New impact factor metrics released in the latest issue of Journal Citation Reports: Social Sciences Edition show three of The Gerontological Society of America's (GSA) journals as among the highest ranked in their field. The Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences took the top spot on the list, and the Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences and The Gerontologist are both within the top eight.
Impact factor is a measure of the frequency with which articles in a journal have been cited in a given period of time. Journal Citation Reports, one of the most respected publication evaluation tools, is distributed by the Institute of Scientific Information, a division of Thomson Reuters.
The new figures underscore the value of aging research as more than 7,000 American baby boomers turn 65 every day. A strong impact factor indicates the research published in a journal is being widely cited elsewhere, which is often a reflection of the quality of this research. This, in turn, encourages scholars to send their best material to the journal, thereby building on its status.
"We are pleased with the standing of our journals in the field," said Thomas Hess, PhD, chair of GSA's Publications Committee. "We also are working closely with our publisher and editors to further bolster the impact factors — through the implementation of policies designed both to enhance scientific scholarship and encourage the top researchers in the field to publish their best work in GSA's journals."
The gerontology category within Journal Citation Reports: Social Sciences Edition contains 28 publications. To reach the number one position on the list, the impact factor for the Journals of Gerontology Series A rose from 3.083 in 2009 to 3.988 in 2010, representing a 29 percent increase. The Gerontologist, in the sixth spot, saw its impact factor jump from 1.880 in 2009 to 2.315 in 2010. The Journals of Gerontology Series B ranked eighth, enjoying nearly the same level of impact factor as last year — moving from 2.094 in 2009 to 1.963 in 2010. These three GSA journals are published by Oxford University Press (OUP).
"We are delighted to congratulate GSA on the outstanding performance of these journals. OUP prides itself on partnering with the top academic societies to publish high-quality journals," said David Crotty, a senior editor at OUP. "The GSA journals are a great representation of that. Their improvement is a direct result of hard work from the society and the journals' editorial boards. Their efforts are helping drive research and communication in this fast-moving discipline."
The Gerontologist and both Journals of Gerontology offer free electronic tables of contents, advance access updates, and keyword alerts through Oxford's My Account service. Visit www.oxfordjournals.org/register to sign up.
The Gerontological Society of America (GSA) is the nation's oldest and largest interdisciplinary organization devoted to research, education, and practice in the field of aging. The principal mission of the Society — and its 5,400+ members — is to advance the study of aging and disseminate information among scientists, decision makers, and the general public. GSA's structure also includes a policy institute, the National Academy on an Aging Society, and an educational branch, the Association for Gerontology in Higher Education.