Journal profile · WOMENS STUDIES
Women s Studies International Forum
ISSN 0277-5395 · eISSN 1879-243X · Elsevier
Women s Studies International Forum: CAS Zone 3 · Sociology (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 1.97; hybrid open access; APC about USD 3,666; review about 154 days (submission to acceptance, publisher); 189 articles in 2025; indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Women s Studies International Forum is published by Elsevier 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 Gender Politics and Representation, Historical Gender and Feminism Studies and Gender, Security, and Conflict, together about 26.4% of its articles. Its main subfields are Gender Studies. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Women's Studies International Forum (formerly Women's Studies International Quarterly, established in 1978) is a bimonthly journal that promotes the distribution and exchange of high-quality research in the multidisciplinary, international areas of women's studies and feminism. The journal seeks to establish a feminist forum for discussion and debate, to critique and reconceptualize existing knowledge, to examine and re-evaluate the production and distribution of knowledge, and to assess its impact on women's lives. We seek contributions from authors from different countries, disciplines and backgrounds, who clearly articulate feminist and women-centered research agendas or are engaged in feminist or women-centered research inside or outside formal educational institutions. We welcome a variety of approaches and resources through the whole range of disciplines: manuscripts geared toward action-oriented research as well as addressing theoretical methodological issues. We also encourage historical reassessments of the lives and works of women. We urge all contributors both to acknowledge the cultural and social specifics of their particular approach, and to draw out these issues in their articles.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): WOMENS STUDIES
Editor-in-chief Lavinia StanPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 1 in mainland China (about 2%); most named Türkiye 8, United States 7, Canada 6, United Kingdom 3, Australia 2 (45 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Gender Politics and RepresentationSocial Sciences11.5%
- Historical Gender and Feminism StudiesSocial Sciences8.5%
- Gender, Security, and ConflictSocial Sciences6.5%
- Gender, Feminism, and MediaSocial Sciences6.5%
- Diverse Scientific and Economic StudiesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance6.4%
- Human auditory perception and evaluationEngineering6.3%
- Gender Diversity and InequalitySocial Sciences6.2%
- Educational Robotics and EngineeringComputer Science4.7%
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 | Womens Studies | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Sociology Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Womens 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 | Womens Studies | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview 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
- 1.97LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 2Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 3.7LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 3.7Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.64LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.31LetPub ·
- h-index
- 126OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 1,789OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 2.11OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 5%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 36.28%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 178LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 4,772 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 141 | 61 | 39 |
| 2025 | 189 | 66 | 326 |
| 2024 | 142 | 64 | 630 |
| 2023 | 151 | 67 | 1,210 |
| 2022 | 64 | 21 | 786 |
| 2021 | 80 | 24 | 828 |
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
Publisher-reported review time from the journal's website
154 dayssubmission to acceptance
The publisher's own definition applies; dates from this journal's articles in the last 24 months are not available yet, so the publisher's figure is used.
Figures by source
- Submission to first decision
- 6 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 61 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance
- 154 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 9 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Double anonymous peer reviewPublisher 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAlex | EUR 2,970 / GBP 2,780 / JPY 2,380 | — | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 3,470 | — | — |
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)
Open calls for papers2, by deadline
Publisher websiteWhat to prepare7 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- ≤ 250 words
- Keywords
- 1–7
- Reference style
- APA
- Suggested reviewers
- Required
- Highlights
- Required
- Graphical abstract
- Required
- Cover letter
- Required
Article types accepted2
- conference reportWe seek contributions from people, individually or collectively, from different countries and different backgrounds, who are engaged in feminist research inside…Length not stated
- conference reports and announcementsWe also invite conference reports and announcements, calls for papers, notices of new publications and reports, contacts, etc., sent in by individuals or groups…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Preprints
- AI use Declaration of generative AI use
Authors must declare the use of generative AI tools in the manuscript preparation process upon submission of the paper.Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies (“AI tools”) have been rapidly adopted in research and scholarly publishing, offering significant benefits while requiring clear standards for responsible and transparent use.Authors preparing a manuscript for this journal may use AI tool…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Group authorship
Group authorship refers to the attribution of an article to a defined and named group of authors whose members have contributed to the work. Examples include research consortia, clinical trial groups, collaborative networks, task forces or working groups, expert panels or consensus groups, and participatory research groups. Group authorship must be declared on the title page at submission. When av…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Declaration of competing interests
All authors must disclose any financial and personal relationships with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence or bias their work. Examples of potential competing interests include:EmploymentConsultanciesStock ownershipHonorariaPaid expert testimonyPatent applications or registrationsGrants or any other fundingAffiliation with the journal as an Editor or Advisory Board …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright License options
Authors will be offered open access user license options which will determine how you, and third parties, can reuse your open access article. We advise that you review these options and any funding body license requirements before selecting a license option.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access
We refer you to our open access information page to learn about open access options for this journal.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer review
Double anonymized peer review Model summary
This journal follows a double anonymized review process. Your submission will initially be assessed by our editors. If your submission is deemed suitable, it will typically be sent to be reviewed by a minimum of two reviewers for an independent expert assessment of the scientific quality. The decision as to whether your article is accepted or rejected for publication will be made by our editors.Re…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints Preprints
Preprint sharing allowed Model summary
Preprint sharingAuthors may share preprints in line with Elsevier's article sharing policy. Sharing preprints, such as on a preprint server, will not count as prior publication.We advise you to read our policy on multiple, redundant or concurrent publication.
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
- Elsevier
- ISSN
- 0277-5395
- Electronic ISSN
- 1879-243X
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗LetPub
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Women s Studies International Forum
What CAS zone is Women s Studies International Forum in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Women s Studies International Forum is in Zone 3 of Sociology, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Womens Studies. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 2 of Sociology. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Women s Studies International Forum?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 1.97; CiteScore 3.7, h-index 126.
How long does peer review take at Women s Studies International Forum?
The publisher reports about 154 days (submission to acceptance). 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 Women s Studies International Forum?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 250 words; Keywords: 1–7; Reference style: APA; Suggested reviewers: Required; Highlights: Required; Graphical abstract: Required; 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 Women s Studies International Forum based?
Of the 45 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 1 (about 2%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are Türkiye (8), United States (7) and Canada (6). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Women s Studies International Forum?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Women s Studies International Forum is indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Is Women s Studies International Forum open access, and what is the APC?
Women s Studies International Forum is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 3,666.
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: .