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The Journal of Happiness Studies: An Interdisciplinary Forum on Subjective Well-Being is a peer-reviewed interdisciplinary academic journal devoted to the scientific analysis of subjective well-being, life satisfaction, and human happiness. Established in 2000 by well-being researchers Ed Diener, Alex Michalos, and Ruut Veenhoven, it serves as a central forum bridging empirical psychology, economics, philosophy, and social policy. For researchers preparing a manuscript submission, evaluating bibliometrics, or verifying indexing credentials, understanding its editorial policies, submission systems, and publishing economics is essential.
What It Is
The Journal of Happiness Studies publishes conceptual and empirical investigations into how individuals and societies evaluate and experience well-being. Published under the Springer Nature imprint (originally founded with Kluwer Academic Publishers), the journal holds registered International Standard Serial Numbers of ISSN 1389-4978 (print) and ISSN 1573-7780 (electronic). It is cataloged in the United States National Library of Medicine under NLM Unique ID 100909039 with the Medline title abbreviation J Happiness Stud, and maintains extensive Crossref DOI assignment with more than 2,270 registered scholarly works.
Conceptually, the journal addresses two core dimensions of well-being research:
- Hedonic Perspectives: Affective experiences, emotional balance, mood states, and the presence of positive emotions alongside the regulation of negative affect.
- Eudaimonic Perspectives: Cognitive evaluations of life satisfaction, personal growth, flourishing, and perceived purpose or meaning in life.
The publication is formally affiliated with the International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies (ISQOLS), aligning with research initiatives that develop subjective indicators of human progress beyond economic metrics.
Who Runs It and What It Covers
The journal is published by Springer Nature, with editorial operations directed by Editor-in-Chief Antonella Delle Fave (University of Milan) alongside an international editorial board. Its scope encompasses several core disciplines:
- Psychology: Social psychology, personality, positive psychology, and emotional regulation across the lifespan.
- Economics: Subjective well-being economics, income-happiness relationships (including the Easterlin paradox), and welfare metrics.
- Sociology & Demography: Quality of life across population groups, family dynamics, and cross-national life satisfaction comparisons.
- Philosophy & Ethics: Conceptualizations of the “good life”, virtue ethics, and utilitarian well-being frameworks.
- Public Health: Mental health resilience and health-related quality of life.
Bibliometrically, Crossref records show steady annual output: 160 articles in 2025, 125 in 2024, 96 in 2023, 125 in 2022, 148 in 2021, and 122 in 2020. OpenAlex catalog records list 2,284 total works, over 159,000 total citations, an h-index of 181, and a 2-year mean citedness metric of 5.49. Indexing includes the Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Scopus (consistently in Quartile 1 for relevant social science domains), CWTS Leiden Core, ERIH PLUS, JUFO Level 2, and the Norwegian Register Level 1.
The journal operates under a hybrid open access model with two publication options:
- Subscription Model: Authors publish with zero author-facing fees. Articles are made available to institutional subscribers on the SpringerLink journals platform, with green open access self-archiving permitted under publisher guidelines.
- Gold Open Access (Springer Open Choice): Immediate open access under a Creative Commons license upon payment of an Article Processing Charge (APC) of $3,490 USD / €2,790 EUR / £2,490 GBP, frequently covered by institutional transformative agreements.
How to Search or Use It
Interacting with the Journal of Happiness Studies involves navigating publisher discovery tools and modern submission systems:
- Accessing Literature on SpringerLink: Visit the official journal archive on SpringerLink to browse volumes from 2000 to the present, utilizing search filters for keywords, publication dates, and open access licenses.
- Navigating the Submission Portal Migration: Identify the correct editorial portal. While historical submissions and active revisions were processed through Aries Editorial Manager (
editorialmanager.com/johs/), all new submissions route through the Springer Nature Article Processing Platform (SNAPP) atsubmission.nature.com/new-submission/10902/3. - Account Authentication: Log into the platform with your Springer Nature ID or authenticate via linked ORCID credentials.
- Manuscript Preparation: Format the text adhering strictly to APA reference style. Submissions require a structured abstract (under 250 words), 4 to 6 keywords, funding disclosures, and data availability statements.
- File Upload: Upload the primary manuscript file (Word or LaTeX) alongside separate figure files (TIFF or EPS format at required resolution) and supplementary files.
- Metadata Entry: Complete form fields for article title, abstract text, author affiliations, and CRediT contributor taxonomy roles.
- Reviewer Suggestions: Suggest 3 to 4 independent peer reviewers with appropriate subject-matter expertise and institutional email addresses.
- Publishing Model Selection: Choose between traditional subscription publishing (zero fee) or Open Choice open access (with APC or institutional waiver).
- PDF Proof Verification: Inspect the auto-generated PDF proof for layout fidelity before submitting the final package to the editorial office.
Strengths and Limits
Key strengths include:
- Foundational Prestige: Established in 2000 as one of the earliest dedicated forums in well-being science.
- Interdisciplinary Scope: Accommodates diverse methodological traditions across psychology, philosophy, and economics.
- Societal Affiliation: Formal ties to the International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies (ISQOLS) provide strong academic community integration.
- Comprehensive Indexing: Inclusion in SSCI, Scopus Q1, and CWTS Core satisfies global institutional research evaluation criteria.
- No Mandatory Fees: The hybrid model guarantees an entirely free publishing route for authors without grant funding.
Key limits include:
- High Open Access APC: At $3,490 USD, the Open Choice APC is costly without institutional transformative agreement coverage.
- Single-Anonymized Peer Review: The journal employs a single-anonymized peer review process, where reviewers know author identities.
- Submission System Transition: Managing revisions in Editorial Manager while directing new manuscripts to SNAPP requires careful routing.
- Competitive Selectivity: High submission volumes generate substantial desk-rejection rates for ungrounded empirical studies.
Alternatives
The following table compares the Journal of Happiness Studies with related peer-reviewed journals in well-being and quality-of-life research:
| Journal Title | Publisher | Primary Focus | Publishing Model | Society Affiliation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Journal of Happiness Studies | Springer Nature | Subjective well-being, hedonic and eudaimonic happiness, life satisfaction | Hybrid (Open Choice $3,490 / Free Subscription) | ISQOLS (Affiliated Journal) |
| Social Indicators Research | Springer Nature | Societal measurement, social indicators, demographic quality-of-life trends | Hybrid (Open Choice / Free Subscription) | ISQOLS (Affiliated Journal) |
| Applied Research in Quality of Life | Springer Nature | Empirical, intervention-focused and policy-oriented quality-of-life research | Hybrid (Open Choice / Free Subscription) | ISQOLS (Official Journal) |
| The Journal of Positive Psychology | Routledge (Taylor & Francis) | Positive psychological traits, character strengths, and flourishing | Hybrid (Open Select / Free Subscription) | Independent / Academic Board |
| Quality of Life Research | Springer Nature | Health-related quality of life, patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) | Hybrid (Open Choice / Free Subscription) | ISOQOL (Official Journal) |
FAQ
Is the Journal of Happiness Studies peer reviewed?
Yes. All original empirical articles, theoretical papers, and review manuscripts undergo rigorous single-anonymized peer review overseen by Section Editors and the Editor-in-Chief.
What is the impact factor of the Journal of Happiness Studies?
The journal holds a Clarivate Journal Citation Reports impact factor typically between 3.7 and 3.9, with OpenAlex recording a 2-year mean citedness metric of 5.49 and an h-index of 181. It is indexed in Scopus in Quartile 1 for relevant social science categories.
Does the Journal of Happiness Studies charge publication fees?
No mandatory fees are required. Under the traditional subscription model, authors publish free of charge. Authors selecting Gold Open Access via Springer Open Choice incur an APC of $3,490 USD / €2,790 EUR / £2,490 GBP, which may be covered by institutional transformative agreements.
Where should new manuscripts be submitted?
New manuscripts must be submitted via the Springer Nature Article Processing Platform (SNAPP) portal at submission.nature.com/new-submission/10902/3. The legacy Aries Editorial Manager site handles revisions for earlier submissions only.
How does the journal define subjective well-being?
The journal conceptualizes subjective well-being through both hedonic aspects (positive affect, emotional balance, and absence of distress) and eudaimonic aspects (meaning in life, flourishing, and cognitive life satisfaction).
Sources
- OpenAlex API. “Source Record S202734349: Journal of Happiness Studies.” Accessed November 9, 2026. https://api.openalex.org/sources?filter=issn:1389-4978
- Crossref. “Journal Record: Journal of Happiness Studies (ISSN 1389-4978).” Accessed November 9, 2026. https://api.crossref.org/journals/1389-4978
- United States National Library of Medicine. “NLM Catalog: Journal of happiness studies (NLM ID 100909039).” Accessed November 9, 2026. https://eutils.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/eutils/esummary.fcgi?db=nlmcatalog&id=100909039
- International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies (ISQOLS). “Affiliated Journals Directory: Journal of Happiness Studies.” Accessed November 9, 2026. https://www.isqols.org/Affiliated-Journals
- Aries Systems & Springer Nature. “Journal of Happiness Studies Editorial and Submission Portal.” Accessed November 9, 2026. https://www.editorialmanager.com/johs/submit_manuscript.asp
