Journal profile · PHILOSOPHY

Philosophical Investigations

ISSN 0190-0536 · eISSN 1467-9205 · University of Tabriz · Iran, Islamic Republic of

Philosophical Investigations: CAS Zone 3 · Philosophy (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 0.5 (journal website); fully open access; APC about USD 2,900; median 65 days to acceptance (11 articles, last 24 months); acceptance rate 20% (journal website); 40 articles in 2025; indexed in AHCI and Scopus.

Impact factor0.5From the journal's website, 2025 value
CAS zoneZone 3 · Philosophy2025 upgraded edition, major category · 2026 Xinrui edition Zone 3 · Philosophy
Review time65 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · 11 articles, last 24 months · Crossref
APCUSD 2,900Fully open access
Acceptance20%From the journal's website (2025)
Articles per year402025 · OpenAlex count

Scope

Aims, scope and focus

Philosophical Investigations is published by University of Tabriz and is in Zone 3 of Philosophy in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Wittgensteinian philosophy and applications, Philosophy and Theoretical Science and Epistemology, Ethics, and Metaphysics, together about 48.4% of its articles. Its main subfields are Philosophy. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)

Philosophical Investigations is a quarterly journal which contains articles, discussions, critical notices and reviews covering every branch of philosophy. Its aim is to publish works of merit which deal with those topics that are of interest not simply to professional philosophers but also to the wider educated public. In recent years, for example, it has produced special issues dealing with the nature of consciousness and with the relation between ethics and religion. The journal is international both in its contributors and its readership.

From the journal's Aims & Scope

Research area (LetPub): PHILOSOPHY

Editor-in-chief Mario von der RuhrPublisher website

Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named United States 12, United Kingdom 12, Austria 2, Italy 1, Australia 1 (30 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·

Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate

  1. Wittgensteinian philosophy and applicationsArts and Humanities18.8%
  2. Philosophy and Theoretical SciencePsychology16.7%
  3. Epistemology, Ethics, and MetaphysicsArts and Humanities12.8%
  4. Philosophical Ethics and TheoryArts and Humanities10.5%
  5. Classical Philosophy and ThoughtArts and Humanities5%
  6. Theology and Philosophy of EvilArts and Humanities4.5%
  7. Political Philosophy and EthicsSocial Sciences3%
  8. Pragmatism in Philosophy and EducationArts and Humanities2.7%

Rankings & indexing

CAS ranking and database indexing

CAS Journal Ranking

CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Philosophy Zone 3
LevelCategoryZone
MajorPhilosophyZone 3
MinorPhilosophyZone 3

Top journal: noReview journal: no

CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Philosophy Zone 3
LevelCategoryZone
MajorPhilosophyZone 3
MinorPhilosophyZone 3

Top journal: noReview journal: not marked

CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Philosophy Zone 4
LevelCategoryZone
MajorPhilosophyZone 4
MinorPhilosophyZone 4

Top journal: noReview journal: no

Database indexing

AHCIScopusLetPub

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 (publisher)
0.5Publisher website ·
Impact factor (publisher) 2025
0.5Publisher website ·
CiteScore 2026-06
1.1LetPub ·
CiteScore (publisher)
1.1Publisher website ·
CiteScore (publisher) 2025
1.1Publisher website ·
SJR 2026-06
0.34LetPub ·
SNIP 2026-06
1.06LetPub ·
h-index
35OpenAlex ·
i10-index
131OpenAlex ·
2-year mean citedness
0.28OpenAlex ·
Self-citation rate
20%LetPub ·
Share of gold OA articles
51.61%LetPub ·

Volume

Articles per year
27LetPub ·
Articles per year (publisher) 2025
32Publisher website ·
Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
37,297Publisher website ·

Articles by year OpenAlex count · 1,754 in total · the current year is incomplete

YearArticlesOpen accessCitations
202624122
2025402411
2024392116
2023321628
20225221103
202147869

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

65 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 24 days – 121 days

Acceptance to online
median 16 days (11 articles)
Submission to online
median 93 days
Sample
11 articles with submission and acceptance dates (63 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

Average review time (community reports)
about 45 weeksLetPub ·
Acceptance rate (publisher)
20%Publisher website ·
Acceptance rate (publisher) 2025
20%Publisher website ·
Submission to first decision
14 daysPublisher website ·
Submission to first decision 2025
14 daysPublisher website ·
Submission to acceptance 2025
36 daysPublisher website ·
Acceptance to publication 2025
15 daysPublisher website ·
Peer review
Double blind peer reviewLetPub

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

Fully open accessLetPub

Every article is open access; authors usually pay an article processing charge (APC).

SourceAPCFee waiverLicenseObserved
OpenAlexUSD 2,900 / EUR 2,450 / GBP 1,930——
LetPubNo APCNo—
Publisher websiteYes, amount not published——

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 prepare1 items from the author guidelines
Cover letter
Optional
Publisher website · model-extracted, each line checked against the text
Article types accepted8
  1. book reviewPhilosophical Investigations publishes the following types of submissions: Original Research Review Article Book Review Discussion Notice Response Books Receive…Length not stated
  2. books receivedBooks Received Lists or short notices of recently published books relevant to the journal’s scope. Entries typically include bibliographic details and may inclu…Length not stated
  3. discussionDiscussion Exploration of differing viewpoints or interpretations.Length not stated
  4. editor's noteEditor's Note Short statements from the Editor or editorial team providing updates, context, or commentary on journal developments, policies, or specific articl…Length not stated
  5. noticeNotice Brief announcements or formal communications related to the journal, including corrections, retractions, policy updates, or other important information f…Length not stated
  6. original researchPhilosophical Investigations publishes the following types of submissions: Original Research Review Article Book Review Discussion Notice Response Books Receive…Length not stated
  7. responseResponse Author or contributor replies to previously published articles, comments, or letters, addressing feedback, clarifying points, or contributing to ongoin…Length not stated
  8. review articlePhilosophical Investigations publishes the following types of submissions: Original Research Review Article Book Review Discussion Notice Response Books Receive…Length not stated
Publisher website
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, Data availability, Publication ethics, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Preprints, Self-archiving, Trial registration / reporting guidelines
AI use Disclosing the use of Artificial Intelligence

If you or your co-authors have used Artificial Intelligence Generated Content (AIGC) tools such as ChatGPT and others based on large language models (LLMs) to develop any portion of a manuscript, their use must be described transparently and in detail in the Methods section. You can read Wiley’s AI policy in full in the Best Practices Guidelines on Research Integrity and Publishing Ethics.

Source ↗Publisher website ·
Authorship Author contributions (CRediT)

Author name change policy Model summary

This journal requires details of all authors’ contributions to the work by filling out CRediT (Contribution Roles Taxonomy) information during submission. This information provided will be used to automatically generate an author contribution statement that will be published with the final article. You can learn more about CRediT and read an explanation of contribution roles on Wiley’s CRediT info…

Source ↗Publisher website ·
Conflicts of interest Conflict of Interest

When submitting your manuscript, you should disclose any potential conflicts of interests (also referred to as “competing interests”) that might appear to affect your or your co-authors' ability to present work objectively. Potential conflicts of interest come in many forms and may include financial (for example, patent ownership, stock ownership, research funding, consultancies, or speaker’s fees…

Source ↗Publisher website ·
Data availability Data Sharing

Data sharing Model summary

This journal expects data sharing and peer reviews shared data. You can learn more about data sharing in Wiley’s Data Sharing Policies resource.

Source ↗Publisher website ·
Publication ethics COPE

This journal follows the core practices of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and handles cases of research and publication misconduct accordingly (https://publicationethics.org/core-practices). Any concerns about research practices (e.g. plagiarism, data manipulation, and image manipulation) raised via the use of screening software, editors, peer reviewers or third parties will be followe…

Source ↗Publisher website ·
License & copyright Reproduction of Copyright Material

Copyright and licensing Model summary

If you have included excerpts from copyrighted works owned by third parties, all sources must be credited within the manuscript. At minimum, the title and author should be provided. You are responsible for obtaining written permission to reproduce the material "in print and other media" from the publisher of the original source and for supplying Wiley with that permission upon submission. For more…

Source ↗Publisher website ·
Open access Open access

This is a subscription journal that offers an open access publication option. After acceptance, you’ll have the option to make the article open access. If you want to do so, the article will be subject to an Article Publication Charge (APC) unless a waiver applies. Please read more about APCs and whether you may be eligible for waivers or discounts through your institution, your funder, or a count…

Source ↗Publisher website ·
Peer review Peer Review Model

Double-anonymized peer review model Model summary

We follow a double-anonymized peer review model, for applicable article types. Except where otherwise stated, manuscripts are peer reviewed by at least two anonymous reviewers and an Associate or Assistant Editor. Papers authored by Editors or Editorial Board members of the title, will be sent to Editors unaffiliated with the author or institution and monitored carefully to ensure there is no peer…

Source ↗Publisher website ·
Preprints Preprint Policy

Preprint policy Model summary

This journal accepts articles previously published on preprint servers. You will be asked to update any pre-publication versions with a link to the final published article. You may also post the submitted version of a manuscript to a preprint server at any time. Note: This journal operates a double-anonymized peer review process. Since this journal also encourages posting of preprints, please note…

Source ↗Publisher website ·
Self-archiving Self-Archiving definitions and policies

Self-archiving Model summary

This journal’s standard copyright agreement allows for self-archiving of different versions of the article under specific conditions. You can learn more by reading Wiley’s self-archiving policy.

Source ↗Publisher website ·
Trial registration / reporting guidelines Reporting guidelines

Authors are strongly encouraged to use appropriate reporting guidelines when preparing and submitting manuscripts, to maximize transparency and reproducibility. Our editors and reviewers are also encouraged to use them in the review process. Completed checklists should be provided in the supplementary files on submission. We particularly encourage the use of: CONSORT for randomized controlled tria…

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
University of Tabriz
Country or region
Iran, Islamic Republic of
Language
English, Persian
ISSN
0190-0536
Electronic ISSN
1467-9205
Latest issue on the website
Volume 49, Issue 4 (October 2026)
Official links

FAQ

Frequently asked questions about Philosophical Investigations

What CAS zone is Philosophical Investigations in?

In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Philosophical Investigations is in Zone 3 of Philosophy, and in Zone 3 of the minor category Philosophy. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Philosophy. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.

What is the impact factor of Philosophical Investigations?

The journal's website gives an impact factor of 0.5 (2025); this is the journal's own figure, as LetPub lists none for it; CiteScore 1.1, h-index 35.

How long does peer review take at Philosophical Investigations?

Based on the dates recorded on 11 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 65 days (interquartile range 24–121 days); authors report an average review time of about 45 weeks; the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 20% (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 Philosophical Investigations based?

Of the 30 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (12), United Kingdom (12) and Austria (2). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.

Which databases index Philosophical Investigations?

According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Philosophical Investigations is indexed in AHCI and Scopus. The journal's website also lists Current Contents; that list has not been checked against each database.

Is Philosophical Investigations open access, and what is the APC?

Philosophical Investigations is a fully open-access journal. 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 2026-08-25). Last updated: .