The Journal of Social Science Studies  is an international, peer‑reviewed open‑access academic journal published by Macrothink Institute in the United States. It appears semiannually in its online form, issuing editions in June and December each year. 

The journal promotes scholarly contributions across the full breadth of the social sciences, including—but not limited to—anthropology, archaeology, arts, communication studies, criminology, cultural and ethnic studies, economics, education, geography, history, law, linguistics, management, philosophy, political science, psychology, and sociology. 

Manuscripts submitted to this journal are subject to a double‐blind peer‑review process; both authors and reviewers are kept anonymous. The review involves at least three experts (two external reviewers and an editor) to assess submissions. 

In terms of policy, the journal follows a gold open access model: once published, articles are freely available under a Creative Commons Attribution license. Authors are required to pay an article processing charge (US$100) upon acceptance. 

Its article selection and publication timeline: after submission, within 1‑3 working days authors receive acknowledgment. Following peer review, accepted papers are assigned a Digital Object Identifier (DOI), and published in PDF format online.

The journal is indexed in various scholarly databases including Crossref, CNKI Scholar, Electronic Journals Library, EuroPub, General Impact Factor, Global Impact Factor, Google Scholar Citations, HOLLIS (Harvard Library), and InfoBase Index. 

In terms of strengths, Journal of Social Science Studies offers a broad disciplinary scope, which allows for interdisciplinary contributions and cross‐contextual work. Its open access policy supports wide dissemination and ease of access, which is particularly valuable in ensuring global reach. The relatively modest article processing fee may be an advantage compared to some journals with much higher charges.

However, there are certain limitations or concerns that scholars might take note of. The semiannual publication schedule means that issues are less frequent, which might affect the speed of dissemination relative to journals with more frequent issues. The relatively low APC (Article Processing Charge) can be both a plus and a concern: while more accessible, it may also correspond to limited resources for editorial oversight or prestige. Also, while the journal is indexed in several databases, it is not clear whether it is included in the more selective or high‐impact indexing services (such as Web of Science’s SSCI or Scopus’s higher tiers), which often affect perceptions of prestige and impact metrics. Finally, as with many open access journals, ensuring rigorous peer review, maintaining high quality of submissions, and avoiding perceptions of predatory practices are ongoing challenges.

In sum, the Journal of Social Science Studies functions as a broadly inclusive, open‐access venue for social science scholarship, offering a platform for interdisciplinary enquiry and international contributions. Its policies encourage accessibility and diversity of subject matter, though authors should weigh its publication frequency, indexing status, and relative positioning in the publishing landscape when considering it for submission.