Archives of Sexual Behavior
Archives of Sexual Behavior is a peer-reviewed academic journal dedicated to empirical research on human sexual behavior, gender, and sexuality, founded in 1971 by Richard Green, who served as its editor-in-chief until 2001.[1][2] Currently edited by Kenneth J. Zucker, it is published bimonthly by Springer and functions as the official organ of the International Academy of Sex Research.[1][3] The journal encompasses quantitative and qualitative empirical studies, theoretical reviews, essays, clinical case reports, and letters to the editor, drawing from fields such as psychology, biology, sociology, and anthropology to examine topics including sexual orientation, gender development, alternative sexualities, and paraphilias.[4][3] Its scope prioritizes data-driven investigations over unsubstantiated assertions, contributing to sexology by disseminating findings that often test causal mechanisms underlying sexual phenomena.[5] With an impact factor of 2.9 as of 2024 and a history of substantial growth—handling 706 submissions in 2020 alone—it ranks among established outlets for behavioral science, having expanded from modest origins to over 4,100 published entries.[3][2][6] Defining characteristics include a commitment to methodological rigor amid a field prone to ideological influences, as evidenced by internal critiques of how excessive emphasis on linguistic sensitivity can impede inquiry into politically sensitive questions.[5] The journal has faced notable controversies, including attempted retractions of papers on conversion therapy efficacy and rapid-onset gender dysphoria, where empirical conclusions clashed with activist demands, illustrating broader tensions between evidence-based scholarship and institutional pressures favoring conformity over causal analysis.[2][7] These episodes highlight its role in sustaining truth-oriented discourse in an academic environment where left-leaning biases in sexology research institutions can skew source selection and interpretation toward non-empirical priors.[5]Journal Fundamentals
Aims, Scope, and Editorial Mission
Archives of Sexual Behavior serves as the official publication of the International Academy of Sex Research (IASR), dedicated to disseminating scientific research on sex, gender, and sexuality across diverse disciplines such as anthropology, biology, history, law, medicine, psychiatry, psychology, and sociology.[4][8] The journal's scope encompasses quantitative and qualitative empirical studies, theoretical reviews, essays, clinical case reports, and letters to the editor, addressing topical areas including abuse, coercion, and consent; alternative sexualities; cross-cultural studies; gender development and diversity; mating psychology; paraphilias; sexual orientation; sexual dysfunctions; and sexually transmitted infections.[4] The editorial mission emphasizes rigorous, data-driven scholarship to advance empirical understanding of sexual behavior, prioritizing high-quality submissions that uphold research integrity and ethical standards.[9] Under incoming Editor-in-Chief Michael C. Seto, effective January 1, 2027, the journal commits to fostering open science practices, such as pre-registration, data sharing, and transparent methods reporting, while addressing challenges like questionable research practices and artificial intelligence misuse in submissions.[9] It supports exploration of controversial topics through diverse, evidence-based perspectives, alongside efforts to include early-career scholars and promote inclusivity in authorship and editorial processes, though academic fields like sexology exhibit systemic biases that may influence topic selection and framing.[9] This mission aligns with IASR's broader objective to promote the scientific study of sexuality via peer-reviewed publication and annual meetings, ensuring contributions contribute verifiably to knowledge accumulation rather than ideological advocacy.[8]Publication Format and Accessibility
Archives of Sexual Behavior is published by Springer Nature in both print and electronic formats, with the print ISSN 0004-0002 and electronic ISSN 1573-2800.[3] Articles are accessible online via SpringerLink in HTML and PDF formats, supporting features such as supplementary materials and online-first publication prior to formal issue assignment.[10] The journal appears bimonthly, releasing six issues per volume annually, as evidenced by consistent volume structures on the publisher's platform.[11] Full access to content requires a subscription or institutional access through SpringerLink, with non-subscribers facing paywalls for articles behind subscription barriers.[3] It operates as a hybrid open access journal, allowing authors to opt for immediate open access publication under a Creative Commons license (typically CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) via Springer Open Choice, subject to article processing charges determined post-acceptance; no mandatory page charges apply otherwise.[10] Members of the International Academy of Sex Research (IASR), the journal's sponsoring organization, receive complimentary online access to all content as a membership benefit.[12] Abstracts and select open access articles remain freely available to the public, enhancing partial accessibility without subscription.[3]Historical Foundations
Founding and Initial Development (1971–1980s)
The Archives of Sexual Behavior was established in 1971 as a peer-reviewed journal dedicated to empirical and theoretical research on human sexual behavior, orientation, and related psychological and biological phenomena.[2] Richard Green, M.D., J.D., a psychiatrist and sexologist at UCLA, served as its founding editor, shaping its initial editorial direction toward rigorous scientific inquiry amid a field often marginalized by societal taboos.[13] The journal's inaugural volume comprised four issues totaling 374 pages, published by Plenum Press in New York, with the first article examining responses to pornography among rapists, pedophiles, homosexuals, transsexuals, and controls.[2] [14] In its early years, the journal faced logistical challenges typical of nascent publications in controversial domains, including limited submissions that delayed Volume 2's release across 1972–1973.[15] Green, drawing from his clinical work—including pioneering transgender surgeries at UCLA—prioritized multidisciplinary contributions from psychology, psychiatry, and biology, establishing the journal as an outlet for data-driven studies rather than ideological advocacy.[16] By the mid-1970s, it solidified ties with the International Academy of Sex Research (IASR), which Green proposed formalizing in 1972 via outreach to the editorial board; the academy adopted the journal as its official organ, enhancing its institutional credibility.[17] Through the 1980s, publication frequency stabilized, reflecting gradual growth in the sexology community's output despite external pressures like funding constraints and ethical debates over human subjects research.[15] Green's editorial tenure emphasized empirical validation over anecdotal reports, fostering advancements in areas such as sexual deviance classification and behavioral interventions, though the journal's scope remained constrained by the era's small pool of specialized researchers.[13] This period laid the groundwork for its reputation as a cornerstone of objective sex research, predating broader institutional influences that later amplified certain interpretive biases in the field.Ownership Transitions and Expansion (1990s–Present)
In 1998, Plenum Publishing Corporation, the original publisher of Archives of Sexual Behavior since its founding in 1971, was acquired by Wolters Kluwer NV for approximately $258 million, resulting in the journal being published under the Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers imprint.[18][19] This transition integrated the journal into Wolters Kluwer's expanding portfolio of scientific and medical publications, which emphasized consolidation in academic publishing during the late 1990s.[20] In 2004, Springer Science+Business Media was formed through the merger of Springer-Verlag and Kluwer Academic Publishers, transferring ownership of Archives of Sexual Behavior to the new entity, which has continued to publish it from New York under Springer New York.[21] This merger reflected broader industry trends toward scale in scholarly publishing, enabling enhanced distribution and digital infrastructure for journals like Archives of Sexual Behavior.[22] Since then, the journal has remained under Springer's ownership, with no further major ownership changes reported as of 2025. Parallel to these transitions, the journal underwent significant expansion in output and reach. Annual page counts grew from approximately 374 pages in 1971 to 3,088 pages in 2020, an 8.25-fold increase attributable to rising submission volumes and broader empirical interest in sexology.[2] New submissions reached 706 in 2020 alone, reflecting expanded editorial capacity post-2004 under Springer, which facilitated online accessibility and indexing improvements.[2] Publication frequency increased to eight issues per year by 2013, up from earlier quarterly or bimonthly schedules, supporting greater throughput of peer-reviewed research on sexual behavior, gender, and related topics.[23] These developments coincided with digital migration, enhancing global dissemination while maintaining the journal's affiliation with the International Academy of Sex Research.[3]Editorial Governance
Succession of Editors-in-Chief
Richard Green served as the founding Editor-in-Chief of Archives of Sexual Behavior from its inception in 1971 until 2001, establishing the journal as a primary outlet for empirical research in sexology.[1][24] Kenneth J. Zucker succeeded Green in 2002, leading the journal through a period of expanded submissions—from 80 new manuscripts annually at the start of his tenure to over 1,000 by 2017—and increased publication volume, reflecting growth in the field's research output.[2][25] In 2025, Michael C. Seto was appointed as the incoming Editor-in-Chief, with Zucker continuing until the end of a planned transition period on December 31, 2026, after which Seto's term officially begins on January 1, 2027; this handover aims to maintain continuity while introducing Seto's vision for advancing rigorous, data-driven inquiry into sexual behavior.[9] The succession has been characterized by appointments aligned with the journal's affiliation to the International Academy of Sex Research, prioritizing expertise in clinical and empirical sexology without interruption in editorial leadership.[2]| Editor-in-Chief | Term |
|---|---|
| Richard Green | 1971–2001 |
| Kenneth J. Zucker | 2002–2026 |
| Michael C. Seto | 2027–present |
Role of the International Academy of Sex Research
The International Academy of Sex Research (IASR), founded in 1975, adopted Archives of Sexual Behavior as its official journal in 1985, establishing a formal sponsorship that aligns the publication with the society's mandate to advance rigorous, empirical scholarship on human sexuality.[26] This affiliation positions IASR as the overseeing body responsible for promoting the journal's role in disseminating high-quality, interdisciplinary research, distinct from more advocacy-oriented sexology outlets. Membership benefits include subscription access to Archives of Sexual Behavior, ensuring that IASR's approximately 300 fellows and members—elected based on peer-recognized contributions—form a core readership and contributor base.[8][3] In terms of editorial governance, IASR exerts influence by endorsing the journal's commitment to methodological soundness and causal inference in studies of sexual behavior, gender differences, and related phenomena, countering tendencies toward unsubstantiated theoretical claims prevalent in some academic circles. While publisher Springer handles operational aspects such as peer review logistics, IASR's designation of the journal implies advisory input on maintaining scientific standards, as evidenced by announcements of editor-in-chief transitions that reference the society's imprimatur.[9] For instance, incoming editor Michael C. Seto, appointed effective 2025, emphasized priorities like research integrity and open science in alignment with IASR's foundational goals of empirical prioritization over ideological conformity.[27] IASR fellows frequently participate as associate editors or reviewers, leveraging their expertise to uphold replicability and data-driven conclusions.[1] This sponsorship enhances the journal's credibility within specialized networks, as IASR's election criteria—requiring demonstrated excellence in sex research—filter for contributors less prone to systemic biases observed in broader academia, such as overreliance on self-reported surveys without biological validation. Historical records indicate that IASR's adoption of the journal in 1985 followed its founding editor Richard Green's involvement in both entities, reinforcing a continuity of focus on verifiable sexual science amid evolving field dynamics.[17]Academic Metrics and Indexing
Abstracting and Citation Databases
Archives of Sexual Behavior is abstracted and indexed in numerous databases, enhancing its visibility in academic searches and supporting citation analysis for scholarly impact assessment.[3] Key citation databases include Scopus, the Social Science Citation Index (part of Web of Science), and PsycINFO, which track publications for metrics such as the SCImago Journal Rank and Journal Impact Factor.[3] These inclusions reflect the journal's established role in behavioral and social sciences literature on sexuality.[3] The journal is also covered in biomedical and psychological abstracting services like MEDLINE (via PubMed), Biological Abstracts, and PsycINFO, allowing researchers in clinical, developmental, and health-related fields to access its content.[3] Additional indexing in EBSCO, ProQuest, and Dimensions provides broad multidisciplinary coverage, while services such as Google Scholar enable open web-based discovery and citation counting.[3]| Database Category | Examples |
|---|---|
| Citation and Impact Metrics | Scopus, Social Science Citation Index, Dimensions[3] |
| Biomedical and Life Sciences | MEDLINE, Biological Abstracts, BIOSIS[3] |
| Psychology and Social Sciences | PsycINFO, Psyndex, Current Contents/Social & Behavioral Sciences[3] |
| General and Multidisciplinary | EBSCO, ProQuest, Google Scholar, OCLC WorldCat Discovery Service[3] |