Energy Research and Social Science

Aims & Scope

Energy Research & Social Science (ERSS) is a peer-reviewed international journal that publishes original research and review articles examining the relationship between energy systems and society.

ERSS covers a range of topics revolving around the intersection of energy technologies, fuels, and resources on one side; and social processes and influences - including communities of energy users, people affected by energy production, social institutions, customs, traditions, behaviors, and policies - on the other.

Put another way, ERSS investigates the social system surrounding energy technology and hardware.

ERSS is of relevance for energy practitioners, researchers interested in the social aspects of energy production or use, and policymakers.

Energy Research & Social Science (ERSS) provides an interdisciplinary forum for the discussion of how social and technical issues related to both energy production and consumption interact.

Energy production, distribution, and consumption all have both technical and human components, and the latter involve the human causes and consequences of energy-related activities and processes as well as social structures that shape how people interact with energy systems.

Energy analysis therefore needs to look beyond the dimensions of technology and economics to include these social and human elements.

View Aims & Scope

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Metrics & Ranking

Impact Factor

Year	Value
2025	7.4
2024	6.90

SJR (SCImago Journal Rank)

Year	Value
2024	2.530

Quartile

Year	Value
2024	Q1

h-index

Year	Value
2024	129

Journal Rank

Year	Value
2024	933

Journal Citation Indicator

Year	Value
2024	11063

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Abstracting & Indexing

Journal is indexed in leading academic databases, ensuring global visibility and accessibility of our peer-reviewed research.

• Scopus
• Google Scholar
• Web of Science

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Subjects & Keywords

Journal’s research areas, covering key disciplines and specialized sub-topics in Energy and Social Sciences, designed to support cutting-edge academic discovery.

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Most Cited Articles

The Most Cited Articles section features the journal's most impactful research, based on citation counts. These articles have been referenced frequently by other researchers, indicating their significant contribution to their respective fields.

• Energy justice: A conceptual review

  Citation: 1371

  Authors: Kirsten, Darren, Raphael, Hannes, Robert

• What are we doing here? Analyzing fifteen years of energy scholarship and proposing a social science research agenda

  Citation: 1039

  Authors: Benjamin K.

• Promoting novelty, rigor, and style in energy social science: Towards codes of practice for appropriate methods and research design

  Citation: 915

  Authors: Benjamin K., Jonn, Steve

• A global perspective on domestic energy deprivation: Overcoming the energy poverty–fuel poverty binary

  Citation: 808

  Authors: Stefan, Saska

• How long will it take? Conceptualizing the temporal dynamics of energy transitions

  Citation: 770

  Authors: Benjamin K.

• Political power and renewable energy futures: A critical review

  Citation: 608

  Authors: Matthew J., Jennie C.

• Energy transitions or additions?

  Citation: 477

  Authors: Richard, Shannon Elizabeth

• Just transition: A conceptual review

  Citation: 439

  Authors: Xinxin, Kevin

• Cascading risks: Understanding the 2021 winter blackout in Texas

  Citation: 438

  Authors: Joshua W., Kyri, Morgan D., Alex Q., Emily, Varun, Joshua D., Sarang, Caitlin A., Michael E.

• Integrating techno-economic, socio-technical and political perspectives on national energy transitions: A meta-theoretical framework

  Citation: 432

  Authors: Aleh, Vadim, Jessica, Elina, Benjamin

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