Interdisciplinarity in Recently Founded Academic Journals

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dc.contributor.authorJacobs, Jerry A.
dc.contributor.authorHenderson, Rebecca
dc.date2023-05-17T07:18:40.000
dc.date.accessioned2023-05-23T00:36:10Z
dc.date.available2023-05-23T00:36:10Z
dc.date.issued2012-08-15
dc.date.submitted2012-08-15T13:29:59-07:00
dc.description.abstractDespite the substantial growth of research interest on interdisciplinary collaboration and intellectual exchange, relatively little attention has focused on interdisciplinarity in the context of the academic journal system. In this paper, we ask a series of questions about peer-reviewed, academic journals which aim to span disciplinary boundaries. Data on a total of 789 journals established in 2008 were culled from Ulrich’s Periodicals and classified into discipline-based and interdisciplinary journals based on their mission statements. Principal findings: Roughly 25 percent of peer-reviewed journals established in 2008 claimed interdisciplinarity as part of their mission; Interdisciplinarity varies substantially by primary subject classification, from less than 10 percent in mathematics and physics to a majority of journals in public health and communications; Despite the prominence of biology and biomedical fields in discussions of interdisciplinarity, few of the new journals in these fields are interdisciplinary in focus. Paradoxically, many interdisciplinary journals are highly specialized; that is, while they span more than one field or one approach (basic research, clinical applications), their span of inquiry needs to be understood as focused on a highly delimited topic area. A typology of six types of interdisciplinary journals emerges from the data. While some high-status interdisciplinary journals, eg Science and Nature, are tremendously valuable in facilitating cross-disciplinary communication, the proliferation of comprehensive interdisciplinary journals would most likely hinder rather than facilitate scholarly communication.
dc.description.commentsJacobs, Jerry A. and Rebecca Henderson. 2012. "Interdisciplinarity in Recently Founded Academic Journals." PSC Working Paper Series, PSC 12-06.
dc.identifier.urihttps://repository.upenn.edu/handle/20.500.14332/44336
dc.legacy.articleid1036
dc.legacy.fulltexturlhttps://repository.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1036&context=psc_working_papers&unstamped=1
dc.legacy.nativeurlhttps://repository.upenn.edu/context/psc_working_papers/article/1036/type/native/viewcontent
dc.source.issue37
dc.source.journalPSC Working Paper Series
dc.source.statuspublished
dc.subject.otherAcademic Disciplines
dc.subject.otherAcademic Journals
dc.subject.otherAcademic Publishing
dc.subject.otherBibliometrics
dc.subject.otherGrowth of Knowledge
dc.subject.otherInterdisciplinarity
dc.subject.otherOpen Access
dc.subject.otherPeer-Review
dc.subject.otherScholarly Communication
dc.subject.otherSpecialization
dc.subject.otherDemography, Population, and Ecology
dc.subject.otherLibrary and Information Science
dc.subject.otherSocial and Behavioral Sciences
dc.subject.otherSociology
dc.titleInterdisciplinarity in Recently Founded Academic Journals
dc.typeWorking Paper
digcom.identifierpsc_working_papers/37
digcom.identifier.contextkey3219686
digcom.identifier.submissionpathpsc_working_papers/37
digcom.typeworkingpaper
dspace.entity.typePublication
relation.isAuthorOfPublication03269cad-5e6b-43e2-a6d9-6dc7ae1b50e9
relation.isAuthorOfPublicationa2b892f4-6ced-44ad-83f0-94914859ea07
relation.isAuthorOfPublication.latestForDiscovery03269cad-5e6b-43e2-a6d9-6dc7ae1b50e9
upenn.schoolDepartmentCenterPSC Working Paper Series
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