Defence and Peace Economics was recently named a
New Entrant
among journals in the field of Economics & Business
in Essential Science Indicators from
Thomson
Reuters. The journal's current citation record
includes 313 papers cited a total of 551 times between
January 1, 1998 and December 31, 2008.
Previously published under the title of
Defence Economics from its founding in 1990 until
1994, Defence and Peace Economics is published
by Routledge, part of the Taylor & Francis
Group.
In the interview below,
ScienceWatch.com talks with the Editor, Professor
Daniel Arce of the University of Texas at Dallas, about the
journal and its citation achievements.
Did you expectDefence and
Peace Economicsto become highly cited, or is this
surprising to you?
Evaluations fluctuate, but we know that we have recently published some
influential articles so the rise was not a surprise. In particular,
articles by Frey and Luechinger (2003) and Faria (2005) on terrorism and
Sambanis (2002) on civil war have been highly influential.
How would you account for the increased citation rate
ofDefence and Peace
Economics?
Influential articles and an overall increase in the economic analysis of
conflict; particularly terrorism.
Was there a change in policy or editorial direction that
might account for this?
"DPE is the premier
outlet in economics for the analysis of
conflict and developments in the defense
industry."
We have two new editors and a substantial change in the composition of the
editorial board. DPE is willing to take on controversial issues
and new techniques. An article by Michael Spagat on the ethics of the
Lancet 11 Iraq mortality study will appear in June (and will soon
be available on our website). We also have quite a few forthcoming articles
on the spatial analysis of conflict.
What historical factors have contributed to the success
ofDefence and Peace
Economics?
Strong editorial leadership in the past, good support from our publisher,
special issues on cutting-edge topics. For example, the Jack Hirshleifer
memorial issue (2006) contains a collection of articles representing the
state-of-the-art in theoretical models of conflict. Presently, we have a
call for papers out for a special issue on 40 years of the Arab-Israeli
conflict.
Have there been specific developments in the fields
served byDefence and Peace
Economicsthat may have contributed?
More conflict data is now available. Consolidation in the defense industry
has created interest as well.
What, in your view, is this journal’s main
significance or contribution in the field of Economics &
Business?
DPE is the premier outlet in economics for the analysis of
conflict and developments in the defense industry.
How do you see your field(s) evolving in the next few
years?
I think that we will see more spatial analysis and experimental studies.
What role do you see for your journal?
DPE will continue to be the first place to look for cutting-edge
analysis of defense and conflict issues.
Defence and Peace Economics
Daniel Arce, Editor
Routledge, publisher
KEYWORDS: ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF CONFLICT, TERRORISM, DEFENSE
INDUSTRY.