A clearer framework for evaluating journals by how they behave, how quickly their work is cited, and how disputes are handled when internal systems fail.
Ignatius Journal Services™ (IJS) proposes a three-part framework for more transparent scholarly evaluation. The model integrates the True Impact Function™ (TIF), the Journal Integrity Score™ (JIS), and a Transparency and Accountability Layer that includes data source verification, independent mediation, and a continuously updated scholarly repository. Together, these elements are intended to make journal assessment more interpretable, more current, and more useful to authors.
A seven-pillar score centered on author-facing fairness and editorial integrity: retractions, formatting burden, arbitrary limits, submission friction, decision speed, copyright policy, and publication cost. Formal Methodology Paper (JIS). ⬇️ PDF
A dynamic citation-velocity measure using the CAT equation, TIF = C / (A × T), where citations are normalized by article count and mean elapsed publication time. Formal Methodology Paper (TIF). ⬇️ PDF
A structured, nonbinding pathway for review of disputes involving authors, reviewers, editors, and journals when internal resolution has stalled or conflicts of interest exist.
Traditional citation metrics say little about how journals treat authors. IJS places journal conduct and author experience directly within the evaluative framework rather than treating them as secondary concerns.
The TIF is reported with an index year, analysis date, and bibliographic source, while the JIS is broken into visible pillars and written as a binary code. Readers can therefore see both what was measured and why a journal received its reported score.
Concise explanation of the JIS pillars, the CAT equation for TIF, Google Scholar / Publish or Perish sourcing, and the rationale for pairing integrity with citation velocity.
Overview of case intake, triage, evidence gathering, independent subject-matter input, mediation, and publication of reasoned nonbinding findings.
A presentation of how citation velocity and journal integrity can be shown side by side for journal comparison.
A concise position piece introducing the conceptual basis for IJS and the publishing problems the framework is intended to address.
