Academic journals are peer-reviewed periodicals that publish research papers. A variety of academic journals publish accounting and auditing research.

Publishing in leading accounting journals affects many aspects of an accounting researcher's career, including reputation, salary, and promotion. Empirical studies suggest that publishing in leading accounting journals tends to be more difficult than in other business disciplines. In some universities, the number of articles a faculty member publishes in top journals is the key measure of his or her research performance. Publishing research in a top journal is generally seen as a significant achievement that demonstrates that the research was recognized by the authors' peers as having significant impact. Additionally, articles in leading accounting journals influence subsequent research, and are often used in training accounting PhD students.

Various methods have been used to determine the leading accounting journals, including surveys of faculty members, and methods based on the number of times the journals' articles were cited. In the 1960s, Eugene Garfield invented the impact factor, a tool for ranking and evaluating journals. A journal's impact factor for a given year is the average number of citations per article published in the preceding two years. Recent studies on accounting research and on doctoral programs in accounting considered the six leading accounting journals to be Accounting, Organizations and Society, The Accounting Review, Contemporary Accounting Research, the Journal of Accounting and Economics, the Journal of Accounting Research and the Review of Accounting Studies.

Accounting journals JournalISSN2017 SJR Publisher Editor(s)-in-chiefAbacus0.325Accounting Foundation, University of SydneyStewart Jones, University of SydneyAccounting and Business Research0.97Taylor & FrancisMark Clatworthy, University of Bristol Juan Manuel Garcia Lara, UC3M Edward Lee, University of ManchesterAccounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal2.187Emerald Group PublishingJames Guthrie, Macquarie UniversityLee D Parker, RMIT UniversityAccounting Horizons0.72American Accounting AssociationPaul A. Griffin, University of California, Davis Arnold M. Wright, Northeastern UniversityAccounting, Organizations and Society1.771ElsevierMarcia Annisette, York UniversityMark E. Peecher, University of Illinois at Urbana–ChampaignKeith Robson, HEC Paris The Accounting Review3.946American Accounting AssociationJohn Harry Evans III, University of PittsburghAccounting & Finance0.384Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New ZealandSteven Cahan, University of AucklandAsia-Pacific Journal of Accounting & Economics0.149City University of Hong Kong and National Taiwan UniversityYin-Wong Cheung, City University of Hong KongHong Hwang, National Taiwan UniversityJeong Bon Kim, City University of Hong KongShu-Hsing Li, National Taiwan UniversitySuresh Radhakrishnan, University of Texas at DallasAuditing: A Journal of Practice & Theory1.71American Accounting Association Robert Knechel, University of FloridaAustralian Accounting Review0.358CPA AustraliaTyrone M. Carlin, University of SydneyAustralian Tax ForumImpact factor for 2012 not available in the Journal Citation Reports.The Tax InstituteCynthia Coleman, University of SydneyAustralian Tax Review0.358Thomson ReutersChris Evans, University of New South WalesMichael Walpole, University of New South WalesBritish Accounting Review0.986Elsevier Nathan Lael Joseph, Aston UniversityAlan Lowe, Aston UniversityBehavioral Research in Accounting0.457American Accounting AssociationSteven Salterio, Queen's UniversityContemporary Accounting Research2.604Canadian Academic Accounting AssociationPatricia C. O'Brien, University of WaterlooCritical Perspectives on Accounting1.773ElsevierJane Andrew, University of SydneyChristine Cooper, University of EdinburghYves Gendron, Université LavalEuropean Accounting Review0.902European Accounting AssociationLaurence van Lent, Tilburg UniversityInternational Journal of Accounting0.498ElsevierR. Abdel-Khalik, University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignJournal of AccountancyAmerican Institute of Certified Public AccountantsKim NilsenJournal of Accounting, Auditing & Finance0.321SAGE PublicationsBharat Sarath, Rutgers UniversityJournal of Accounting and Economics6.875ElsevierR.L. Watts, Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyJ. L. Zimmerman, University of RochesterR.W. Holthausen, University of PennsylvaniaS.P. Kothari, Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyJ. Core, Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyM. Hanlon, Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyW.R. Guay, University of PennsylvaniaJournal of Accounting Literature0.986ElsevierS. Asare, University of FloridaW. R. Knechel, University of FloridaJournal of Accounting and Public Policy0.91ElsevierLawrence A. Gordon, University of MarylandJournal of Accounting Research6.957Accounting Research Center, University of Chicago Booth School of BusinessPhilip G. Berger, University of Chicago Luzi Hail, University of Pennsylvania

Christian Leuz, University of Chicago

Haresh Sapra, University of Chicago

Douglas J. Skinner, University of Chicago

Rodrigo Verdi, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Regina Wittenberg Moerman, University of Southern CaliforniaJournal of the American Taxation Association1.227American Taxation AssociationJohn Phillips, University of ConnecticutJournal of Business Finance & Accounting0.91John Wiley & SonsPeter F. Pope, London School of EconomicsAndrew Stark, Manchester Business SchoolMartin Walker, Manchester Business SchoolJournal of International Financial Management and Accounting0.466John Wiley & SonsSidney Gray, University of SydneyRichard Levich, New York UniversityJournal of Management Accounting Research0.743American Accounting AssociationRanjani Krishnan, Michigan State UniversityJournal of Taxation0.15Thomson ReutersBob D. Scharin, Daniel T. SchibleyManagement Accounting Research1.426ElsevierR. Scapens, University of Manchester and University of BirminghamNational Tax Journal0.818National Tax AssociationWilliam M. GentryGeorge R. ZodrowReview of Accounting Studies2.757Springer Science+Business MediaPatricia Dechow, University of Southern CaliforniaReview of Quantitative Finance and Accounting0.477Springer Science+Business MediaCheng-few Lee, Rutgers UniversityTax Law ReviewNew York University School of LawDeborah H. Schenk, New York UniversityThe Tax AdviserAmerican Institute of Certified Public AccountantsAlistair M. Nevius

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