New Impact Factor for the Journal of Economic Psychology

The new two-year journal Impact Factors have been released. Our journal’s 2020 impact factor has increased (again) and cracked the 2.0 mark. Specifically, we are up to 2.037, from 1.718 in 2019 and 1.561 in 2018. As a comparison, other journals publishing in behavioral economics are behind us (JEBO, 1.635; JBEE, 1.382), and we are also ahead of AEJ: Micro (1.872), Journal of Risk and Uncertainty (1.723), and Games and Economic Behavior (1.278). We are catching up to Experimental Economics (2.367), J&DM (2.543), and JBDM (2.438).

Updated Aims and Scope for the Journal of Economic Psychology

We have updated the Aims and Scope for JoEP:

The Journal of Economic Psychology aims to present research that will improve understanding of behavioral, in particular psychological, aspects of economic decisions and processes. It is published under the auspices of the International Association for Research in Economic Psychology, whose aim is to promote interdisciplinary work relating to economic behavior.

Rejected due to lack of reviewers

Today, for the first time since I became Editor of the Journal of Economic Psychology, I rejected a paper due to lack of reviewers.

This was a very sad thing to do. I saw promise in the paper (which was actually a Brief Report) and thought it would be interesting, but of course that is not how peer reviewing works. Without the support and review of peers, a paper cannot be evaluated. If a large number of natural reviewer candidates decline, at some point I cannot keep the authors waiting, and I have to take the hint that there is insufficient interest on the paper.

Sadly, this will most likely happen more and more in the future. And it might happen to any of us.

Changes at JoEP

There are a few changes in the horizon at the Journal of Economic Psychology.

First, effective January 1st, we are giving up double-blind reviewing. This method has become quite ineffective in a time when working papers can be found online at a keystroke. It is also a source of errors, delays, and incompatibilities of all types. So we are switching to single-blind reviewing (anonymous reviewers but known author identities), as most journals in our broad area. As soon as this change is implemented, we will be able to move forward on different fronts.

“Return to author” at JoEP

As I have written before, roughly three quarters of all submissions to the Journal of Economic Psychology are currently desk-rejected. Roughly half or more of those which are not desk-rejected, however, are returned to author(s). Wait, what?

New Co-Editor at JoEP

I am happy to report that Eldad Yechiam, from Technion university, has now become a Co-Editor of the Journal of Economic Psychology. After the transition phase where I managed the journal as sole Editor in Chief, we are now back to normal with a team of two Co-Editors sharing the responsibilities. Eldad hails from psychology, but we both share an interest on decision making, which I am sure will percolate to the journal’s effective scope. Welcome, Eldad!

DFG Projekte und zusätzliche Forschungsfreisemester

Manchmal sind Deutsche päpstlicher als der Papst. Mit Verlaub.

Kleine Erklärung. Als gewählter Fachkollegiat des Fachkollegiums „Wirtschaftswissenschaften“ der Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) nehme ich seit drei Jahren an den Förderentscheidungen im Bereich Wirtschaftswissenschaften teil. Ich habe eine Menge individuelle Forschungsprojekte gesehen (sogenannten „Sachbeihilfen“), und ich habe an den Entscheidungen für mehrere größere Forschungsverbünde teilgenommen. Meine Amtszeit geht langsam zu Ende, und da ich jetzt in der Schweiz tätig bin, stehe ich nicht zur Wiederwahl.

Confusingly irritating (German mistakes in English)

Have you ever had a German/Austrian/Swiss apparently get angry at you because he did not understand something you said, and then act like he was surprised when you (naturally) got on the defensive?

Well, it might all be a (widespread) translation mistake.

Avoiding “out of scope” at JoEP

In a previous post, I discussed desk rejections at the Journal of Economic Psychology, which I have been editing since January 1st, 2019. Here I want to pay special attention to a particular type of those: “out of scope,” that is, desk rejections indicating that “I regret to inform you that your paper is not appropriate for our audience.” The Journal of Economic Psychology publishes research which is generally at the intersection of economics and psychology. As a declaration of intentions, we are interested in the psychological foundations of and mechanisms underlying economic decisions. That covers a lot of ground, including (obviously) all of economic psychology, generally all of behavioral economics, and also nascent fields as neuroeconomics and behavioral economic theory.

Still, as the Editor in Chief, I regularly reject papers with an “out of scope” notice.

Avoiding desk rejections at JoEP

In the four months and change in which I have been (sole) Editor in Chief of the Journal of Economic Psychology, I have handled over 200 new submissions.

Around 75% have been desk-rejected.

Harsh? Not necessarily. The journal typically publishes less than a hundred papers per year, but receives around 700 submissions and growing. Also, the published papers include a variable number of special issues which are handled by guest editors. That is, far more than 75% of all regular submissions will be ultimately rejected. This is not different in other journals.

The reasoning for desk-rejections is simple.