Social Sciences | Call for Special Issue Proposals for the “Contemporary Politics and Society” Section

Social Sciences (ISSN 2076-0760) is an international, open access journal with rapid peer-review which publishes works from a wide range of fields, including anthropology, criminology, economics, education, geography, history, law, linguistics, political science, psychology, social policy, social work, sociology and more.

We are pleased to announce that the “Contemporary Politics and Society” Section of Social Sciences is now launching an open call for Special Issue proposals. Special Issues offer an opportunity for a group of authors to collaborate on a cohesive set of papers addressing an innovative topic. We seek high-quality proposals, which will be evaluated through a competitive, ongoing process throughout the year. We look forward to receiving your proposals.

Proposal theme:

“The Decline of U.S. Empire and the Emergence of a New World System: The Challenges to Individual States and Nations and How They Can, Will, or Must Respond”

The post-Cold War world order is shifting rapidly. The hegemonic position of the United States is declining in most parts of the world. How is this affecting individual countries and regions—from allies and vassals to opponents and enemies? A series of Special Issues will explore how states and societies react to and position themselves in the emerging multi-centric world system. A major focus of this series is the view from a particular state and nation in terms of its economic, security, and cultural realities. How and to what extent are the major actors’ status quo positions undermined and called into question? Who are defenders, and who the challengers of old and new approaches? What are the opportunities and risks for individual states created by the political shifts in world order? What are the major economic and technological driving forces?

We make a call for proposals for Special Issue themes in this larger context. Proposals may include a focus on specific countries and regions or on particular themes such as security architecture, alliance systems, economic structures and organizations, models of capitalism, as well as political and ideological changes.

Proposal requirements:

Proposed Special Issues should present a well‑defined, unifying theme aligned with the scope of the “Contemporary Politics and Society” Section.

Each proposal must include:

A 300–500 word summary explaining the proposed topic’s significance, novelty, and alignment with the journal’s scope;
A set of keywords describing the topic;
A plan for securing high‑quality papers, or a list of at least three planned papers;
A brief resume for each proposed Guest Editor, including title, name, email, affiliation, personal website, and keywords of interest;
A proposed submission deadline (Special Issues typically run for 6–8 months).

Preference will be given to proposals involving an international group of Guest Editors and a few planned papers of high quality.

Guest Editor responsibilities:

Inviting peers to submit papers for publication in your Special Issue (papers benefit from the high visibility of open access publishing, a fast and rigorous peer review process, and immediate publication upon acceptance);
Checking the suitability of abstracts/manuscripts submitted to the Special Issue;
Making pre‑check decisions on whether to send new submissions out for peer review;
Making final acceptance decisions based on peer review outcomes.

Guest Editor privileges:

A certificate of recognition as a Guest Editor of Social Sciences;
The opportunity to publish one feature paper in your own Special Issue;
The ability to offer invited authors discounts on high‑quality papers submitted to your Special Issue;
Travel grant opportunities to attend key conferences;
If the Special Issue is successful and includes at least eight manuscripts following full peer review, the articles will be compiled into a printed book and sent to you as a gift.

Editorial Office support:

The Editorial Office will manage the setup of the Special Issue website, arrange promotional materials, and assist with invitations.

How to submit a proposal:
Proposals can be submitted via the following link: https://www.mdpi.com/journalproposal/sendproposalspecialissue/socsci.