Internationalization & Editorial Practices

Text

Throughout the 2000s, Science Studies grew by both numbers and diversity: as the number of papers sumbitted to the journal increased, range of themes and concerns also expanded. This initiated changes in editorial practices. 

In 2007, the editorial board decided to appoint two editors-in-chief, as Tarja Knuuttila & Sampsa Hyysalo write in a 2007 editorial:

The decision to appoint two editors-in-chief was motivated by the steadily increasing amount of submissions, as well as by the need to retain a good grasp of the range of focal areas that comprise science and technology studies...The change in its editors does not mark a great transition in the focus of the journal. Science Studies continues to be both an international and interdisciplinary journal..."

In 2010, a new editorial arrangement was introduced, with a co-ordinating editor  and a team of editors with differing expertise. Sampsa Hyysalo and Tarja Knuuttila elaborate this arrangement in a 2009 editorial:

In our model the coordinating editor flags and assigns submitted papers that are then adopted by one of the editors who then takes care of the paper until its rejection or final acceptance. We have been glad to observe that this not only spreads the burden of reviewing and pre-screening of papers but also makes editing more enjoyable as each editor can focus more closely on his or her areas of best expertise and interest and that there is a small community within which we can exchange opinions and experience."

An expanded editorial team also facilitated the growing internationalization of Science Studies, as Hyysalo & Knuuttila write in editorials for 2009 (No. 2) and 2010 (No. 2):

Indeed, one of the reasons for opting for a somewhat larger number of editors was to lower the threshold for internationalizing the edition of Science Studies, after all, over 90% of our papers and reviewers come from outside Finland." 

(Hyysalo & Knuuttila: 2009)

The new arrangement is meant to facilitate the internationalization of the editing of Science Studies...With the next issue 1/2011 almost half of our editorial team will come from outside Finland. As this last sentence implicates, our new model is also geared towards increased rotation in editorships, target being 2-4 year posts."

(Hyssalo: 2010)

In 2011, the editorial team welcomed three new editors, as Sampsa Hyysalo writes in the editorial:

...the latest step in the internationalization of Science Studies has been to expand editing beyond Finland. With the present issue we are proud to announce the joining of three new editors: Salla Sariola from Durham University, UK, Brit-Ross Winthereik from IT University of Copenhagen, Denmark and Torben Elgaard Jenssen from Technical University of Denmark"

License

Creative Commons Licence

Contributors

Contributed date

July 28, 2018 - 5:28pm

Critical Commentary

This text explores the growing internationalization efforts of Science & Technology Studies: the transition from its beginnings in Finnish and Nordic science studies to a more European and global STS was reflected in the journal's editorial policies and expansion of the editorial team and board beyond Finland. 

Excerpts from relevant editorials are arranged chronologically to reflect this transition. 

Language

English

Cite as

Anonymous, "Internationalization & Editorial Practices ", contributed by Prerna Srigyan, STS Infrastructures, Platform for Experimental Collaborative Ethnography, last modified 28 July 2018, accessed 28 March 2024. https://stsinfrastructures.org/content/internationalization-editorial-practices