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South African Journal of Psychology
H-index 9

South African Journal of Psychology

0081-2463

Published by: SAGE

https://journals.sagepub.com/home/sap

Ranking & Metrics

Discipline name Position Best Scientists Publications D-Index
Psychology 892 19 34 7
Social Sciences and Humanities 1226 9 12 3

Additional Metrics

Number of Best Scientists*: 33
Documents by Best Scientists*: 47
Top 100 Ranked Scientists*: 2
SCIMAGO H-index: 45
SCIMAGO SJR: 0.798
Impact Factor: 1.5

Overview

Top Research Topics at South African Journal of Psychology?

The foci of the journal are Social psychology, Developmental psychology, Clinical psychology, Context (language use) and Psychiatry. Topics in Social psychology were tackled in line with various other fields like Applied psychology, Perception and Scale (social sciences). South African Journal of Psychology investigates Developmental psychology research which frequently intersects with Cognition.

Psychiatry research is the primary subject tackled in the journal with a focus on Mental health.

  • Social psychology (23.51%)
  • Developmental psychology (12.43%)
  • Clinical psychology (12.02%)

What are the most cited papers published in the journal?

  • Subjective Well-Being: A General Overview (500 citations)
  • The Origins of Health and Strength: From ‘Salutogenesis’ to ‘Fortigenesis’ (250 citations)
  • Book Review: Introduction to Psychological Assessment in the South African Context: (219 citations)

Research areas of the most cited articles at South African Journal of Psychology:

The most cited articles generally zeroe in on subjects such as Social psychology, Clinical psychology, Gender studies, Social science and Developmental psychology. Aside from discussions in Social psychology, the most cited papers also deal with the subject of Scale (social sciences) which intersects with Rating scale disciplines. The published articles explore research in Cognition and overlapping concepts in Coping (psychology) to expand the discourse in Developmental psychology.

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

  • World War II
  • Social psychology
  • Cognition

The previous edition focused in particular on these issues:

The journal investigates studies in Clinical psychology, Mental health, Psychiatry, Depression (differential diagnoses) and 2019-20 coronavirus outbreak. The research topics discussed in it include Clinical psychology as well as Survey research. It explores issues in Mental health which can be linked to other research areas like Attrition, Transition (fiction), Face (sociological concept) and Healthcare system.

It tackles studies in Health care and the interrelated subject of Psychological resilience and Isolation (health care) to gain insights into Psychiatry. While Depression (differential diagnoses) is the key highlight in South African Journal of Psychology, it also covered some subjects on Psychopathology and Subjective well-being, Spouse and Comorbidity. The journal explores research in Cross-sectional study and overlapping concepts in Offspring, Family structure, Emotional well-being, Developmental psychology and Medical education to expand the discourse in Socio demographics.

The most cited articles from the last journal are:

  • University students’ mental health and emotional wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic and ensuing lockdown (1 citations)
  • Current strategies in the reduction of stigma among caregivers of patients with mental illness: a scoping review: (1 citations)
  • Undergraduate psychology student experiences during COVID-19: challenges encountered and lessons learnt: (1 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 South African Journal of Psychology (based on the number of publications) are:

  • Anthony L. Pillay (42 papers) published 2 papers at the last edition, 1 less than at the previous edition,
  • Ashraf Kagee (34 papers) published 2 papers at the last edition, 2 less than at the previous edition,
  • Leslie Swartz (24 papers) absent at the last edition,
  • John Duckitt (22 papers) absent at the last edition,
  • Mohamed Seedat (22 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.

Only papers with recognized affiliations are considered

The top affiliations publishing in South African Journal of Psychology (based on the number of publications) are:

  • University of the Witwatersrand (243 papers) published 5 papers at the last edition, 3 less than at the previous edition,
  • University of Cape Town (200 papers) published 7 papers at the last edition, 3 more than at the previous edition,
  • University of South Africa (174 papers) published 5 papers at the last edition, 1 less than at the previous edition,
  • Stellenbosch University (125 papers) published 8 papers at the last edition, 3 less than at the previous edition,
  • University of KwaZulu-Natal (114 papers) published 9 papers at the last edition, 2 less 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, 6.15% of publications had an unrecognized affiliation. Out of the publications with recognized affiliations, 77.05% were posted by at least one author from the top 10 institutions publishing in the journal. Another 9.84% included authors affiliated with research institutions from the top 11-20 affiliations. Institutions from the 21-50 range included 9.84% of all publications and 3.28% 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.

Top Universities and Colleges for Studying Psychology

There are numerous recognized higher education establishments that offer myriad Psychology programs towards understanding the complexities of the human mind. For instance, whether you're interested in Social Psychology, Developmental Psychology, or Clinical Psychology, there are many good colleges for psychology in Rhode Island where you can study these subjects in depth. Rhode Island is renowned for the varied psychology programs that its higher institutions provide. Studying in Rhode Island allows students to dabble in numerous fields linked to psychology, such as Applied Psychology and Psychiatry, along with distinct intersections with Cognitive Science and Perception. As you explore the vast sea of possible topics in psychology, you often weave through discussions on Scale (social sciences) and Rating scale disciplines, both intricate subjects that intertwine with Social psychology. Unleash your academic potential by choosing from the roster of competent schools offering comprehensive courses that delve into these subjects, and many more, in Rhode Island. With a diversity of courses available, these institutions catalyze a student's journey towards becoming a qualified psychologist. Thus, as a psychology student, you stand to gain immensely from being schooled in Rhode Island, which has a wealth of opportunities on offer for aspiring psychologists. A wide range of topics within the psychology field is explored on an academic platform, shaping students into capable professionals ready to tackle the challenges of the mental health field.

Top Publications

  • Strength use, training and development, thriving, and intention to leave: the mediating effects of psychological need satisfaction:

    Fathima Essop Mahomed;Sebastiaan Rothmann

    (2020)
    39 Citations
  • Mental health and academic failure among first-year university students in South Africa:

    Jason Bantjes;Wylene Saal;Franco Gericke;Christine Lochner

    (2021)
    29 Citations
  • Social justice, health equity, and mental health

    (2022)
    24 Citations
  • Effects of COVID-19 on the economy and mental health of young people in South Africa: opportunities for strengthening social protection programmes by integrating mental health

    Alejandra Álvarez-Iglesias;Emily Garman;Crick Lund

    (2021)
    18 Citations
  • Exploring the reciprocal correspondence among workplace relationships, career goal instrumentality, career satisfaction, and organisational commitment:

    Melinde Coetzee;Marais S Bester

    (2021)
    14 Citations
  • Trends in the prevalence and severity of depressive symptoms among undergraduate students at a South African University, 2016–2019:

    Kim-Louise Rousseau;Sabrina Thompson;Lea-Ann Pileggi;Michelle Henry

    (2021)
    13 Citations
  • Influence of poor emotion regulation on disrupted sleep and subsequent psychiatric symptoms in university students

    Lee R Nicholson;Raphaella Lewis;Kevin Gf Thomas;Gosia Lipinska

    (2021)
    11 Citations
  • Current strategies in the reduction of stigma among caregivers of patients with mental illness: a scoping review:

    Portia Monnapula-Mazabane;Gbotemi B Babatunde;Inge Petersen

    (2021)
    9 Citations
  • The psychological contract and retention practices in the higher education context: the mediating role of organisational justice and trust

    (2022)
    7 Citations
  • Career agility and career embeddedness as psychological needs of the value-oriented psychological contract

    (2022)
    7 Citations

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Best Scientists Contributing to This Journal

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