Contemporary Sociology

Top Research Topics at Contemporary Sociology?

The scientific interests tackled in the journal are Gender studies, Political economy, Social science, Politics and Media studies. Gender studies research is the primary subject tackled in the journal with a focus on Race (biology). The work on Social science addressed in it expands to the thematically related Epistemology.

• Gender studies (12.08%)
• Political economy (9.58%)
• Social science (9.37%)

What are the most cited papers published in the journal?

• Basics of qualitative research : grounded theory procedures and techniques (27873 citations)
• Hierarchical Linear Models: Applications and Data Analysis Methods. (19141 citations)
• Intrinsic Motivation and Self-Determination in Human Behavior (15602 citations)

Research areas of the most cited articles at Contemporary Sociology:

The published articles mostly deal with topics like Gender studies, Politics, Social psychology, Social science and Political economy. The Politics studies which were featured in the most cited publications aim to expound on the research in Law. The published articles connects the study in Social science with the closely related areas of Epistemology.

What topics the last edition of the journal is best known for?

• World War II
• Law
• Politics

The previous edition focused in particular on these issues:

Gender studies, Political economy, Criminology, Race (biology) and Immigration are among the topics commonly tackled in the journal.

The most cited articles from the last journal are:

• Captivating Technology: Race, Carceral Technoscience, and Liberatory Imagination in Everyday Life: (21 citations)
• The 99 Percent Economy: How Democratic Socialism Can Overcome the Crises of Capitalism: (5 citations)
• What is Cultural Sociology (4 citations)

Papers citation over time

A key indicator for each journal is its effectiveness in reaching other researchers with the papers published at that venue.

The chart below presents the interquartile range (first quartile 25%, median 50% and third quartile 75%) of the number of citations of articles over time.

Top authors and change over time

The top authors publishing in Contemporary Sociology (based on the number of publications) are:

• Alan Sica (37 papers) absent at the last edition,
• Randall Collins (36 papers) published 1 paper at the last edition,
• Charles Tilly (32 papers) absent at the last edition,
• Gary Alan Fine (28 papers) published 1 paper at the last edition,
• Harvey Molotch (27 papers) absent at the last edition.

The overall trend for top authors publishing in this journal is outlined below. The chart shows the number of publications at each edition of the journal for top authors.

Top affiliations and change over time

Only papers with recognized affiliations are considered

The top affiliations publishing in Contemporary Sociology (based on the number of publications) are:

• University of California, Los Angeles (44 papers) published 1 paper at the last edition, 5 less than at the previous edition,
• Pennsylvania State University (41 papers) published 4 papers at the last edition, 2 more than at the previous edition,
• New York University (40 papers) absent at the last edition,
• University of California, Irvine (38 papers) absent at the last edition,
• University of Minnesota (36 papers) absent at the last edition.

The overall trend for top affiliations publishing in this journal is outlined below. The chart shows the number of publications at each edition of the journal for top affiliations.

Publication chance based on affiliation

The publication chance index shows the ratio of articles published by the best research institutions in the journal edition to all articles published within that journal. The best research institutions were selected based on the largest number of articles published during all editions of the journal.

The chart below presents the percentage ratio of articles from top institutions (based on their ranking of total papers).Top affiliations were grouped by their rank into the following tiers: top 1-10, top 11-20, top 21-50, and top 51+. Only articles with a recognized affiliation are considered.

During the most recent 2021 edition, 23.53% of publications had an unrecognized affiliation. Out of the publications with recognized affiliations, 8.39% were posted by at least one author from the top 10 institutions publishing in the journal. Another 8.39% included authors affiliated with research institutions from the top 11-20 affiliations. Institutions from the 21-50 range included 22.38% of all publications and 60.84% were from other institutions.

Returning Authors Index

A very common phenomenon observed among researchers publishing scientific articles is the intentional selection of journals they have already attended in the past. In particular, it is worth analyzing the case when the authors participate in the same journal from year to year.

The Returning Authors Index presented below illustrates the ratio of authors who participated in both a given as well as the previous edition of the journal in relation to all participants in a given year.

Returning Institution Index

The graph below shows the Returning Institution Index, illustrating the ratio of institutions that participated in both a given and the previous edition of the conference in relation to all affiliations present in a given year.

The experience to innovation index

Our experience to innovation index was created to show a cross-section of the experience level of authors publishing in a journal. The index includes the authors publishing at the last edition of a journal, grouped by total number of publications throughout their academic career (P) and the total number of citations of these publications ever received (C).

The group intervals were selected empirically to best show the diversity of the authors' experiences, their labels were selected as a convenience, not as judgment. The authors were divided into the following groups:

• Novice - P < 5 or C < 25 (the number of publications less than 5 or the number of citations less than 25),
• Competent - P < 10 or C < 100 (the number of publications less than 10 or the number of citations less than 100),
• Experienced - P < 25 or C < 625 (the number of publications less than 25 or the number of citations less than 625),
• Master - P < 50 or C < 2500 (the number of publications less than 50 or the number of citations less than 2500),
• Star - P ≥ 50 and C ≥ 2500 (both the number of publications greater than 50 and the number of citations greater than 2500).

The chart below illustrates experience levels of first authors in cases of publications with multiple authors.

Career Possibilities in Sociology

The breadth and depth of issues discussed in contemporary sociology not only stimulate intellectual curiosity, but also open diverse career opportunities for sociology students and scholars. One career path that might interest sociology graduates, especially those interested in gender studies, criminology, race, and political economy, is becoming a substance abuse counselor.

Substance abuse counselors play crucial roles in helping people deal with addiction problems and contributing to healthier communities. They typically engage with clients in one-on-one or group settings, providing treatment and support, and developing recovery programs catered to individual needs. Given the multi-faceted aspects of substance abuse, a background in sociology gives counselors a nuanced understanding of the societal factors influencing substance use.

If you are considering a career in this field and are based in Minnesota, it would be beneficial to learn more about the process of becoming a certified substance abuse counselor in the state. For further details, visit Substance abuse counselor certification Minnesota

Aside from being a fulfilling profession, being a substance abuse counselor can also provide a fresh and refine insight to your sociological research, ultimately contributing to the ongoing discourse in contemporary sociology in critical ways.