In search for a balance: the authorship structure of the journal “Sotsiologicheskie issledovaniya” [Sociological Studies] (2014–2023)

The article deals with the problems of selection and formation of the authorship of the journal Sotsiologicheskie Issledovaniya [Sociological Studies] (SocIs). The parameters of their scientific and official statuses, affiliation with research organizations and educational institutions, gender mix, regional and international affiliation are used as the basis for the analyzing publication activity of the authors of the journal for the period 2014–2023. A comparative retrospective analysizing of the above parameters for the first and last (current) decades of the journal’s functioning was also carried out. On the basis of the analysis of formal indicators of effectiveness and efficiency of the Russian Science Citation Index (RSCI) the special leading place of SocIs in the hierarchy of domestic periodicals of sociological profile was stated. The long-term traditions and trends in the work of the journal’s editorial staff, related to the realization of a balanced approach to the selection and attraction of promising researchers to publications, are revealed. The conclusion is made about the journal’s publication accessibility for both high-level professionals and beginner researchers, as well as about the broad thematic, regional, and international orientation of the published materials. In general, the authors’ composition of the journal to a certain extent represents the national sociological community with all its achievements and problems.