- Aims and Scope
- Open access · CC BY 4.0
- Published by Open Access Pub
Aims and Scope
JBSR publishes research on sign processes in living systems, drawing on biology, philosophy, linguistics, cognitive science, semiotics, and systems theory.
What the journal is for
To bring work on meaning, signs, and communication in living systems into one open, rigorously reviewed venue.
JBSR aims to publish theoretical, applied, and empirical research that treats sign processes as a feature of life, to connect conceptual frameworks with evidence, and to make the results freely available to everyone who can use them.
Biosemiotics is interdisciplinary by nature. The journal therefore welcomes contributions from the life sciences, the philosophy of science and mind, linguistics, cognitive science, anthropology, and systems theory, and from any other field that addresses how organisms and communities create and interpret meaning.
Meaning at every scale of life
The journal welcomes submissions that address sign processes at any level of biological organization. The areas below are illustrative: they include, but are not limited to, the following.
- 01
Molecules and cells
Genetic codes, epigenetic and intracellular signaling, and gene regulation read as sign processes.
Code biology · Cellular semiosis - 02
Organisms
Immune recognition, neural coding, perception, learning, and the phenomenology of meaning.
Endosemiotics · Cognitive biosemiotics - 03
Ecosystems
Animal communication, plant and microbial signaling, symbiosis, and organism–environment relations.
Zoosemiotics · Phytosemiotics · Ecosemiotics - 04
Evolution and culture
The emergence of sign competence, language origins, and continuities between biological and cultural semiosis.
Evolution of semiosis · Semiotic modeling
Fields the journal draws on
Contributions may come from a single discipline or combine several. Topics and fields are illustrative.
- Biology and evolutionary biology, including molecular, cellular, and organismal studies of signaling and recognition
- Philosophy of science, philosophy of mind, and the phenomenology of meaning
- Linguistics and the biological origins of language
- Cognitive science, neuroscience, and the study of learning and perception
- Semiotics, systems theory, and semiotic modeling
- Ecology, ethology, and plant and microbial communication
- Anthropology and the relations between biological and cultural semiosis
Article types
- Original Researchempirical or experimental
- Theoretical Contributionconceptual frameworks
- Reviewsynthesis of existing work
- Methodsanalytical and experimental
- Short Communicationconcise findings
- Commentaryperspectives and responses
Preparation guidance for each type is given in the Instructions for Authors. Where a study involves human participants, animals, or other regulated material, the obligations in the Editorial Policies apply.
Choosing the journal
Authors who are unsure whether a topic suits JBSR are welcome to write to the editorial office.
Editorial decisions are based on scope, scientific quality, methodological rigor, ethical compliance, reporting quality, and relevance to the journal.
Contact the editorial office at info@openaccesspub.org.