With an interdisciplinary and international focus, Policy Sciences encourages a diversity of perspectives. The editors especially welcome conceptual and empirical innovation, together with the potential richness and insight of comparative orientation.

The journal offers articles that examine the normative aspects of policy sciences;
conceptual articles addressing concrete policy issues; articles on particularly controversial pieces of analysis; opposing perspectives, including critiques and rejoinders on articles already published, which open the journal to an exchange of views rather than restricting it to pure presentation; and special issues that analyze specific topics in depth.

Policy Sciences favors, but does not publish exclusively, works that either explicitly or implicitly utilize the policy sciences framework. The policy sciences are a distinctive subset within the policy movement in that they embrace the traditions of innovated and elaborated by Harold D. Lasswell and Myers S. McDougal. The policy sciences can be applied to articles with greater or lesser intensity to accommodate the focus of an author’s work.  At the minimum, this means taking a problem oriented, multi-method or contextual approach. For additional direction authors may consult our Aims and Scope section: http://www.springer.com/social+sciences/political+science/journal/11077.



Officially cited as: Policy Sci

  • Brings an interdisciplinary and international focus to the study of policy
  • Welcomes conceptual and empirical innovation
  • Addresses the normative aspects of policy sciences, and concrete policy issues, along with analysis, critiques and discussion
  • Publishes special issues probing specific topics in depth

Journal information

Editor-in-Chief
  • Michael Howlett
Publishing model
Hybrid (Transformative Journal). Learn about publishing Open Access with us

Journal metrics

3.609 (2019)
Impact factor
3.797 (2019)
Five year impact factor
50 days
Submission to first decision
249 days
Submission to acceptance
155,059 (2019)
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Latest issue

Volume 54

Issue 1, March 2021

Latest articles

This journal has 65 open access articles
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Journal updates

  • COVID-19 and impact on peer review

    As a result of the significant disruption that is being caused by the COVID-19 pandemic we are very aware that many researchers will have difficulty in meeting the timelines associated with our peer review process during normal times.  Please do let us know if you need additional time. Our systems will continue to remind you of the original timelines but we intend to be highly flexible at this time.

  • New Associate Editor Announcement

    Policy Sciences would like to welcome our new associate editor, Osmany Porto de Oliveira. Dr. Porto de Oliveira is an Assistant Professor of International Relations at the Federal University of São Paulo (Unifesp). He holds two PhDs in Political Science, from the University of Sorbonne Nouvelle - Paris III (2015) and the University of São Paulo (2013). He received his B.A in International Relations from the University of Bologna in Italy (2006) and a M.A in Sociétés Contemporaines: Europe - Amériques from the University of Sorbonne Nouvelle/IHEAL, in France (2008). He received the Early Career Award of the International Public Policy Association – IPPA (Montreal, Canada, 2019) and the Young Researcher Award of the European Council for Social Research on Latin America – CEISAL (Porto, Portugal, 2013). His main books are "Latin America and Policy Diffusion: From Import to Export" (Routledge, 2020), with C. Osorio, S. Montero and C. Kerches, “International Policy Diffusion and Participatory Budgeting: Ambassadors of Participation, International Institutions and Transnational Networks”, (Palgrave McMillan, 2017) and “Le transfert d'un modèle de démocratie participative: Paradiplomatie entre Porto Alegre et Saint-Denis” (Éditions IHEAL/CREDA, 2010).

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About this journal

Electronic ISSN
1573-0891
Print ISSN
0032-2687
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