptance dates (60 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
- 12 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 3,390 / EUR 2,690 / GBP 2,390 | — | — |
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 prepare3 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- 150–250 words
- Reference style
- Author–date
- Suggested reviewers
- Optional
Article types accepted2, with length limits
- commentaryces should be kept to a minimum and the commentary article should be short in length (approximately 1500-2000 words). Your commentary should also include a shor…main text ≤ 2,000 words
- editorialDouble-blind peer review This journal follows a double-blind reviewing procedure. This means that the author will remain anonymous to the reviewers throughout p…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, Data availability, Publication ethics, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, 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 Ethical standards
Manuscripts submitted for publication must contain a statement to the effect that all human and animal studies have been approved by the appropriate ethics committee and have therefore been performed in accordance with the ethical standards laid down in the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments. It should also be stated clearly in the text that all persons gave their informed conse…
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 Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology, including information on fees, funding and licences, visit our Open access publishing page. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Double-blind peer review
This journal follows a double-blind reviewing procedure. This means that the author will remain anonymous to the reviewers throughout peer review. It is the responsibility of the author to anonymize the manuscript and any associated materials. Author names, affiliations and any other potentially identifying information should be removed from the manuscript text and any accompanying files (such as …
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
- 2199-4641
- Electronic ISSN
- 2199-465X
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology
What CAS zone is Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology is in Zone 3 of Sociology, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Criminology & Penology. 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 Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 1.48; CiteScore 2.9, h-index 33.
How long does peer review take at Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology?
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 176 days (interquartile range 124–274 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 Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: 150–250 words; 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 Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology based?
Of the 45 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (24), United Kingdom (6) and Netherlands (5). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology is indexed in SSCI and Scopus. The journal's website also lists SCIE, PsycINFO and Current Contents; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology open access, and what is the APC?
Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 3,390.
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 2026-08-25). Last updated: .