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The International Journal of Human Resource Management 10 :3 June 1999 515-519

T h e r a n k i n g o f s c h o l a r l y j o u r n a l s i n

international human resource

management

Paula M . C a l i g i u r i

A b s t r a c t B a s e d o n t h e o p i n i o n s o f e x p e r t s i n t h e f i e l d o f i n t e r n a t i o n a l h u m a n r e s o u r c e

m a n a g e m e n t ( I H R M ) , s c h o l a r l y j o u r n a l s w e r e n o m i n a t e d a n d r a n k e d . E a c h r e s p o n d e n t

nominated five journals he or she would reference when writing a manuscript or

r e s e a r c h i n g a t o p i c i n i n t er n a t i o n a l h um a n r e s o u r c e m a n a g e m e n t . T h e s a m e j o u r n a l s w e r e

a l s o r a n k e d . B a s e d o n b o t h t h e n o m i n a t i o n s a n d r a n k i n g s , s t r o n g a g r e e m e n t w a s f o u n d

f o r t he t o p j o u r n a l s i n I H R M . T h e s e i n c l u d e d b o t h m a i n s t r e a m m a n a g e m e n t j o u r n a l s

( e . g . , Academy of Management Journal) a n d s u b - f i e l d j o u r n a l s ( e . g . , International

Journal of Human Resource Management) . T h i s s t u d y s u g g e s t s t h a t , b e s i d e s t h e m a i n -

s t r e a m j o u r n a l s , i n t e r n a t i on a l m a n a g e m e n t j o u r n a l s h a v e b o t h p r e s t i g e a n d i m p a c t i n t h e

s u b - f i e l d o f i n t e r n a t i o n a l h u m a n r e s o u r c e m a n a g e m e n t .

Introduction

The decision academics must make regarding w hich journal to send their research

m a n u s c r i p t s t o c a n b e d a u n t i n g . Academicians, for the most part, want to maximize

b o t h t h e app ropriateness ( i . e . , s e l e c t i n g a j o u r n a l r e a d b y s c h o l a r s w h o a r e i n t e r e s t e d i n

t h e i r r e s e a r c h ) a n d t h e prestige o f t h ei r j ou r n a l o u t l e t . A n a p p r o p r i a t e o u t l e t w i l l

g e n e r a l l y r e s u l t i n a n a r t i c l e b e i n g c i t e d b y o t h e r s c h o l a r s i n t h e f i e l d ( S h a r p l i n a n d

Mabry, 1985) . A p r e s t i g i o u s o u t l e t w i l l s i m i l a r l y r e s u l t i n s c h o l a r l y r e c o g n it i o n i n t h e

c h o s e n f i e l d . B e y o n d r e c o g n i t io n i n o n e ' s c h o s e n f i e l d , i n m a n y c o u n t r i e s , t h e t a n g i b le

r e w a r d s f o r s u c c e s s f u l p u b l i s h i n g a r e h i g h . Studies among US-based academicians have

f o u n d t h a t p r e s t i g i o u s p u b l i c a t i o n s a r e r e l a t e d t o b o t h p r o m o t i o n a n d p a y f o r u n i v e r s i t y

f a c u l t y ( e . g . , Gomez-Mejia and Balkin, 1992) .

G i v e n t h e i n f l u e n c e o f p r e s t i g i o u s a c a d e m i c j o u r n a l s , i t i s c r i t i c a l f o r s c h o l a r s t o

s e l e c t t h e m o s t a p p r o p r i a t e j o u r n a l o u t l e t s f o r t h e i r r e s e a r c h . W h i l e s e l e c t i n g j o u r n a l s

may be more straightforward in some academic discip lines, such as sociology or

psychology, choosing a journal becomes substantially more complex in the academic

f i e l d o f b u s i n e s s b e c a u s e i t i s a h y b r i d f i e l d. F o r e x a m p l e , p r e s t i g i o u s b u s i n e s s j o u r n a l s

a r e f o u n d i n s u c h d i v e r s e d i s c i p l i n e s a s e c o n o m i c s , a c c o u n t i n g , f i n a n c e , p s y c h o l o g y ,

l a w , a n d s o c i o l o g y ( S t a h l e t a l . , 1 9 8 8 ) . I n r e s p o n s e t o t h e d i v e r s i t y o f d i s c i p l i n e s , e a c h

f i e l d w i t h i n b u s i n e s s h a s c r e a t e d i t s o w n j o u r n a l r a n k i n g l i s t , f o r e x a m p l e , a c c o u n t i n g

(Prather and Rueschhoff, 1996), economics (Laband, 1990), management ( e . g . Coe and

Paula M . C a l i g i u r i , A s s i s t a n t P r o f e s s o r o f H u m a n R e s o u r c e M a n a g e m e n t , D e p a r t m e n t o f

Human Resource Management, Rutgers University, 94 Rockafeller Road, Room 200B

L e v i n , P i s c a t a w a y , N e w J e r s e y 0 8 8 5 4 - 8 0 5 4 ( t e l : +732-445-5228 ; f a x : +732-445-2830 ;

e m a i l : c a l i g iu r @ r c i .rutgers . e d u ) .

Cop yright © Routledge 1999 0958-5192 z



516 The International Journal of Human Resource Management

Weinstock, 1984 ; Extejt and S m i t h , 1990 ; Johnson and Podsakoff, 1 9 9 4 ) , and

i n t e r n a t i on a l b u s i n e s s ( M o r r i s o n a n d I n k p e n , 1991 ; Pierce and Garven, 1995) .

W i t h i n t h e s e d i v e r s e b u s i n e s s f i e l d s , s u b f i e l d s h a v e a l s o d e v e l o p e d - complicating

further the ranking of scholarly journals . In management, for example, S hane ( 1 9 9 7 ,

p . 8 4 ) s u g g e s t s t h a t ` t h e e v a l u a t i o n o f s c h o l a r l y r e s e a r c h a c r o s s s u b f i e l d s . . . i s

p r o b l e m a t i c s i n c e t h e d e f i n i t i o n s o f " s c h o l a r l y r e s e a r c h " a n d " a c c e p t a b l e " j o u r n a l s a r e

o f t e n c o n t r o v e r s i a l ' . T h u s , a s s u b - f i e l d s m a t u r e , a c a d e m i c s w i t h i n t h e g i v e n s u b - f i e l d

h a v e c o n d u c t e d j o u r n a l r a n k i n g s t u d i e s t o e x a m i n e t h e p r e s t i g e a n d a p p r o p r i a t e n e s s o f

t h e i r r e l e v a n t j o u r n a l s . J o u r n a l r a n k i n g s t u d i e s h a v e b e e n c o n d u c t e d i n s u b - f i e l d s , s u c h

a s e n t r e p r e n e u r s h i p ( S h a n e , 1 9 9 7 ) , operations management (Barman et al . , 1 9 9 1 ) , and

b u s i n e s s p o l i c y ( M a c M i l l a n , 1989) .

International human resource management (IHRM) is another subfield that has

r e a c h e d m a t u r i t y . P u b l i s h i n g i n t h e su b f i e l d o f I H R M i s d i s t i nc t f o r t w o r e a so n s . F i r s t ,

IHRM is a clear intersection betw een two d istinct areas of management : human

resource management (HRM) and international management (IM) . Relevant to

s c h o l a r l y p u b l i c a t i on o u t l e t s , e a c h h a s i t s o w n l i s t o f p r e s t i g i o u s j o u r n a ls - and the

r e a d e r s h i p d o e s n o t n e c e s s a r i l y o v e r l a p . Second, IHRM has gained momentum over the

p a s t t e n y e a r s t o b e c o m e i t s o w n a c a d e m i c s u b - f i e l d . S p e c i a l t y j o u r n a ls , s u c h a s t h e

International Journal of Human Resource Management and A s i a P a c i f i c J o u r n a l o f

Human Resources, have arisen in the recent past . These two IHRM j ournals, as

e x a m p l e s , w o u l d n o t c u r r e n t ly b e f o u n d o n t h e m a i n s t r e a m m a n a g e m e n t j o u r n a l r a n k i n g

l i s t s . T h u s , g u i d a n c e o n t h e a p p r o p r i a t e n e s s a n d p r e s t i g e o f j o u r n a l o u t l e t s i n I H R M i s

now warranted .

The current study attempts to identify which scholarly journals are the best

p u b l i c a t i o n o u t l e t s i n t h e s u b - f i e l d o f I H R M . Given that both a p p r o p r i a t e n e s s and

p r e st i ge a r e i m p o r t a n t f a ct o r s i n s e l e c ti n g a n a c a d e m i c j o u r n al o u t l e t , s u rv e y s w e r e

g i v e n t o e x p e r t s i n t h e f i e l d o f I H R M . A s e x p e r t j u d g e s , t h e s e i n d i v i d u a l s h a v e t h e i r

finger on the pulse IHRM : t h e y k n o w w h e r e I H R M a r t i c l e s a r e b e i n g p u b l i s h e d , w h a t

j o u r n a l s a r e b e in g r e a d a n d c i t e d b y I H R M s c h o l a r s , et c . T h e i r j o u r n a l n o m i n a t i o n s a n d

journal rankings provide guidance for those scholars interested in publishing inIHRM .

Method

T h e s a m p l e o f e x p e r t s

T h e a u t h o r g e n e r a te d a l i s t o f t w e n t y - f i v e e x p e r t s i n t h e f i e l d o f I H R M . T h i s l i s t w a s

d e r i v e d f r o m t h e f r e q u e n t l y c i t e d a c a d e m i c a r t i c l e s i n I H R M t e x t b o o k s . T o e n s u r e t h a t

t h e a c a d e m i c s i d e n t i f i e d w e r e t h e a p p r o p r i a t e I H R M e x p e r t s , t h e o r i g i n a l t w e n t y - f i v e

i n d i v i d u a l s w e r e a s k e d t o n o m i n a t e f o u r m o r e a c a d e m i c c o l l e a g u e s ` w h o t h e y f e l t w e r e

exp erts in IHRM' . Of the twenty-two completed surveys (a response rate of 88 per

c e n t ) , 68 p e r c e n t o f t h o s e e x p e r t s o n t h e l i s t w e r e n o m i n a t e d b y t w o o r m o r e p e o p l e o n

the list . T h u s t h e i n i t i a l l i s t w a s a h i g h l y a c c u r a t e r e p r e s e n t a t i o n o f t h e e x p e r t s i n t h e

field of IHRM - a c c o r d i n g t o t h e e x p e r t s o n t h e l i s t .

F i f t y p e r c e n t o f t h e p e o p l e o n t h e l i s t w e r e a f f i l i a t e d w i t h U S - b a s e d u n i v e r s i t i e s , 1 2

p e r c e n t w e r e f r o m C a n a d i a n u n i v e r s i t i e s , 1 2 p e r c e n t w e r e f r o m G e r m a n u n i v e r s i t i e s ,

8 p er cent were from Australian universities, 8 p er cent were from UK-based

universities, the remaining five individuals were from South Africa, Norway, The

Netherlands, Hong Kong and France .



C a l g i u r i : Ranking of scholarly journals in IHRM 517The journal nomination survey

I n a d d i t i o n t o t h e p e e r n o m i n a t i o n s d e s c r i b e d a b o v e , t h e s e e x p e r t s w e r e a l s o a s k e d t w o

q u e s t i o n s . T h e f i r s t q u e s t i o n a s k e d t h e r e s p o n d e n t s t o ` N a m e f i v e a c a d e m i c j o u r n a l s t h a t

y o u w o u l d r e f e r e n c e w h e n w r i t i n g a m a n u s c r i p t o r r e s e a r c h in g a t o p i c i n I n t e r n a t i o n a l

Human Resource Management' . F i v e l i n e s w e r e a v a i l a b l e f o r t h e r e s p o n d e n t s t o w r i t e

i n t h e i r r e s p o n s e s . F o r e a c h j o u r n a l n o m i n a t e d , a r a t i o w a s c r e a t e d d i v i d i n g t h e n u m b e r

of t i m e s i t w a s n o m i n a t e d b y t w e n t y - t w o ( t h e n u m b e r o f p o s s i b l e t i m e s a j o u r n a l c o u l d

be nominated) . T h u s , t h e h i g h e s t p o s s i b l e n o m i n a t i o n s c o r e w o u l d b e 1 . 0 ( n o m i n a t e d b y

e v e r y p e r s o n ) a n d t h e l o w e s t w o u l d b e .05 ( n o m i n a t e d b y o n l y o n e p e r s o n ) . Twenty-one

journals were nominated. The scores ranged from . 77 through .05 .

T h e s e c o n d q u e s t i o n a s k e d t h e r e s p o n d e n t s t o ` R a n k t h e t o p f i v e j o u r n a l o u t l e t s f o r

pub lications in International Human Resource Management' . T h e f i v e b l a n k s r a n g e d

from `Good' to `Better' to `Best' . These rankings were coded from I = good to

5 = b e s t . A m e a n w a s c r e a t e d b y a d d i n g a l l t h e r a n k i n g s c o r e s f o r a g i v e n j o u r n a l a n d

d i v i d i n g b y t w e n t y - t w o ( t h e t o t a l n u m b e r of raters) . U s i n g t h i s m e t h o d , s c o r e s r a n g e d

f r o m t h e h i g h e s t o f 2 .52 t o t h e l o w e s t o f . 1 0 .

R e s u l t s

T w o r a n k e d l i s t s w e r e c r e a t e d f r o m t h e d a t a c o l l e c t e d . T h e f i r s t l i s t , p r e s e n t e d i n T a b l e

1 , i n d i c a t e s t h e r a n k o r d e r of academic journals based on the nomination scores . A s

T a b l e I s u g g e s t s , t h e r e w a s h i g h a g r e e m e n t r e g a r d i n g t h e t o p f i v e j o u r n a l o u t l e t s f o r t h e

s u b - f i e l d of IHRM . T h e t o p f i v e j o u r n a l s a r e (1) Journal of International Business

Stud ies, ( 2) International Journal of Human Resource Management, ( 3) Academy of

Management Journal, (4) Academy of Management Review, and (5) Human ResourceManagement .

T a b l e 1 IHRM journals ranked according to nomination scores

Rank Title Score

I Journal of International Business Studies . 77

2 International Journal of Human Resource Management .59

3 Academy of Management Journal .55

4 Academy of Management Review .50

5 Human Resource Management .4 5

6 Management International Rev iew . 4 1

7 Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources .18

8 Journal of World B usiness .18

9 Journal of Applied Psychology .14

10 Journal of International Management .14

11 Academy of Management E xecutive .14

12 International Journal of Intercultural Relations .14

13 Human Resource Management Journal .09

14 Administrative Science Quarterly .09

15 Journal of Cross-C ultural Psychology .09

16 International B usiness Rev iew .05

17 Journal of International Comp ensation .05

19 Journal of Management .05

20 European Management Journal .05

21 International Journal of Selection and Assessment .05



518 The International Journal of Human Resource ManagementTable 2 IHRM journals ranked according to ratings

The second list ranking these academic journals, b ased on rating scores, p roduced

similar results . This list suggested that the top fiv e journals are (1) International Journal

of Human Resource Management, (2 ) Journal of International Business Stud ies, ( 3)

Academy of Management Journal, (4) Academy of Management Review and (5)

Management International Review .

ConclusionGiv en the rapid increase of globalization in today's economy, research addressing the

management of the human capital across national borders is becoming more critical for

the success of multinational enterprises . IHRM scholars examine meaningful topics,

such as cross-national comparativ e human resources, ex patri ate management, cross-

cultural diversity within multinational enterprises, and the like . IHRM is not a passing

fad . Rather, IHRM is a highly relevant management sub-field contributing boththeoretically and practically to the success of organizations operating worldw ide .

This study was intended to prov ide IHRM scholars with guidance regarding the most

app ropriate and most prestigious j ournal outlets for their research . G iven the high

consensus among the exp erts involved in the study, the goal of providing this list was

accomplished . It is interesting to note that the top five journals on each list reflect the

state of IHRM as a sub-field : IHRM has its roots in the academic field of management

(reflected in the high rankings of Academy of Management Journal and Academy ofManagement Review) . IHRM is a combination of two sub-fields, IM (reflected in the

high ranking of Management International Review and Journal of International

Business Studies) and HR (reflected in the high rankings of Human ResourceManagement) . Most importantly, IHRM has become its own mature management sub-

Rank T i t l e Score

I International Journal of Human Resource Management 2 .52

2 Journal of International Business Stud ies 2 .24

3 Academy of Management Journal 2 . 10

4 Academy of Management Review 1 .48

5 Management International Review 1 .19

6 Human Resource Management .95

7 Journal of App lied Psychology .62

8 Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources .48

9 Journal of World B usiness .43

10 Journal of International Management .38

11 Human Resource Management Journal .33

12 International B usiness Rev iew .24

13 Ad ministrativ e S cience Quarterly .19

14 Journal of International Compensation .19

15 Academy of Management E xecutive .19

16 International Labor Rev iew .19

17 Journal of Management .14

18 International Journal of Intercultural Relations .14

19 European Management Journal .14

20 International Journal of S election and Assessment .14

21 Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology .10



C a l g i u r i : Ranking of scholarly journals in IHRM 519

field . This is clearly recognized in the high ranking of the International Journal of

Human Resource Management .

This study utilized peer nominations of IHRM scholars who provided the journal

nominations and rankings . This method naturally limits the number of journals and

participants who p rovided rankings . As such, given the growth of IHRM, repeating this

study in a few years may be w arranted - as new scholars and journals continue to

reshape the contour of IHRM . This study should be regarded as part of a dynamic

process to better understand the sub-field of IHRM . As a mature sub-field, IHRM

s h o u l d c o n t i n u e t o s e t i t s o w n s t a n d a r d s f o r e v a l u a t i n g s c h o l a r l y c o n t r i b u t i o n s .

Acknow ledgements

The author gratefully acknowledges Randall S chuler, Linda Stroh and Rosalie Tung for

t h e i r g u i d a n c e o n t h i s p r o j e c t . This project was funded by the School of Management

and L abor Relations at Rutgers University, New Jersey, USA .

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