Journal profile · Multiple
JOURNAL OF POPULAR CULTURE
ISSN 0022-3840 · eISSN 1540-5931 · Wiley-Blackwell
JOURNAL OF POPULAR CULTURE: CAS Zone 4 · Sociology (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 0.2; hybrid open access; APC about USD 2,900; median 35 days to acceptance (83 articles, last 24 months); acceptance rate 30% (journal website); 99 articles in 2025; indexed in SSCI, AHCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
JOURNAL OF POPULAR CULTURE 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 Music History and Culture, Cinema and Media Studies and Media, Gender, and Advertising, together about 21.9% of its articles. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
The popular culture movement was founded on the principle that the perspectives and experiences of common folk offer compelling insights into the social world. The fabric of human social life is not merely the art deemed worthy to hang in museums, the books that have won literary prizes or been named “classics,” or the religious and social ceremonies carried out by societies’ elite. The Journal of Popular Culture continues to break down the barriers between so-called “low” and “high” culture and focuses on filling in the gaps that a neglect of popular culture has left in our understanding of the workings of society.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Multiple
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named United States 3, Taiwan, China 1 (4 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Music History and CultureArts and Humanities7.8%
- Cinema and Media StudiesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance7.3%
- Media, Gender, and AdvertisingSocial Sciences6.8%
- Gender, Feminism, and MediaSocial Sciences6.6%
- Gothic Literature and Media AnalysisSocial Sciences6.6%
- Media Studies and CommunicationSocial Sciences6.3%
- Themes in Literature AnalysisArts and Humanities5.6%
- Digital Games and MediaSocial Sciences5.4%
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 | Cultural Studies | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Humanities, Multidisciplinary | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Sociology Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Humanities, Multidisciplinary | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Cultural Studies | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Sociology Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Cultural Studies | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Humanities, Multidisciplinary | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SSCIAHCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
Web of ScienceCAB AbstractsCurrent 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
- 0.2LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 0.2Publisher website ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 0.2Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 0.6LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 0.6Publisher website ·
- CiteScore (publisher) 2025
- 0.6Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.12LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.48LetPub ·
- h-index
- 72OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 831OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 0.05OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 0%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 20.77%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 20LetPub ·
- Articles per year (publisher) 2025
- 89Publisher website ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 366,334Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 5,459 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 60 | 6 | 0 |
| 2025 | 99 | 39 | 5 |
| 2024 | 117 | 53 | 10 |
| 2023 | 107 | 47 | 44 |
| 2022 | 109 | 24 | 51 |
| 2021 | 113 | 12 | 139 |
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
35 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 17 days – 71 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 20 days (83 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 57 days
- Sample
- 83 articles with submission and acceptance dates (178 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)
- 30%Publisher website ·
- Acceptance rate (publisher) 2025
- 30%Publisher website ·
- Submission to first decision
- 89 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to first decision 2025
- 89 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance 2025
- 125 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication 2025
- 18 daysPublisher 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 2,900 / EUR 2,450 / GBP 1,930 | — | — | |
| 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)
Article types accepted2
- articlesEssays must fall within 5000-to-7500-words, and must be double-spaced and in 12-point, Times New Roman font.Length not stated
- book reviewsBook review inquiries should be sent directly to the Book Review Editor: Yuya Kiuchi at Michigan State University.Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAuthorship, Peer review, Self-archiving
- Authorship
Accepted authors must subscribe to the journal for at least one year Model summary
Authors of manuscripts accepted for publication must subscribe to The Journal of Popular Culture for at least one year at the time of acceptance.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review
Anonymized review process Model summary
TJPC’s review process is ‘‘anonymized,’’ meaning that reviewers do not know the names/identities of the prospective authors whose research they are evaluating.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Self-archiving
Self-archiving allowed pre-copyediting; 24-month embargo post-publication Model summary
Prior to copyediting, authors may post early drafts of their essays in digital repositories, such as academia.edu. However, after publication, authors must wait for 24 months to place their JPC-edited articles in digital repositories or on websites.
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
- 0022-3840
- Electronic ISSN
- 1540-5931
- Society / sponsor
- Popular Culture Association
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 59, Issue 4 (August 2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about JOURNAL OF POPULAR CULTURE
What CAS zone is JOURNAL OF POPULAR CULTURE in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, JOURNAL OF POPULAR CULTURE is in Zone 4 of Sociology, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Cultural Studies / Humanities, Multidisciplinary. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 4 of Sociology. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of JOURNAL OF POPULAR CULTURE?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 0.2; CiteScore 0.6, h-index 72.
How long does peer review take at JOURNAL OF POPULAR CULTURE?
Based on the dates recorded on 83 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 35 days (interquartile range 17–71 days); the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 30% (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.
Where are the editorial board members of JOURNAL OF POPULAR CULTURE based?
Of the 4 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (3) and Taiwan, China (1). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index JOURNAL OF POPULAR CULTURE?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, JOURNAL OF POPULAR CULTURE is indexed in SSCI, AHCI and Scopus. The journal's website also lists Web of Science, CAB Abstracts and Current Contents; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is JOURNAL OF POPULAR CULTURE open access, and what is the APC?
JOURNAL OF POPULAR CULTURE is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 2,900.
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: .