Good afternoon, dear colleagues!
With you is Vasyl Malets, director of the Academy of Articles and author of the column “Journals that will soon lose indexing in Scopus.” Today we have prepared the fourth issue of our column for 2025.
At the moment, 26 of the 37 journals we wrote about earlier have already been officially excluded from Scopus.
In this issue, we will look at 4 journals, including two once-reputable publications. One of them belongs to the second quartile (Q2), and the other has a history of more than 30 years and has been indexed in Scopus (and even in Web of Science) for a long time.
Unfortunately, both publications have lost their academic standards and become completely predatory.
This once again confirms: even the oldest and most reputable journals can go astray and find themselves at risk of exclusion from Scopus.
1. TPM – Testing, Psychometrics, Methodology in Applied Psychology
🔗 Link to Scopus: https://www.scopus.com/sourceid/21100228948
🔗 Magazine website: https://www.tpmap.org/
Review:
This publication has long been considered high-quality and authoritative, indexed in Scopus and Web of Science, publishing high-level materials in psychology. The journal has existed since 1994, more than 30 years.
Magazine profile:
Quartile: Q4 (also indexed in Web of Science) Country of origin: Italy Publication cost: 800 EUR
Main violations:
Publication of articles that do not correspond to the declared topic.
Mass release of special issues.
Lack of proper peer review.
Publishing a large amount of material solely for profit.
Current status:
The journal is still active, but the latest articles have not yet been indexed in Scopus. It is expected to be put on hold in the near future, and then be excluded with a complete deindexation of the articles (if they are indexed at all).
Risk assessment:
Probability of exclusion from Scopus: 100%
Probability of article deindexation: 100% — due to inconsistency with the topic and gross violations of quality standards.
2) International Journal of Ecosystems and Ecology Science
🔗 Scopus link: https://www.scopus.com/sourceid/21101251263
🔗 Magazine website: https://ijees.net/
Review:
The journal was accepted into Scopus in 2024 and immediately began to actively earn money from publications, offering fairly fast article release times.
If in 2024 the materials still more or less met the minimum quality requirements, then in 2025 the journal publishes any works in the natural sciences without proper quality.
In the latest issue, the articles are only 3–6 pages long, contain poor-quality sources, and lack full references.
Some intermediaries even offer guaranteed publication in this publication within 15 days of manuscript submission, which is an unacceptable timeframe for quality review and editorial preparation.
Magazine profile:
Quartile: Q4 Country of registration: USA Publication cost: 590 USD
Main violations:
Significant deterioration in the quality of articles over the last year.
Lack of proper peer review.
Quick publication without quality check and editorial processing.
Increasing the number of releases.
Current status:
The journal is still active, but may soon be subject to review by the Scopus Content Selection & Advisory Board (CSAB).
Risk assessment:
Probability of exclusion from Scopus: 100%
Probability of article deindexation: 10% — small, since the articles formally correspond to the declared topic. But the risk exists.
3) International Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences
🔗 Scopus link: https://www.scopus.com/sourceid/21101277885
🔗 Magazine website: https://www.sciencepubco.com/index.php/IJBAS
Review:
The journal was accepted into Scopus in 2025 and immediately dramatically increased its publication volume. In just one year, more than 4 regular and more than 3 special issues were published, with over 300 articles. For comparison: in 2023–2024, the journal published only 1–2 issues per year.
Some Ukrainian intermediary companies have already started submitting articles to this journal, which prepare low-quality materials. This creates risks both for financial costs and for the academic reputation of Ukrainian scientists, since the publication accepts almost all submitted works without proper selection. In addition, articles appear in the journal that do not correspond to the declared direction of its scope.
Magazine profile:
Quartile: Q4 Country of registration: Jordan Publication cost: 600 USD (regular publication), 900 USD (expedited publication).
Main violations:
Publication of articles of questionable quality.
Lack of proper peer review.
Quick publication without proper proofreading and editorial processing.
Increasing the number of regular and special issues.
Significant increase in the volume of publications for commercial purposes.
Current status:
The journal is still active, but may soon be subject to review by the Scopus Content Selection & Advisory Board (CSAB).
Risk assessment:
Probability of exclusion from Scopus: 100%
Probability of article deindexation: 70% — because a significant part of the materials does not meet quality standards and the declared scope.
4) Local Law
Scopus link: https://www.scopus.com/sourceid/17600155342
Magazine website: https://lex-localis.org/index.php/LexLocalis
Review:
Until 2025, the journal was owned by the Institute for Local Self-Government Maribor (Slovakia) and adhered to academic standards.
It was later sold to a new publisher, UK Zhende Publishing Limited (United Kingdom).
The new owner bought the publication for commercial purposes and immediately began sending out mass invitations for rapid publication. At first, these were only works on law, but later the journal declared itself multidisciplinary and began accepting materials from all directions.
For comparison: in 2024, the journal published only 4 issues, while by 2025 their number had increased to 14.
Magazine profile:
Quartile: Q2 Country of registration: Slovakia Publication cost: 1,100 USD
Main violations:
Publication of articles of questionable quality.
Acceptance of materials that do not meet the stated scope.
Lack of proper peer review.
Too quick publication without quality checking and editorial processing.
Increasing the number of regular and special issues.
Mass increase in publications solely for commercial purposes.
Current status:
The journal is still active, but will soon be reviewed by the Scopus Content Selection & Advisory Board (CSAB).
Risk assessment:
Probability of exclusion from Scopus: 100%
Probability of article deindexation: 100% — because the materials do not fully correspond to the stated scope of the journal.
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Conclusions:
Dear colleagues!
Today we reviewed 4 publications that are on the verge of being excluded from Scopus. One of them has over 30 years of history, but this has not prevented it from moving down the path of commercialization and loss of quality.
Remember: any publication may be excluded from the database if it violates editorial policy and quality standards.
Therefore, be careful - carefully check the journals in which you plan to publish. Read our column "Contestants", where we warn about risky publications, and do not hesitate to contact specialists who can guarantee publication and indexing, as the Academy of Articles does.
And, as always, I want to emphasize:
The opportunity for quick publication may seem appealing, but always consider the potential consequences—loss of money, time, and reputation.
Sincerely,
Vasyl Malets — Director of the Academy of Articles
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