Political Insight
Political Insight provides a window to the world on all aspects of research in politics. This full-colour magazine is written for everyone with an interest in politics. International both in the scope of issues it covers and in the sources it draws from, Political Insight aims to present research into politics and international studies to a broad audience in an entertaining and engaging way.
The magazine includes articles on a wide variety of topics such as human rights, the causes of terrorism, recent innovations in policy-making across the advanced industrial world, the impact of globalisation on politics and society, the changing nature of democracy, and much more.
The PSA acknowledges the prevalence of systemic bias and unequal power dynamics within academia and publishing. The PSA believes that the promotion of equality and diversity should be core values for the practice of politics as well as the study, teaching and writing of politics. We are passionate about supporting inclusion in the academy and wider society through our publishing activities.
Working with our journal editors and publishing partner SAGE, we are doing this by:
- Publishing and amplifying content from diverse, global perspectives, including women, scholars of colour, LGBTQIA+ people, disabled people, and historically marginalised communities.
- Working to increase diversity of our journals’ editorial boards, peer review processes and author bases.
- Ensuring that our content and communications are inclusive and accessible, challenging bias and stereotypes.
Read more about the PSA’s commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion
Read more about the minimum standards for inclusion and diversity for scholarly publishing developed by the RSC cross-publisher group (which includes SAGE as a member)
Political Insight provides a window to the world on all aspects of research in politics. This full-colour magazine is written for everyone with an interest in politics. International both in the scope of issues it covers and in the sources it draws from, Political Insight aims to present research into politics and international studies to a broad audience in an entertaining and engaging way.
The magazine includes articles on a wide variety of topics such as human rights, the causes of terrorism, recent innovations in policy-making across the advanced industrial world, the impact of globalisation on politics and society, the changing nature of democracy, and much more.
| Peter Geoghegan | (UK) |
| Tim Bale | Queen Mary University, UK |
| Rafael Behr | The Guardian, UK |
| Neil Collins | University College Cork, Ireland |
| Kate Dommett | University of Sheffield, UK |
| Claire Dunlop | University of Exeter, UK |
| Catherine Haddon | Institute for Government, UK |
| Skyler Hawkins | Newcastle University, UK |
| Katy Hayward | Queen’s University Belfast, UK |
| Ailsa Henderson | University of Edinburgh, UK |
| Charlie Jeffrey | University of Edinburgh, UK |
| Will Jennings | University of Southampton, UK |
| Umut Korkut | Glasgow Caledonian University, UK |
| Andrew Massey | International School for Government, Kings College London, UK |
| Ailbhe Rea | Politico, UK |
| Indrajit Roy | University of York, UK |
| Diana Stirbu | London Metropolitan University, UK |
| Luciano Bardi | Universita di Pisa, Italy |
| Andrew Gamble | University of Sheffield, UK |
| Robert Goodin | Australian National University, Australia |
| Zhu Guanglei | University of Nankai, China |
| Ian Holliday | The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China |
| Ira Katznelson | Columbia University, USA |
| Martha Kearney | British Broadcasting Corporation, UK |
| Gupreet Mahajan | Jawaharlal Nehru University, India |
| Pippa Norris | Harvard University, USA |
| Rasul Bakhsh Rais | Lahore University of Management Sciences, Pakistan |
| Rod Rhodes | University of Southampton, UK |
- Article types
- Preparing your manuscript
2.1 Word processing formats
2.2 Artwork, figures and other graphics
2.3 Reference style
2.4 Other Conventions - Editorial Policies
3.1 Review policy
3.2 Authorship
3.3 Acknowledgments
3.4 Declaration of conflicting interests
3.5 Data - Publishing Policies
4.1 Publication Ethics
4.2 Contributor's publishing agreement
4.3 Permissions - Submitting your manuscript
5.1 How to submit your manuscript
5.2 Title, keywords and abstracts
5.3 Corresponding author contact details - On acceptance and publication
6.1 Access to your published article - Further Information
There are no fees payable to submit or publish in Political Insight.
Please read the guidelines below then submit your article to the Editor at: editor@politicalinsightmagazine.com
Only manuscripts of sufficient quality that meet the aims and scope of Political Insight will be considered.
As part of the submission process you will be required to warrant that you are submitting your original work, that you have the rights in the work, and that you have obtained and can supply all necessary permissions for the reproduction of any copyright works not owned by you, that you are submitting the work for first publication in the Journal and that it is not being considered for publication elsewhere and has not already been published elsewhere. Please see our guidelines on prior publication and note that the journal may accept submissions of papers that have been posted on pre-print servers; please alert the Editorial Office when submitting (contact details are at the end of these guidelines) and include the DOI for the preprint in the designated field in the manuscript submission system. Authors should not post an updated version of their paper on the preprint server while it is being peer reviewed for possible publication in the journal. If the article is accepted for publication, the author may re-use their work according to the journal's author archiving policy.
If your paper is accepted, you must include a link on your preprint to the final version of your paper.
Feature articles will normally be in the range of 2000–2500 words and should include tables, charts, graphs and diagrams wherever possible. Columns such as ‘country focus’, ‘in focus’, ‘research methods’, ‘research impact’, ‘debates’, ‘controversy’ and ‘author meets critic’ and opinion pieces will normally be in the range 800-2000 words. All word counts will be agreed with the editor prior to commissioning.
Authors are encouraged to supply or make suggestions for suitable illustrative material, including cartoons and colour photographs and simple, interesting graphics, tables, graphs and pie-charts.
Submission must be in electronic form, by e-mail as a Word attachment. Submissions will only be considered in English.
Submission must be in electronic form, by e-mail as a Word attachment.
All submissions must be accompanied by a 20 to 50 word summary paragraph explaining the article’s argument in clear, concise language. Authors should also include a brief biography and details of major publications up to a maximum of 25 words.
2.2 Artwork, figures and other graphics
Suggestions for illustrations are especially welcome. We are looking for any appropriate material – for example, photos, cartoons, drawings, maps, graphs, charts, tables. We like to have at least two illustrations per page. Please also supply a detailed caption. The use of tables and graphs is encouraged. All graphs and tables must have a clear, self-explanatory title, including information on any units of measurement. Scales on graphs should be carefully chosen and axes must be clearly labelled. Numbers and percentages should be appropriately rounded.
The most striking illustrations qualify for consideration for publication on the cover.
It is preferable that illustrations are submitted electronically. Note that images produced for the web are not normally suitable. We require high resolution images (300 dpi or greater) as separate graphic files. If you have to send hardcopy originals, please send photos. When submitting originals, please indicate which illustrations you wish to be returned to you, and include a self-addressed stamped label or envelope.
Political Insight adheres to the Sage Harvard reference style. Click here to review the guidelines on Sage Harvard to ensure your manuscript conforms to this reference style. References should be kept to a minimum and certainly no more than 5 or 6.
We appreciate that constraints of time may make it difficult for authors to follow all of these rules, especially if they differ markedly from your standard style. However, it would help us greatly in the editing process if you could adhere to them as far as possible.
Spelling
In general, use British rather than American style and spelling. Use -ise spellings (recognise, organise) and British spelling of all other words (labour, labelled, programme).Capitals
Capitals should be used for proper names and for recognised ethnic groups, for example Jews, African-Caribbeans, but lower case should be used for `blacks', `whites', etc. Capitals should be used for Parliament but not for parliamentary and for President but not for presidential.Numerals
One through nine should be spelled, but figures should be used thereafter, unless followed by weight, measure, percent or million/billion. Avoid figures at start of sentences. Where space allows, use per cent (not %). Commas should be used in numerals four digits and over (2,040; 25,300).Dates
Please use the straight-forward 23 April 2010; 1990s; 19th century (noun); 19th-century (adjective).Punctuation
For quotes please use single inverted commas and double inverted commas for a quote within a quote; put the final punctuation outside closing quote unless the quotation forms a finished sentence.
All articles will be reviewed and edited for accessibility, readability and length and to ensure that they are suitable for the intended audience. In most cases, authors will receive article proofs or notification of editorial changes.
All parties who have made a substantive contribution to the article should be listed as authors. Principal authorship, authorship order, and other publication credits should be based on the relative scientific or professional contributions of the individuals involved, regardless of their status. A student is usually listed as principal author on any multiple-authored publication that substantially derives from the student’s dissertation or thesis.
Please note that AI chatbots, for example ChatGPT, should not be listed as authors. For more information see the policy on Use of ChatGPT and generative AI tools
All contributors who do not meet the criteria for authorship should be listed in an Acknowledgements section. Examples of those who might be acknowledged include a person who provided purely technical help, or a department chair who provided only general support.
3.3.1 Third party submissions
Where an individual who is not listed as an author submits a manuscript on behalf of the author(s), a statement must be included in the Acknowledgements section of the manuscript and in the accompanying cover letter. The statements must:
- Disclose this type of editorial assistance – including the individual’s name, company and level of input
- Identify any entities that paid for this assistance
- Confirm that the listed authors have authorized the submission of their manuscript via third party and approved any statements or declarations, e.g. conflicting interests, funding, etc.
Where appropriate, Sage reserves the right to deny consideration to manuscripts submitted by a third party rather than by the authors themselves.
3.4 Declaration of conflicting interests
Political Insight encourages authors to include a declaration of any conflicting interests and recommends you review the good practice guidelines on the Sage Magazine Author Gateway
Sage is committed to upholding the integrity of the academic record. We encourage authors to refer to the Committee on Publication Ethics’ International Standards for Authors and view the Publication Ethics page on the Sage Author Gateway
4.1.1 Plagiarism
Political Insight and Sage take issues of copyright infringement, plagiarism or other breaches of best practice in publication very seriously. We seek to protect the rights of our authors and we always investigate claims of plagiarism or misuse of articles published in the magazine. Equally, we seek to protect the reputation of the magazine against malpractice. Submitted articles may be checked using duplication-checking software. Where an article is found to have plagiarised other work or included third-party copyright material without permission or with insufficient acknowledgement, or where authorship of the article is contested, we reserve the right to take action including, but not limited to: publishing an erratum or corrigendum (correction); retracting the article (removing it from the magazine); taking up the matter with the head of department or dean of the author’s institution and/or relevant academic bodies or societies; banning the author from publication in the magazine or all Sage journals, or appropriate legal action.
4.1.2 Prior publication
If material has been previously published it is not generally acceptable for publication in a Sage journal. However, there are certain circumstances where previously published material can be considered for publication. Please refer to the guidance on the Sage Author Gateway or if in doubt, contact the Editor at the address given below.
4.2 Contributor's publishing agreement
Before publication, Sage requires the author as the rights holder to sign a Contributor’s Publishing Agreement. The Magazine Contributor’s Publishing Agreement is a non-exclusive licence agreement which grants the Political Studies Association the non-exclusive right and licence to produce, publish and make available and to further sub-license the Contribution and the abstract prepared by the author to accompany the Contribution for the full legal term of copyright and any renewals thereof throughout the world in all languages and in all formats, and through any medium of communication now known or later conceived or developed. The author will retain copyright in the work.
Authors are responsible for obtaining permission from copyright holders for reproducing any illustrations, tables, figures or lengthy quotations previously published elsewhere. For further information including guidance on fair dealing for criticism and review, please visit our Frequently Asked Questions on the Sage Journal Author Gateway
5.1 How to submit your manuscript
Please submit your article (in word format) and any additional material (as described above) to the editor at editor@politicalinsightmagazine.com
5.2 Title, keywords and abstracts
Please supply a title, short title, an abstract and keywords to accompany your article. The title, keywords and abstract are key to ensuring readers find your article online through online search engines such as Google. Please refer to the information and guidance on how best to title your article, write your abstract and select your keywords by visiting the Sage Journal Author Gateway for guidelines on How to Help Readers Find Your Article Online
Political Insight shall, at its sole discretion, have the right to change titles.
5.3 Corresponding author contact details
Provide full contact details for the corresponding author including email, mailing address and telephone numbers. Academic affiliations are required for all co-authors. These details should be presented separately to the main text of the article to facilitate anonymous peer review.
6. On acceptance and publication
6.1 Access to your published article
Sage provides authors with online access to their final article.
Any correspondence, queries or additional requests for information on the manuscript submission process should be sent to the Political Insight editorial office as follows:
Editor, Political Insight
editor@politicalinsightmagazine.com