Journal profile · AREA STUDIES
Social Dynamics-A Journal of African Studies
ISSN 0253-3952 · eISSN 1940-7874 · Taylor & Francis
Social Dynamics-A Journal of African Studies: CAS Zone 4 · Sociology (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 1.32; JCR Q1 (journal website); hybrid open access; APC charged, amount not published; review about 44 days (submission to first decision, publisher); acceptance rate 14% (journal website); 21 articles in 2025; indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Social Dynamics-A Journal of African Studies is published by Taylor & Francis 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 South African History and Culture, African history and culture studies and Legal Issues in South Africa, together about 42% of its articles. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Social Dynamics strives to publish conceptually-informed research on Africa that addresses an interdisciplinary audience. It is the journal of the Centre for African Studies at the University of Cape Town, South Africa. It has been published since 1975, and is committed to advancing interdisciplinary academic research, fostering debate and engaging current issues pertaining to the African continent. Articles cover the full range of humanities and social sciences including anthropology, archaeology, economics, education, history, literary and language studies, music, politics, psychology and sociology. Social Dynamics is a peer-reviewed journal that runs themed symposia and publishes general papers, essays, book reviews and occasional debates and response papers across three issues per year. Articles appearing in Social Dynamics are indexed in the Social Sciences Citation Index and other abstracting and indexing services. The journal is edited by three academics and has received international recognition as a leading Africanist publication. Peer Review Statement All research articles published in this journal have undergone rigorous peer review, based on initial editor screening and anonymized refereeing by at least two anonymous referees.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): AREA STUDIES
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named South Africa 4, Canada 1 (5 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- South African History and CultureSocial Sciences21.2%
- African history and culture studiesSocial Sciences13.5%
- Legal Issues in South AfricaSocial Sciences7.3%
- African studies and sociopolitical issuesSocial Sciences6.9%
- African cultural and philosophical studiesSocial Sciences4.9%
- Postcolonial and Cultural Literary StudiesArts and Humanities4.6%
- Human auditory perception and evaluationEngineering4.2%
- Educational Robotics and EngineeringComputer Science4.1%
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 | Area Studies | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Sociology Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Area Studies | 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 | Area Studies | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
JCR / CiteScore quartiles on the journal's website
- JCR Q1 · best quartile · 2025
Publisher-reported: JCR figures are Clarivate's and CiteScore figures Scopus's to confirm; both are a different system from the CAS zones.Publisher website
Database indexing
SSCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
PubMedPublisher website
Other: OCLC, CSA Social Services Abstracts, CSA Sociological Abstracts, CSA Worldwide Political Science Abstracts, EBSCOhost, Index to South African Periodicals (Online), International Bibliography of the Social Sciences, MLA International Bibliography, OCLC Periodicals Index Online
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
- 1.32LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 1.3Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 0.9Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 1.3LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher) 2025
- 1.3Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.2LetPub ·
- SJR (publisher) 2025
- 0.2Publisher website ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.85LetPub ·
- SNIP (publisher) 2025
- 0.85Publisher website ·
- h-index
- 49OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 355OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 0.68OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 0%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 15.38%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 21LetPub ·
- Downloads per year (publisher)
- 73,000Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 1,449 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| 2025 | 21 | 14 | 1 |
| 2024 | 36 | 26 | 39 |
| 2023 | 41 | 8 | 194 |
| 2022 | 36 | 3 | 109 |
| 2021 | 41 | 4 | 145 |
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
Not usableThis publisher's "received" date is mostly when the revised manuscript arrived (50% of articles were "accepted" within 3 days), so it cannot measure review time
Figures by source
- Acceptance rate (publisher)
- 14%Publisher website ·
- Submission to first decision
- 44 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 accepted7
- book reviewsSocial Dynamics is a peer-reviewed journal that runs themed symposia and publishes general papers, essays, book reviews and occasional debates and response pape…Length not stated
- debatesSocial Dynamics is a peer-reviewed journal that runs themed symposia and publishes general papers, essays, book reviews and occasional debates and response pape…Length not stated
- essayEssay | Published online: 12 Apr 2026Length not stated
- essaysSocial Dynamics is a peer-reviewed journal that runs themed symposia and publishes general papers, essays, book reviews and occasional debates and response pape…Length not stated
- general papersSocial Dynamics is a peer-reviewed journal that runs themed symposia and publishes general papers, essays, book reviews and occasional debates and response pape…Length not stated
- research articleResearch Article | Published online: 23 Feb 2026Length not stated
- response papersSocial Dynamics is a peer-reviewed journal that runs themed symposia and publishes general papers, essays, book reviews and occasional debates and response pape…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteOpen access, Peer review
- Open access Open access
Social Dynamics is a hybrid open access journal that is part of the Taylor & Francis Open Select publishing program, giving you the option to publish open access. Publishing open access means that your article will be free to access online immediately on publication, increasing the visibility, readership, and impact of your research. Why choose open access? Increase the discoverability and readers…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer Review Statement
Peer review statement: rigorous peer review based on initial editor screening and anonymized refereeing by at least two anonymous referees. Model summary
All research articles published in this journal have undergone rigorous peer review, based on initial editor screening and anonymized refereeing by at least two anonymous referees.
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
- Taylor & Francis
- ISSN
- 0253-3952
- Electronic ISSN
- 1940-7874
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 51, Issue 2-3 (2025)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Social Dynamics-A Journal of African Studies
What CAS zone is Social Dynamics-A Journal of African Studies in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Social Dynamics-A Journal of African Studies is in Zone 4 of Sociology, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Area Studies. 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 Social Dynamics-A Journal of African Studies?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 1.32; CiteScore 1.3, h-index 49.
How long does peer review take at Social Dynamics-A Journal of African Studies?
The publisher reports about 44 days (submission to first decision); first decisions include desk rejections; the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 14%. 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 JCR quartile is Social Dynamics-A Journal of African Studies in?
The journal's website gives JCR Q1 (best quartile). JCR quartiles are Clarivate's to confirm and a different system from the CAS zones; in the CAS ranking the journal is in Zone 4 of Sociology.
Where are the editorial board members of Social Dynamics-A Journal of African Studies based?
Of the 5 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are South Africa (4) and Canada (1). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Social Dynamics-A Journal of African Studies?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Social Dynamics-A Journal of African Studies is indexed in SSCI and Scopus. The journal's website also lists PubMed; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Social Dynamics-A Journal of African Studies open access, and what is the APC?
Social Dynamics-A Journal of African Studies is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC charged, amount not published.
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: .