About the Journal | Syria Studies

Journal History

The Centre for Syrian Studies has published a series of papers on contemporary Syria in print since 2009. This journal brings the series online, and will continue to publish work from young and established scholars doing research on Syria.

Focus and Scope

Syria Studies is a peer reviewed open access journal devoted to the study of contemporary Syria published by the St Andrews University Centre for Syrian Studies. The journal supersedes the St Andrews Papers on Contemporary Syria. While moving toward a journal format, Syria Studies will however, continue the latter’s provision of a venue for work of a word length that falls between the traditional length of journal articles and of monographs.

While cross-disciplinary, the focus of Syria Studies is on the modern history, political economy and international relations of Syria. Works in other disciplines that focus on contemporary issues are also welcome. The journal particularly welcomes works that combine a theoretical approach with the findings of new research, whether from archives, fieldwork or other cutting edge methods of research. Works with a focus on the current uprising or its roots and context are particularly welcome, especially when these are framed by theoretical approaches. These could include but are not limited to social movement theory, theories of authoritarian governance and upgrading, of theories of civil wars and collective violence, of identity politics, refugee studies, theories on radicalization and the study of political Islam, gender studies, theory on “new” and internal wars and the international context of civil wars, including the role of globalization, and theories of conflict-resolution, post-war reconstruction and –rebuilding.

The journal values contributions that offer critical, evidence-based analysis based on verifiable empirical data that avoid polemical approaches. The journal welcomes contributions from those holding all points of view in the current conflict but particularly seeks to provide a venue for marginalized or silent voices, and values works on the survival of civil society in the current crisis.

Journal Sponsorship

Publisher

Centre for Syrian Studies, School of International Relations, University of St Andrews

Sources of support

The Asfari Foundation is the primary contributor to the Centre of Syrian Studies at the University of St. Andrews, and it is through its generous contributions that Syria Studies was made possible in both print & digital form.

The Asfari Foundation

Peer-Review Process

A strictly anonymous double-blind peer review process is adhered to in which the reviewer’s name is withheld from the author and, the author’s name from the reviewer. The reviewer may at their own discretion opt to reveal their name to the author in their review but our standard policy practice is for both identities to remain concealed. Each manuscript submitted to Syria Studies first undergoes an internal review by the Editor to determine whether it should be sent out for further external peer review. This step of the review process is designed, in part, to ensure that submissions are an appropriate fit with the journal's particular areas of focus, as well as to ensure that manuscripts meet adequate standards to be sent for external peer review. Each manuscript sent for external peer review is reviewed by at least two referees. All manuscripts are reviewed as rapidly as possible, and an editorial decision is generally reached within twelve weeks of submission.

Publication Frequency

The journal will publish 2 issues per year:

(Spring/Summer Edition)

(Autumn/Winter Edition)

Open Access Policy

This journal provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge. Journal content is published under a CC BY 4.0 Creative Commons Attribution License.

Privacy and Consent Policy

The data collected from registered and non-registered users of this journal falls within the scope of the standard functioning of peer-reviewed journals. It includes information that makes communication possible for the editorial process; it is used to inform readers about the authorship and editing of content; it enables collecting aggregated data on readership behaviours, as well as tracking geopolitical and social elements of scholarly communication.

This journal’s editorial team uses this data to guide its work in publishing and improving this journal. Data that will assist in developing this journal platform (Open Journal Systems – OJS) may be shared with its developer Public Knowledge Project (PKP) in an anonymized and aggregated form, with appropriate exceptions such as article metrics. The data will not be sold by this journal or PKP nor will it be used for purposes other than those stated here.

Registered Users

Users who register with this journal, including authors and peer reviewers where applicable, consent to having their personal information stored in the University’s journal hosting platform (OJS) and processed by the platform and journal editorial teams. Authors published in this journal are also responsible for the human subject data that figures in the research reported in the journal.

Those involved in editing this journal seek to be compliant with industry standards for data privacy, including the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) provision for “data subject rights” that include (a) breach notification; (b) right of access; (c) the right to be forgotten; (d) data portability; and (e) privacy by design. The GDPR also allows for the recognition of “the public interest in the availability of the data,” which has a particular saliency for those involved in maintaining, with the greatest integrity possible, the public record of scholarly publishing.

All users whose details are stored in the University’s OJS installation can exercise their rights of the individual, as they are detailed in the GDPR.

If you have a user account and wish to have it deleted, please email journal-hosting@st-andrews.ac.uk