Journal profile · Social Sciences-Cultural Studies
Martial Arts Studies
ISSN 2057-5696 · Cardiff University Press · United Kingdom
Martial Arts Studies: diamond open access (no APC); no APC; review about 12 weeks (community reports); 18 articles in 2025; indexed in Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Martial Arts Studies is published by Cardiff University Press. By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Martial Arts: Techniques, Psychology, and Education, Physical Education and Sports Studies and Japanese History and Culture, together about 60.4% of its articles. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Martial Arts Studies is a peer-reviewed online open-access academic journal that publishes the highest quality academic work on any aspect of martial arts studies, emphasising the sociocultural dimensions of martial arts and combat sports. Its aim is to foster the most informed cross-disciplinary discourse on martial arts via the cross-fertilization of perspectives. As such, it encourages interdisciplinarity. We therefore invite submissions from a variety of disciplines, using a wide variety of methodologies, provided that papers are written in such a way that they demonstrate the study's significance to sociocultural (and related) aspects of martial arts, past, present or future. The journal publishes both themed and open issues. All contents are subject to peer and editor review. New articles are published continuously as they are accepted, with typically biannual issues constituted from existing articles.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Social Sciences-Cultural Studies
Editor-in-chief Peter J. KatzPublisher website
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named United States 2, United Kingdom 2 (4 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Martial Arts: Techniques, Psychology, and EducationSocial Sciences38.8%
- Physical Education and Sports StudiesSocial Sciences14%
- Japanese History and CultureSocial Sciences7.7%
- Sport Psychology and PerformancePsychology5.7%
- Chinese history and philosophySocial Sciences4.2%
- Sports, Gender, and SocietySocial Sciences3.8%
- Asian Culture and Media StudiesSocial Sciences2.9%
- Arts and Performance StudiesArts and Humanities2.7%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
CiteScore quartiles (Scopus, June 2026 release)
| Subject | Quartile | Rank | Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cultural Studies | Q2 | 570/1434 | 60th |
| Arts and Humanities (miscellaneous) | Q2 | 317/692 | 54th |
| Gender Studies | Q3 | 151/233 | 35th |
Scopus ranks journals by CiteScore within each subject: the 75th percentile and above is Q1, then a quartile every 25 points. A different system from the CAS zones.LetPub
Database indexing
ScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
Google ScholarPublisher website
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
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 0.7LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.2LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.77LetPub ·
- h-index
- 18OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 33OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 0.36OpenAlex ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 0%LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 218 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 35 | 35 | 62 |
| 2025 | 18 | 18 | 30 |
| 2024 | 14 | 14 | 135 |
| 2023 | 18 | 18 | 86 |
| 2022 | 7 | 7 | 79 |
| 2021 | 11 | 11 | 57 |
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
- Average review time (community reports)
- about 12 weeksLetPub ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 12 weeksDOAJ ·
- Peer review
- Double anonymous peer reviewDOAJ
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
Diamond open access (no APC)DOAJ
Every article is open access and authors pay no article processing charge.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOAJ | No APC | No | CC BY, CC BY-NC-ND | |
| LetPub | No APC | No | — | |
| Publisher website | No APC | — | — |
Other charges and waivers (author guidelines)
- Other fees
- No other fees
- Page charges
- No page charges
- Submission fee
- No submission fee
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 prepare8 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- ≤ 150 words
- Keywords
- ≤ 6
- Manuscript length
- ≤ 8,000 words
- Reference style
- APA
- Suggested reviewers
- Optional
- Highlights
- Optional
- Graphical abstract
- Optional
- Cover letter
- Required
Article types accepted7, with length limits
- book reviewBook reviews should offer a concise, critical discussion of an academic book relevant to the journal’s readership. They should provide clear detail on its conte…main text ≤ 1,500 words
- commentaryeditor before submitting a manuscript. Commentary articles should be no longer than 3,000 words in length (inclusive of references). Longer articles may bemain text ≤ 3,000 words
- methods articleptability within the body of the paper. Methods articles should be no longer than 3,000 words in length (inclusive of references). Longer articles may bemain text ≤ 3,000 words
- methods articlesMethods Articles Methods articles should outline and test new research or pedagogical techniques and discuss their potential applications and significance.Length not stated
- research articleretical argument, or literature review. Research articles should normally be no more than 8,000 words in length (inclusive of references). Longer articles may b…main text ≤ 8,000 words
- research articlesResearch Articles Research articles must describe the outcomes and application of unpublished original research.Length not stated
- reviewacademics, practitioners, etc.). These reviews should be no longer than 1,500 words (inclusive of references). Longer articles may be acceptedmain text ≤ 1,500 words
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAuthorship, License & copyright, Open access
- Authorship
Style: APA 7th edition for language, formatting, and citations. Model summary
This journal follows the style guidelines of APA 7 th edition with respect to language and text formatting, citation of references, and so on.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright Copyright Notice
Author to hold copyright under normal circumstances. Cardiff University Press has right of first publication.This work is made available under a CC BY-NC-ND (Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives) licence from Creative Commons. However, individual articles may be made available under a CC BY (Attribution) licence instead, at the request of their author(s).The CC BY-NC-ND licence is the most rest…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open Access Policy
This journal provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge. Authors of articles published remain the copyright holders and grant third parties the right to use, reproduce, and share the article according to the Creative Commons licence agreement.
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
- Cardiff University Press
- Country or region
- United Kingdom
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 2057-5696
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Aims & Scope ↗LetPub
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗LetPub
- Editorial board ↗LetPub
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Martial Arts Studies
How long does peer review take at Martial Arts Studies?
Authors report an average review time of about 12 weeks. 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 Martial Arts Studies?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 150 words; Keywords: ≤ 6; Manuscript length: ≤ 8,000 words; Reference style: APA; Suggested reviewers: Optional; Highlights: Optional; Graphical abstract: Optional; 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 Martial Arts Studies 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 (2) and United Kingdom (2). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Martial Arts Studies?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Martial Arts Studies is indexed in Scopus and DOAJ.
Is Martial Arts Studies open access, and what is the APC?
Martial Arts Studies is a diamond open-access journal (no APC). It charges no article processing charge.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, OpenAlex, DOAJ, 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: .