Open Access journal Palgrave Communications publishes first papers High quality, multidisciplinary journal across the humanities and social sciences launches today

January 20 2014 – Palgrave Communications, the new high quality open access (OA) online-only, multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary journal will publish its first articles today.

The papers, which are all free to access, span a wide range of disciplines including international studies, political science, theatre and performance studies, and operational research.

The first edition of the journal includes a commentary by Dr W. James Jacob, Institute for International Studies in Education, University of Pittsburgh, on interdisciplinary research trends in higher education. This is the first of several articles that will discuss interdisciplinary research, which is much needed to help tackle global challenges such as migration and water scarcity but can be difficult within the traditional culture of academia.

Iain Hrynaszkiewicz, Head of Data and HSS Publishing, Open Research at Nature Publishing Group/Palgrave Macmillan said: “Palgrave Communications was launched in response to demand from academics in the humanities and social sciences and business for a high quality journal that operates a fully open access publishing model, and which promotes interdisciplinary research. We believe that this first batch of papers reflects these goals excellently.”

Palgrave Communications was launched after a global survey of academics in the humanities and social sciences, where 82% said that they would publish OA if the best or most appropriate journal were OA. 68% thought that their specific area of interest would benefit from journals that publish peer-reviewed OA.

Dr Michele Acuto, Senior Lecturer in Global Networks & Diplomacy, Science, Technology, Engineering and Public Policy at University College London said: “As well as being a multi-disciplinary journal, Palgrave Communications is seeking to offer a space for more in-depth and professionalized interdisciplinarity to flourish. The journal offers a venue for different scholarly arenas to connect.

“Developing truly collaborative research takes time and dialogue, but is something we hope Palgrave Communications can help with.”

Palgrave Communications offers immediate, free online dissemination of all published articles via a CC BY license1, and is committed to speedy peer review and publication.

The journal is led by a large international, cross-disciplinary Editorial Board of leading researchers. The full list of editorial board members can be found here. The in-house Managing Editor, who oversees the editorial process, is Gino D’Oca.

Palgrave Communications offers authors an enhanced digital publishing experience with industry- leading features such as article-level metrics, including data from Altmetric, and enhanced article layout and navigation. Palgrave Communications is the first Palgrave Macmillan title to launch on a new publishing platform created by Palgrave Macmillan’s sister company Nature Publishing Group. There are no restrictions on word limits: all articles that conform to the required editorial standards of the journal will be published regardless of length.

-ENDS-

1 Alternative Creative Commons licenses are available to authors on request. Notes to editors

For more information, contact: Amy Bourke Corporate Communications Manager M: +44 (0) 7703717212 T: 020 7843 4603 E: [email protected]

The APC for Palgrave Communications will be GBP £750 (USD $1200) +VAT.

The launch papers can be found here:

News and comment articles

 Palgrave Communications – connecting research in the humanities, social sciences and business Iain Hrynaszkiewicz & Michele Acuto Palgrave Communications 1, Article number: 14006 (2015) doi:10.1057/palcomms.2014.6

 Interdisciplinary trends in higher education W James Jacob Jacob W J (2015). Interdisciplinary trends in higher education. Palgrave Communications 1:15001 doi: 10.1057/palcomms.2015.1.

Original articles

 Chiang Kai-shek’s “secret deal” at Xian and the start of the Sino-Japanese War Steve Tsang Palgrave Communications 1, Article number: 14003 (2015) doi:10.1057/palcomms.20

 From post-BRICS’ decade to post-2015: insights from global governance and comparative regionalisms Timothy M Shaw Palgrave Communications 1, Article number: 14004 (2015) doi:10.1057/palcomms.2014.4

 Theatrical names and reference Michael Y Bennett Palgrave Communications 1, Article number: 14005 (2015) doi:10.1057/palcomms.2014.5

 A study on the state-of-the-art of e-Infrastructures uptake in Africa Fotios Spyridonis, Simon J E Taylor, Pamela Abbott, Roberto Barbera, Amos Nungu, Lars L Gustafsson, Bjorn Pehrson, Omo Oaiya & Tiwonge Banda Palgrave Communications 1, Article number: 14007 (2015) doi:10.1057/palcomms.2014.7

About Palgrave Macmillan Palgrave Macmillan is a global academic and business publisher for the Humanities and Social Sciences (HSS). We are the only boundary-free HSS publisher - working at all lengths and across all business models. From journals, mid-length research and monographs to world-class reference and general non- fiction, Palgrave Macmillan offers readers and authors a single source for the very best in professional learning and scholarship, reaching the maximum readership with works of the highest quality.

As part of Macmillan Science and Education, we represent an unbroken tradition of over 170 years of academic publishing. The Macmillan Group is itself owned by German-based, family run company Verlagsgruppe Georg von Holtzbrinck.