Science Communication
Science Communication is an international and highly ranked communication research journal that publishes manuscripts that are of the highest quality, in terms of theory and methods. We define science broadly to include social science, technology, environment, engineering, and health, as well as the physical and natural sciences. However, across all scientific contexts, communication must be at the center of the investigation. We also recognize the critical importance of science communication practice and expect all manuscripts to address the practical implications of their research, as well as theory.
We are not an open-access journal and thus we do not charge authors publication fees. However, work that is accepted for publication can pursue an open-access option. https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-publishing-options-0
All manuscripts submitted to Science Communication are initially reviewed by the editor or an associate editor. This process can take up to two weeks. If the manuscript passes that initial review (is judged to be a good fit for the journal and is original and well-written), then the manuscript is entered into the blind peer-review process. At the start of the peer-review process, the editorial team seeks willing reviewers who are qualified to discern the merits of the work. At no time do the peer reviewers see the identity of the authors. Once we are able to locate two or three area experts to review a paper – and they agree to complete the review – our reviewers are given about four weeks to complete their reviews. Once the reviews are returned to the journal, the editorial team renders a final decision of reject, revise and resubmit, or accept within a week of receiving the reviews. We receive 1-2 new submissions a day. We publish about 30 research articles each year. This level of selectivity is typical of highly competitive journals.
The primary aim of Science Communication is to publish peer-reviewed research that is focused on both science and communication and is of the highest quality, in terms of theory and methods. As mentioned in our journal description, we define science broadly to include social science, technology, environment, engineering, and health, as well as the physical and natural sciences.
Our editorial team and reviewers welcome qualitative and quantitative, inductive and deductive research methods, as long as methods are well-explained, transparent, well-executed, and follow best-practices in reporting.
Authors should make clearly articulated contributions to larger theoretical and practical contexts that are relevant to science communication. That is, we expect all manuscripts to address the practical communication implications of their research, as well as the contribution to theory.
Among the myriad aspects of science communication that have been and continue to be explored within our pages:
Science communication among experts and professionals
The history of science communication
The practice of science journalism
Science-related content across media platforms and public-facing messages
Public engagement with science
Information-related and communication-related behaviors in the context of science
Communication’s impact on public understanding of science and public policy
We regularly publish full research manuscripts of 7000-9000 words, including references. Periodically, we publish research notes of 4000-6000 words that report preliminary but provocative findings. We also publish commentaries of 1500-2000 words that focus on emerging issues and trends in the field and are presented in a style that is appropriate to our readers (academic and practitioners).
An area that we are especially interested in expanding within the pages of our journal is inclusive science communication. Thus, we enthusiastically invite submissions from scholars whose work is focused on identities and/or communities that have historically not been included in the study of science communication.
| LeeAnn Kahlor | University of Texas at Austin, USA |
| Ayelet Baram-Tsabari | Israel Institute of Technology, Israel |
| Graham Dixon | Ohio State University, USA |
| Timothy Fung | Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong |
| Amanda Hinnant | University of Missouri, USA |
| Laura Rickard | University of Maine, USA |
| Janet Z. Yang | State University of New York at Buffalo, USA |
| Linda Billings | National Institute of Aerospace, USA |
| Lee Ahern | Pennsylvania State University, USA |
| Lucy Atkinson | University of Texas, USA |
| John C. Besley | Michigan State University, USA |
| Toby Bolsen | Georgia State University, USA |
| Rick E. Borchelt | Office of Science, Department of Energy, USA |
| Amanda Boyd | Washington State University, USA |
| Paul Brewer | University of Delaware, USA |
| Dominique Brossard | University of Wisconsin, USA |
| Michael Cacciatore | University of Georgia, USA |
| Suzanne de Cheveigné | National Centre for Scientific Research, France |
| Haoran "Chris" Chu | University of Florida, USA |
| Christopher Clarke | George Mason University, USA |
| Cynthia Coleman | Portland State University, USA |
| Julia Corbett | University of Utah, USA |
| Michael Dahlstrom | Iowa State University, USA |
| Sarah R. Davies | University of Vienna, Austria |
| Anthony Dudo | University of Texas at Austin, USA |
| William Evans | University of Alabama, USA |
| Bankole Falade | London School of Economics & Political Science, UK |
| Jane Gregory | University of Cambridge, UK |
| Robert J. Griffin | Marquette University, USA |
| Lars Guenther | Ludwig Maximilian Universitat, Munich, Germany |
| Miguel García Guerrero | Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas in Mexico, Mexico |
| Nancy Harrington | University of Kentucky, USA |
| P. Sol Hart | University of Michigan, USA |
| Stephen Hilgartner | Cornell University, USA |
| Jay Hmielowski | University of Florida, USA |
| Shirley Ho | Nanyang Technological University, Singapore |
| Avery Holton | University of Utah, USA |
| Yan Huang | University of Houston, USA |
| Yoori Hwang | Myongji University, South Korea |
| Jakob Jensen | University of Utah, USA |
| Hepeng Jia | Soochow University, China |
| Mo Jones-Jang | Boston University, USA |
| Marina Joubert | Stellenbosch University, South Africa |
| Hyekyung "Kim" Kim | Nanyang Technological University, Singapore |
| William Kinsella | North Carolina State University, USA |
| Bruce V. Lewenstein | Cornell University, USA |
| Robert A. Logan | University of Missouri-Columbia, USA |
| Nancy Longnecker | University of Otago, New Zealand |
| Pieter Maeseele | University of Antwerp, Belgium |
| Katherine A. McComas | Cornell University, USA |
| Merryn McKinnon | Australian National University, Australia |
| Jessica Myrick | Pennsylvania State University, USA |
| Mary L. Nucci | Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, USA |
| Chelsea Ratcliff | University of Georgia, USA |
| María Len-Ríos | The University of Minnesota, USA |
| Sonny Rosenthal | Nanyang Technological University, Singapore |
| Katherine E. Rowan | George Mason University, USA |
| Dietram Scheufele | University of Wisconsin, USA |
| Michael Siegrist | ETH Zurich, Switzerland |
| Hollie Smith | University of Oregon, USA |
| Brian G. Southwell | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA |
| Jocelyn Steinke | University of Connecticut, USA |
| Bruno Takahashi | Michigan State University, USA |
| Esi Thompson | Indiana University, USA |
| Debbie Treise | University of Florida, USA |
| Sean Upshaw | University of Texas at Austin, USA |
| Matthew S. VanDyke | The University of Alabama, USA |
| Emily Vraga | University of Minnesota, USA |
| Kim Walsh-Childers | University of Florida, USA |
| Nathan Walter | Northwestern University, USA |
| Lillie Williamson | University of Wisconsin, USA |
| Jessica Willoughby | Washington State University, USA |
| Ronald Yaros | University of Maryland, USA |
| Sara Yeo | University of Utah, USA |
| Leona Yi-Fan Su | University of Illinois at Urbana - Champaign, USA |
| Shupei Yuan | Northern Illinois University, USA |
Manuscript submission guidelines can be accessed on Sage Journals.