MIT Sloan Professor helps launch open-source journal Sociological Science
MIT Sloan economic sociology professor Ezra Zuckerman, Editor-in-Chief Stanford professor Jesper Sorensen and 5 colleagues from New York University, Cornell University, Yale University and Stanford, launched the peer-reviewed journal Sociological Science on February 18. The goal of the editors is to publish the highest quality research, but at a faster pace than at traditional peer-reviewed journals, while also making the journal ‘open-access’ to the public.
The team of editors, along with a panel of 43 consulting editors, seeks to transform the process of academic publication by making, according to Zuckerman, ”errors of commission rather than errors of omission” in order to correct “the traditional review process [which] has difficulty with things that are really innovative”. Thus, the editors will allow the readers to best judge the impact of an article, and lead debate. The journal also hosts a “Reactions” forum, where readers and authors can engage in a back and forth discussion.
Sociological Science will publish seven articles a month, on a rolling basis, as publication decisions are made. Zuckerman points out that this format, as opposed to the traditionally published journal issues, is made possible “because of modern technology (colleagues) can communicate about how to manage the journal and make decisions on how to adjudicate a particular article”. The first month featured papers on “The Structure of Online Activism,” “Political Ideology and Racial Preferences in Online Dating,” and “Pathways to Science and Engineering Bachelor’s Degrees for Men and Women.” Many reputable sociologists have already submitted strong articles, Zuckerman said, a good indication that the journal is fulfilling a need in the field.
