ISSRC Blog

The International Journal of Rural Criminology (IJRC) is a double blind peer-reviewed journal dedicated to publishing empirical and theoretical work related to crime and criminal justice issues associated with diverse rural places of the world. It is fully open access.

The IJRC now serves as the official organ of the International Society for the Study of Rural Crime; the American Society of Criminology’s Division of Rural Criminology; and the Rural Crime Working Group of the European Society of Criminology.

You’ll find the history of the journal here. And the focus and scope of the journal here.

IJRC provides opportunity for peer-reviewed submissions in a number of forms:

• full length articles
• research notes
• reviews
• And an exciting new addition is ‘Police and Practice: Notes from the field’ allowing for practical insights from those outside of academia

“Rural criminology” has become the established term for the growing body of multi- and cross-disciplinary scholarship, and the IJRC welcomes submissions which explore:

• theories of rurality and crime
• space and place data collection and methodologies associated with the challenges of rural research
• rural offending
• criminal justice processes, institutions and policy
• rural policing
• crime prevention
• practices that seeks solutions to rural crime and the security of rural peoples and rural communities
• and other related topics

Visit the IJRC website to find out more – and to register as a reader; author if you wish to submit at some stage; and as a reviewer if you are keen to contribute in this way.

Download the flier for the Journal!

Visit the IJRC website!

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IJRC instructions

To register: go to the Journal’s website. On the menu bar (about in the center), click on “register.” The windows with an asterisk are required (username, password, repeat password, first name, last name, email, and confirm email). Both the username and password must be in letters (alphanumeric) only and you cannot skip any spaces (important to know if you use your name).

It is appreciated if you also fill out affiliation, url (if applicable), mailing address, country, short biostatement, and working languages. Very important: when you “register as”, the default is “reader”. Please also click on “author” and “reviewer”, and a short list of topics on which you are willing to be a reviewer. Then, click register.

Go to the IJRC webpage and log in to make sure your username and password work.

To submit an article: On the right side of the User Home page, you can see your history (if any) of previous submissions as an author or as a reviewer. To the right of this summary of roles, in blue lettering, are the words “new submission.” Click on this, and then begin the five step process:

(1) start by selecting a section for your manuscript (there are four from which to select – full length article, research note, policy and practice: notes from the field, and reviews), then go through the submission checklist, followed by the copyright notice (don’t forget to click the “authors agree” box), then consider adding comments for the editor (not necessary/optional), and finally, click on save and continue;

(2) choose file and upload your submission, then click save and continue;

(3) enter or revise any of the metadata (the metadata is taken from your original registration). It is here that you can add co-authors, plus you should add in the manuscript title and abstract, followed by3-5 keywords, and if it applies, enter any contributors and supporting agencies. Then, click save and continue;

(4) the fourth step is for uploading supplementary files. There is a brief explanation of possible supplementary files. Most who submit will not have anything extra to upload, but it is an option, just in case. Click save and continue; and

(5) confirm the submission by clicking “finish submission.” At that point, the submission is complete and the web page thanks you for your interest in IJRC.

IJRC instructions for authors who are resubmitting after revisions to the first draft

Go to the IJRC webpage and log in. It shows that you are an author, and will even tell you how many you have submitted (although it will rarely be more than “1”). Click on the title of your manuscript, which will take you to the summary page. Click on review, which is in blue lettering and immediately below a number that is the designation for your manuscript.  Scroll down to “editor decision”. It is there that you will choose your revised file/manuscripts and upload it back into the IJRC system.

IJRC instructions for reviewers

You can go to the IJRC webpage after receiving an invitation to review, log in, and it shows that you are a reviewer, and will even tell you how many others you are reviewing (ex. — “1 active”). If you click on reviewer, you can go the title, and it is there that you accept to be a reviewer. Then, the manuscript can be downloaded and so too, the review form (steps 1 and 2).

Once you submit your review, you can also submit a recommendation. You can do this by going to step 3 (review form) and entering your comments. You also have the option of adding a file (step 4) with additional comments (choose file and then upload). Step 5 is a recommendation. Once you make your recommendation, you then click on submit review.