Journal profile · POLITICAL SCIENCE
Studies in Social Justice
ISSN 1911-4788 · Brock University · Canada
Studies in Social Justice: CAS Zone 3 · Sociology (2025 upgraded edition); diamond open access (no APC); no APC; review about 10 weeks (community reports); 38 articles in 2025; indexed in ESCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Studies in Social Justice is published by Brock University and is in Zone 3 of Sociology in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Migration, Refugees, and Integration, Employment and Welfare Studies and Indigenous Health, Education, and Rights, together about 21.7% of its articles. Its main subfields are Sociology and Political Science. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Studies in Social Justice publishes articles, dispatches and creative works relating to the social, cultural, economic, environmental, political, and philosophical problems associated with struggles for social justice. The journal aims to publish work that links theory to social change and the analysis of substantive issues. The journal welcomes heterodox contributions that are critical of established paradigms of inquiry. The journal focuses on debates that move beyond conventional notions of social justice, and views social justice as a critical concept that is integral in the analysis of policy formation, rights, participation, social movements, and transformations. Social justice is analysed in the context of processes involving nationalism, social and public policy, globalization, diasporas, culture, gender, ethnicity, sexuality, welfare, poverty, war, and other social phenomena. It endeavours to cover questions and debates ranging from governance to democracy, sustainable environments, and human rights, and to introduce new work on pressing issues of social justice throughout the world. If you are considering submitting a manuscript to Studies in Social Justice, please consider three questions: is the manuscript framed in relation to social justice? does the manuscript develop or employ a concrete and coherent conceptualization of social justice? does the manuscript engage productively with relevant contemporary social justice literature? Unless the answer to each of these question is "yes" the manuscript is likely to be declined at the desk review stage. As an interdisciplinary journal, Studies in Social Justice invites submissions from a wide range of academic disciplines and in a variety of publication formats. As a transdisciplinary journal, it seeks to mobilise collaborations and conversations across disciplinary boundaries, and among academics, activists and affected publics.The journal’s international editorial team includes seven editors and 25 editorial board members from numerous academic disciplines and intellectual traditions, as well as from non-academic areas of social justice practice. Studies in Social Justice publishes stand-alone pieces as well as special issues and themed sections focusing on specific substantive issues, theoretical debates, or methodological approaches from an interdisciplinary or transdisciplinary perspective. Please contact the editor-in-chief if you are interested in proposing or guest editing a special issue o
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): POLITICAL SCIENCE
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named Canada 28, United Kingdom 6, United States 5, South Africa 2, India 1 (44 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Migration, Refugees, and IntegrationSocial Sciences8.9%
- Employment and Welfare StudiesHealth Professions7.5%
- Indigenous Health, Education, and RightsSocial Sciences5.3%
- Labor Movements and UnionsSocial Sciences5.3%
- Social Policy and Reform StudiesSocial Sciences5%
- Disability Rights and RepresentationSocial Sciences4.7%
- Migration and Labor DynamicsSocial Sciences4.2%
- Posthumanist Ethics and ActivismSocial Sciences4.2%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Sociology Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Political Science | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Sociology Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Political Science | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
Database indexing
ESCIScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
Web of SciencePublisher website
Other: ProQuest, OCLC
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
- 2.3LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.26LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.52LetPub ·
- h-index
- 36OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 131OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 1.06OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 16.7%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 29.73%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 32LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 512 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 9 | 9 | 0 |
| 2025 | 38 | 38 | 28 |
| 2024 | 62 | 62 | 87 |
| 2023 | 37 | 37 | 78 |
| 2022 | 49 | 49 | 385 |
| 2021 | 55 | 55 | 492 |
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 10 weeksLetPub ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 10 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-NC-ND | |
| LetPub | No APC | No | — | |
| Publisher website | Yes, 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)
Article types accepted6, with length limits
- articlesArticles (6 – 8,000 words): original, previously-unpublished, and fully-referenced research contributions that significantly extend knowledge in the broad field…Length not stated
- book reviewds (including references and footnotes) Book reviews: 1,000–2,000 words (including references and footnotes) Registration and loginmain text ≤ 2,000 words
- book reviewsBook reviews (1 – 2,000 words): reviews of important theoretical, political and research works relating to social justice issues. Book reviews are vetted by the…Length not stated
- creative interventionsCreative Interventions: visual, aural or textual products that reflect on social justice issues using an aesthetic or evocative mode of address. Creative interv…Length not stated
- reviewrds (including reference and footnotes) Review essays: <6,000 words (including references and footnotes) Dispatches: <4,000 wormain text ≤ 6,000 words
- review essaysReview Essays (< 6,000 words): critical and evaluative overviews of particular literatures, theoretical traditions, debates, activist experiences, etc., relatin…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteData availability, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review
- Data availability
Names and email addresses used exclusively for stated journal purposes and not shared with any other party. Model summary
The names and email addresses entered in this journal site will be used exclusively for the stated purposes of this journal and will not be made available for any other purpose or to any other party.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright Copyright Notice
Creative Commons Attribution/Non-Commercial/No Derivative Works Canada licence; copyright retained by authors with first publication rights granted to the journal. Model summary
Articles are published in Studies in Social Justice under the Creative Commons "Attribution/Non-Commercial/No Derivative Works" Canada licence. The copyright for the articles published in this journal is retained by the authors, with first publication rights granted to the journal. By virtue of their appearance in this open access journal, articles may be used, with proper attribution, in educatio…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open Access Policy
Studies in Social Justice provides open access to all of its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge. Such access is associated with increased readership and citation levels. Studies in Social Justice uses open source software developed by the Public Knowledge Project, to help make open access economically viable,…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer Review Process
Research Articles and Review Essays reviewed by two independent assessors; anonymous review process requiring authors to avoid self-identification. Model summary
All submissions should be made via the journal’s online submission process, after which the editors will vet them for suitability. Submissions that pass this stage move into a review process appropriate to the category of submission: Conventional Research Articles and Review Essays are assessed by two reviewers according to a double-blind review process. Identifying references to the author(s) sho…
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
- Brock University
- Country or region
- Canada
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 1911-4788
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 20, Issue 1 (2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗LetPub
- 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 Studies in Social Justice
What CAS zone is Studies in Social Justice in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Studies in Social Justice is in Zone 3 of Sociology, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Political Science. 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.
How long does peer review take at Studies in Social Justice?
Authors report an average review time of about 10 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.
Where are the editorial board members of Studies in Social Justice based?
Of the 44 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are Canada (28), United Kingdom (6) and United States (5). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Studies in Social Justice?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Studies in Social Justice is indexed in ESCI, Scopus and DOAJ. The journal's website also lists Web of Science; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Studies in Social Justice open access, and what is the APC?
Studies in Social Justice 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 2026-08-26). Last updated: .