Aims & Scope

Description

The International Journal of Comparative Psychology publishes studies on the evolution and development of animal behavior, including humans. Articles based on experimental or descriptive research procedures, carried out in laboratory, semi-natural, or natural settings, and involving mechanistic, developmental, functional-adaptive, or evolutionary theoretical approaches are welcome. Articles may include a single study or a series of related studies.

The International Journal of Comparative Psychology is indexed in these and other services: Dietrich's Index Philosophicus; E-psyche; Indian Psychological Abstracts and Reviews; Psychological Abstracts; PsycINFO; Russian Academy of Sciences Bibliographies; Social Work Abstracts; Google Scholar; and Scopus.

Coverage

In addition to full-length research articles, papers developing original theoretical models of behavior and brief reports not exceeding 4000 words (including references) will also be considered for publication. Articles reviewing the literature in a particular area of research will be occasionally accepted for consideration when the author has demonstrated significant contributions to the topic under review.

Some of the relevant areas include animal communication, animal learning and memory, behavior analysis, behavior genetics, behavioral ecology, comparative behavioral neuroscience, comparative cognition, comparative neurology and behavior, developmental psychobiology, evolutionary psychology, migratory behavior, models of animal behavior, motivation, neuroethology, sensory-perceptual processes, simple model systems, and social behavior.

Peer Review Process

Material submitted to IJCP will undergo an internal review to assure that compliance with journal format, ethical and review guidelines have been followed.  IJCP accepts research articles, which may be published alone or as part of a special issue, letters, and audiovisual materials. Letters discussing or disputing published material are accepted. Such articles should include the original title, and a secondary title with the gist of the rebuttal or commentary (separated by a semi-colon). The author(s) of the original article will be notified if the article is published. Research articles will be assigned to an editor who will monitor the external reviewing process, response to the authors, review and resubmission, if necessary, and publication of the article if it is accepted. The majority of the submissions will be assigned to two external reviewers. Exceptions are made for letters, introductions to the special issues and audiovisual materials, which will be reviewed by the editor and may or may not be submitted for external review. The editor will choose to accept, require revisions, or reject the submitted material. Resubmissions may be sent to the same or new reviewers. Authors may appeal a rejection by writing to the Editor in Chief and providing a rebuttal of the reviewers’ criticisms.

Open Access Policy

This journal provides immediate open access to its content, free of charge, on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge. Currently, no processing or publication fees are assessed to authors for publishing in the journal.