100 Years of Social Forces as seen through Bibliometric Publication Patterns

Abstract

Abstract The 100th anniversary of Social Forces provides a rich opportunity to reflect on the history of the journal and changes to sociology as a whole. Using a series of formal text-analytic methods, we describe the shifting intellectual landscape of Social Forces publications. We uncover a wide diversity of topics that shift over time reflecting the breadth of interests engaging sociologists as Social Forces grew into one of the discipline’s premier journals. In addition to shifts in content, we examine changes in sociological work during this century. We find that articles have generally become more interdisciplinary, while being produced by larger, more gender inclusive and globalized teams. We examine both the most cited papers in Social Forces as well as factors associated with greater recognition. The overall story implied by these explorations suggests a vibrant journal that has shaped the way that sociology has worked over the last 100 years.