First vs. second vs. third tier journal and impact factor

[Marissa4usa]

Hi all,
this is more a curiosity question than anything else.
I get the basic idea that the higher a journal's IF, the better for your CV if you manage to get your manuscript published in that journal. But then people talk about first tier, second tier, etc. How do you decide what is a first or second tier journal? Does the journal need to have a certain IF to be considered a first tier journal or does it come down whether you 'feel' something is a first tier journal?

I'm asking because I noticed that while in my field a lot of well-known researchers obviously publish in journals with a high IF, I can think of several journals that have a really low IF (i.e. below 1.0 which I was informed is 'bad'), but consistently publish manuscripts of those same well known researchers. And although I'm certainly not an expert on each topic, those studies for the most part seem equally well thought out and important as those in journals with a high IF. I also see papers from these low IF journals cited almost as frequently as papers from high IF journals. This made me wonder, are those calculations of IF really accurate?

I know that a manuscript needs to be a good fit for a journal. I noticed that in my area of interest, journals that focus on the applied aspect in the field, generally have a higher IF than journals that focus more the basic science aspect. Ultimately, that means if I'm more interested in researching the basic science aspect, I'll be 'doomed' to publish in low IF journals which won't look as good on my CV.

Am I missing something essential here?

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[Corona21]

I don't know if this helps, because I am also quite new to the idea of journal classifications based on multiple parameters. However, a quick google search provided this link : http://psychology.wikia.com/wiki/Impact_factors_of_psychology_journals

 

[futureapppsy2]

To be honest, I think the presence of online databases are reducing the actual "impact" of IF in terms of citations and being read, although probably not in terms of CV cred. YMMV.

 

[Ollie123]

To be honest, I think the presence of online databases are reducing the actual "impact" of IF in terms of citations and being read, although probably not in terms of CV cred. YMMV.

Very true, at least within reason. Journals that aren't indexed are still largely for lengthening one's CV rather than making a legit contribution to the field. Yet any differences in the likelihood of an article being cited if it is in a divisional APA journal instead of say, Abnormal or JCCP, is probably very minimal at best.

As for how to tell, there's no magic list somewhere, its just a general sense. Abnormal = Great. Journal of Clinical Psychology = okay, Cyberpsychology & Behavior = Embarrassing. Your mentor should be teaching you these things when you are preparing articles, but honestly when in doubt just read the thing.

Two minutes flipping through Abnormal or JCCP and it should be immediately obvious to anyone with any kind of research background its a "strong" journal. 2 minutes of flipping through Cyberpsychology & Behavior, it should be clear that as long as you fit vaguely within the scope and the majority of the words in your manuscript are real - you can publish there.

People may also distinguish by breadth of the journal. For example a "Tier 1" psychology journal is still probably Tier 2 in the grand scheme of things - but its likely the best many of us can hope to achieve in our field. Its also hard to compare impact factors across fields. Many medical journals are known to have a MUCH easier review process than the typical APA journal despite being higher impact. Psychology IFs trend low in the overall scheme of things - I can submit to mid-tier journals in my subfield that are equal or higher than many of the "best" psychology journals (this just refers to narrow specialty journals, not Nature/Science type papers).

 

[Student2222]

When applying to PhD Clinical Programs straight from undergrad, will published articles in low tier journals still hold weight? I published my first paper in a journal with a low impact factor and I just wanted to know if this will still help to make me competitive for applications.

 

[Member6523]

Shooting for journals with IF over 2 is a good goal. Also aim for journals that are sponsored by APA. Neuropsychology has its own special set of journals with top articles usually going to neuroscience journals or Neuropsychology/Neuropsychologia, mid-articles to JINS, JCEN, ACN, TCN, etc...and the bottom articles...well, no comment on that. If you specialize in another area like health, geriatrics, peds, etc...I'm sure there's a similar microcosm of rank.

Student2222, I think any peer-reviewed pub at the undergrad level is solid work and should make you stand out from your competitors...