World's Best Scientists 2026 revealed!
Regional Studies
H-index 40

Regional Studies

0034-3404

Published by: Taylor & Francis

https://www.tandfonline.com/toc/cres20/current

Ranking & Metrics

Discipline name Position Best Scientists Publications D-Index
Social Sciences and Humanities 22 47 96 32
Political Science 43 24 35 17

Additional Metrics

Number of Best Scientists*: 153
Documents by Best Scientists*: 243
Top 100 Ranked Scientists*: 10
SCIMAGO H-index: 148
SCIMAGO SJR: 1.904
Impact Factor: 4.2

Overview

Top Research Topics at Regional Studies?

The objective of Regional Studies is to combine knowledge in the areas of Regional studies, Economy, Economic geography, Regional science and Economic growth. The journal integrates many fields, including Regional studies and related. The work tackled in it goes beyond the discipline of Economy as it also encompasses Politics.

The journal focuses on Economic geography research which is adjacent to topics in Economies of agglomeration.

  • Regional studies (23.18%)
  • Economy (21.87%)
  • Economic geography (19.10%)

What are the most cited papers published in the journal?

  • Proximity and Innovation: A Critical Assessment (3594 citations)
  • The Learning Region: Institutions, Innovation and Regional Renewal (1683 citations)
  • How does insertion in global value chains affect upgrading in industrial clusters (1436 citations)

Research areas of the most cited articles at Regional Studies:

The journal articles aim to foster the development of research in Economy, Economic geography, Regional studies, Regional science and Economic system. In addition to Economy research, the journal articles aim to explore topics under Context (language use), Production (economics), Distribution (economics), Regional policy and Politics. The most cited articles explore topics in Economic geography which can be helpful for research in disciplines like Economies of agglomeration, Entrepreneurship and Human capital.

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

  • World War II
  • Law
  • China

The previous edition focused in particular on these issues:

The main research concerns discussed in the journal are Economic geography, Regional science, Political economy, Industrial organization and China. The research on Economic geography featured in Regional Studies combines topics in other fields like Diversification (marketing strategy) and Specialization (functional). The journal tackles research in various disciplines, including Regional science and Regional studies.

It explores topics in Political economy which can be helpful for research in disciplines like Brexit and Politics. Studies on China discussed in it link to the field of Urban planning.

The most cited articles from the last journal are:

  • Getting the territory right: infrastructure-led development and the re-emergence of spatial planning strategies (40 citations)
  • Understanding heterogeneous spatial production externalities as a missing link between land-use planning and urban economic futures (16 citations)
  • Does lockdown work? A spatial analysis of the spread and concentration of Covid-19 in Italy (11 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.

The top authors publishing in Regional Studies (based on the number of publications) are:

  • Ron Martin (22 papers) absent at the last edition,
  • Anne E. Green (21 papers) published 1 paper at the last edition the same number as at the previous edition,
  • Philip McCann (21 papers) published 3 papers at the last edition the same number as at the previous edition,
  • Michael Fritsch (20 papers) published 1 paper at the last edition, 1 less than at the previous edition,
  • Ron Boschma (20 papers) published 3 papers 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.

Only papers with recognized affiliations are considered

The top affiliations publishing in Regional Studies (based on the number of publications) are:

  • London School of Economics and Political Science (82 papers) published 5 papers at the last edition, 2 less than at the previous edition,
  • Cardiff University (75 papers) published 6 papers at the last edition, 1 less than at the previous edition,
  • Newcastle University (72 papers) published 5 papers at the last edition,
  • University of Cambridge (67 papers) published 4 papers at the last edition, 3 more than at the previous edition,
  • University of Birmingham (56 papers) published 14 papers at the last edition, 9 more than at the previous 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, 13.60% of publications had an unrecognized affiliation. Out of the publications with recognized affiliations, 22.13% were posted by at least one author from the top 10 institutions publishing in the journal. Another 7.23% included authors affiliated with research institutions from the top 11-20 affiliations. Institutions from the 21-50 range included 8.94% of all publications and 61.70% 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 Prospects in Regional Studies

The field of Regional Studies offers diverse career opportunities to researchers and graduates. One of the career paths related to this area is a Substance Abuse Counselor. Working in this capacity can give individuals the opportunity to apply their understanding of regional factors, such as economic growth, political influences, and socio-cultural contexts, to combat drug and substance abuse within specific regions.

The role of a Substance Abuse Counselor can be incredibly rewarding, providing an opportunity to make a direct and meaningful impact on individual lives and broader community health. In this profession, you can leverage your expertise in regional studies to identify how local factors contribute to substance abuse problems and devise interventions suited to the unique needs of that region.

Interested in exploring this career path? We have a dedicated guide on How to become a substance abuse counselor in Maryland. Through this guide, you can gain insights into the educational requirements, licensing processes, skill development, and potential career prospects of a Substance Abuse Counselor in the state of Maryland.

Please note, while the guide is specific to Maryland, much of the information is relevant and can provide a strong starting point for individuals looking to pursue this career in other regions as well. So, if you're passionate about using your knowledge in regional studies to make a direct impact on societal issues, this career path might just be the perfect fit for you.

Top Publications

  • The geography of EU discontent

    Lewis Dijkstra;Hugo Poelman;Andrés Rodríguez-Pose

    (2020)
    504 Citations
  • Perceptions of regional inequality and the geography of discontent: insights from the UK

    Philip McCann

    (2020)
    309 Citations
  • Regions in a time of pandemic

    David Bailey;Jennifer Clark;Alessandra Colombelli;Carlo Corradini

    (2020)
    192 Citations
  • Complementary interregional linkages and Smart Specialisation: an empirical study on European regions

    Pierre-Alexandre Balland;Ron Boschma

    (2021)
    183 Citations
  • Shaping smart specialization: the role of place-specific factors in advanced, intermediate and less-developed European regions

    Michaela Trippl;Elena Zukauskaite;Adrian Healy

    (2020)
    152 Citations

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