Journal profile · POLITICAL SCIENCE
Perspectives on Politics
ISSN 1537-5927 · eISSN 1541-0986 · Cambridge University Press
Perspectives on Politics: CAS Zone 1 · Sociology (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal); impact factor 3.05; hybrid open access; APC about USD 3,550; 386 articles in 2025; indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Perspectives on Politics is published by Cambridge University Press and is in Zone 1 of Sociology in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are American Constitutional Law and Politics, Electoral Systems and Political Participation and Political Philosophy and Ethics, together about 25.7% of its articles. Its main subfields are Political Science and International Relations. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Perspectives on Politics seeks to provide a space for broad and synthetic discussion within the political science profession and between the profession and the broader scholarly and reading publics. Such discussion necessarily draws on and contributes to the scholarship published in the more specialized journals that dominate our discipline. At the same time, Perspectives seeks to promote a complementary form of broad public discussion and synergistic understanding within the profession that is essential to advancing research and promoting scholarly community.Perspectives seeks to nurture a political science public sphere, publicizing important scholarly topics, ideas, and innovations, linking scholarly authors and readers, and promoting broad reflexive discussion among political scientists about the work that we do and why this work matters.Perspectives on Politics is sold ONLY as part of a joint subscription with American Political Science Review and PS: Political Science & Politics.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): POLITICAL SCIENCE
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- American Constitutional Law and PoliticsSocial Sciences12.1%
- Electoral Systems and Political ParticipationSocial Sciences7.2%
- Political Philosophy and EthicsSocial Sciences6.5%
- Political Conflict and GovernanceSocial Sciences5.7%
- Social Policy and Reform StudiesSocial Sciences5.2%
- International Relations and Foreign PolicySocial Sciences4.9%
- Gender Politics and RepresentationSocial Sciences4.6%
- Judicial and Constitutional StudiesSocial Sciences4.3%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Sociology Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Political Science | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Sociology Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Political Science | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Sociology Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Political Science | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
Database indexing
SSCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
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
- 3.05LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 45Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 9.4LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 2.92LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 3.47LetPub ·
- h-index
- 169OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 1,316OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 1.2OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 8.6%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 84.27%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 135LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 8,858 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 254 | 150 | 20 |
| 2025 | 386 | 176 | 364 |
| 2024 | 232 | 109 | 663 |
| 2023 | 366 | 237 | 600 |
| 2022 | 415 | 69 | 1,527 |
| 2021 | 428 | 60 | 2,404 |
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.
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 3,550 / GBP 2,460 | — | — | |
| 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 accepted1
- reviewArticle*Book ReviewBook Review Essay*Critical DialoguePost-Publication CritiquePresidential Address*Reflection*Review SymposiumSpecial Section Article*Length not stated
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
- Cambridge University Press
- ISSN
- 1537-5927
- Electronic ISSN
- 1541-0986
- Society / sponsor
- American Political Science Association
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Perspectives on Politics
What CAS zone is Perspectives on Politics in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Perspectives on Politics is in Zone 1 of Sociology, and in Zone 2 of the minor category Political Science; it is a Top journal. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 1 of Sociology. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Perspectives on Politics?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 3.05; CiteScore 9.4, h-index 169.
Which databases index Perspectives on Politics?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Perspectives on Politics is indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Is Perspectives on Politics open access, and what is the APC?
Perspectives on Politics is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 3,550.
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 2026-08-26). Last updated: .