Social psychological research: the comparison of four journals

Abstract

"Every scientific field can be described by its typical research focus or paradigm. These research paradigms or research matrices reflect what is viewed as “normal science” in the respective field. This study aimed to find out what defines the research matrix of the typical Anglo-American social psychology journal versus the typical German social psychology journal and why the “German Journal of Social Psychology”, that was founded in the 1970ies in order to enhance application orientation and theoretical integration in social psychological research, had to resign its publication in German and reappeared in English. Twohundredandthree research articles of 4 different journals, published in either English or German, were rated according to differences in their research paradigms. Structural differences in the profiles of these journals showed that the journals published in English take a rather empirical and quantitative approach towards research while the German journals seem to show a stronger theoretical orientation and a more qualitative research approach. Patterns of the unsuccessful German journal suggest a lack of consistency and individuality compared to the other journals." [author's abstract]