Contemporary Issues in Entrepreneurship Research: Scopus, Scope & Author Guide

Quick Answer: What Is Contemporary Issues in Entrepreneurship Research?

Contemporary Issues in Entrepreneurship Research is a themed scholarly book series that develops research and practice in entrepreneurship and small business. Emerald states that volumes combine specially selected papers submitted to the ISBE annual conference with invited external expert contributions. Each volume is organised around a topic considered important to the entrepreneurship and small-business research community.

ISBE lists recurring coverage areas including entrepreneurship education and training, gender and family business, creative-industry entrepreneurship, small-business development, social and ethnic entrepreneurship, e-business, innovation and networks, management and growth, SME finance, and sustainability. Recent Emerald listings show the series continuing through newer themed volumes, indicating an active publishing programme.

For authors, the main practical point is that there is no evidence of a normal always-open journal submission route. Contribution opportunities are tied to particular edited volumes, conference-paper selection and invitations. Before preparing a submission, verify the current volume theme, editor instructions, review process, and any access or fee arrangements.

Key Takeaways

• Source type: book series, not a journal.
• Publisher: Emerald Publishing in collaboration with ISBE.
• Series ISSN: 2040-7246.
• Scopus: supplied source record identifies Scopus Source ID 21100417364; verify current live status and metrics in Scopus.
• Core field: entrepreneurship and small-business research across theoretical, empirical, applied and policy-relevant themes.
• Contribution model: themed book chapters, including selected ISBE conference papers and invited expert contributions.
• Peer review: an official series preface states that contributions are peer reviewed by subject experts.
• Fees and open access: no series-specific mandatory APC was verified; Emerald offers optional OA routes for books and chapters, which must be confirmed for the particular volume.

Journal Information at a Glance

Although many researchers encounter this title through Scopus searches and may call it a “journal,” the correct source type is a book series. The table below keeps journal-style database questions while answering them accurately for this publication format.

What This Guide Covers

• the series’ official identity, publisher and ISBE relationship
• its aims, subject coverage and recent volume themes
• how to interpret the supplied Scopus source record
• why journal metrics and Impact Factor language need caution for a book series
• how chapter contributions appear to enter the series
• what is known about peer review, open access and ethics
• how PhD scholars and researchers can evaluate fit
• how to prepare a stronger, ethically publication-ready chapter manuscript

Methodology and Sources

This profile was prepared using the official Emerald series listing, the ISBE series page, individual Emerald volume and chapter records, Emerald’s research and publishing ethics policies, its open-access book guidance, and the Scopus Source ID supplied with the task.

Metrics, database coverage, series editorship, calls for contributions, open-access fees and publisher policies can change. Authors should reconfirm them immediately before submitting or accepting an invitation.

Aims, Scope and the Scholarly Role of the Series

The official purpose of Contemporary Issues in Entrepreneurship Research is to provide themed volumes that advance both theory and practice in entrepreneurship and small business. Emerald and ISBE describe the emphasis as quality, currency and relevance, with each volume centred on a topic that matters to the entrepreneurship research community.

This is therefore not a broad business outlet where any management paper will fit. A contribution needs a clear entrepreneurship or small-business connection and must also make sense within the intellectual theme of the particular volume. That second requirement can be more important than it would be for a continuously publishing journal: a strong entrepreneurship manuscript on entrepreneurial finance, for example, may still be a poor match for a volume specifically focused on rural entrepreneurship unless the paper genuinely connects the two.

Officially identified research areas

ISBE lists the following areas from which volume themes are derived:

• entrepreneurship education and training
• gender, entrepreneurship and family business
• creative-industries entrepreneurship
• small-business creation and development
• social, community and ethnic entrepreneurship
• e-entrepreneurship and e-business
• innovation, incubation and networks
• management, skills development and growth
• supporting small business
• SME finance and venture capital
• sustainability, environmental issues and entrepreneurship

Recent Emerald volumes extend these interests into areas such as rural entrepreneurship, creative and cultural industries, entrepreneurial place leadership, migration, disadvantaged entrepreneurship, entrepreneurial research methods, policing and criminal contexts, and resilience strategies for small business in Industry 5.0. These examples show the series’ preference for focused, contemporary themes rather than one fixed annual topic list.

Understanding Its Scopus Coverage and Metrics

The source data supplied for this article identifies Contemporary Issues in Entrepreneurship Research as Scopus Source ID 21100417364. That identifier is the correct starting point for checking live database coverage. Because the Scopus source page can update its status, coverage years, categories and metric cycle, authors should verify the current record directly rather than relying on screenshots or third-party ranking sites.

This guide intentionally does not publish a current CiteScore, SJR, SNIP or quartile that could not be verified from a live authoritative source during preparation. If a university, PhD programme, funding body or promotion policy requires a particular Scopus quartile or active-coverage status, record the reporting year and subject category shown in Scopus at the time you make the decision.

Why a Journal Impact Factor should not be assumed

Researchers often search for a “Contemporary Issues in Entrepreneurship Research impact factor.” That wording can be misleading because the title is a book series. Journal Impact Factor is a journal-level JCR metric; it should not be inferred for this series from a similarly named source or from third-party websites. If an institution requires a JCR-indexed journal article specifically, a chapter in a book series may not satisfy that rule even if the series or chapter is discoverable in Scopus.

What Does the Series Publish?

The basic publication unit is a book chapter within a themed edited volume. Emerald’s series description says volumes contain specially selected papers submitted to the ISBE annual conference as well as invited contributions from external experts. Individual volumes also contain introductions, prefaces and other editorial material.

No permanent series-wide menu of article types such as “original research article,” “systematic review,” “short communication” or “case report” was found. Instead, the acceptable contribution form depends on the volume. Across published volumes, readers can see empirical chapters, conceptual work, literature reviews, methodological reflections, policy and practice discussions, and context-specific entrepreneurship studies.

For a prospective contributor, the correct question is therefore not “Does the journal accept review articles?” but “Does the current edited volume invite a chapter of my type, length and approach?” Always use the volume-specific call or editor instructions as the controlling document.

Who Should Consider Contributing?

The series may suit entrepreneurship scholars whose work fits an active or planned volume theme, including doctoral researchers, early-career academics, faculty members, interdisciplinary researchers and practitioners producing rigorous research. Academic status alone is not a selection criterion. Fit is primarily about the research problem, contribution, theme and intended audience.

For PhD researchers, the series can be relevant when a chapter is strategically useful—for example, when the work emerged from an ISBE conference paper or when a themed volume closely matches the thesis topic. However, every doctoral programme has its own rules. Some institutions count Scopus-indexed book chapters; others require journal articles, specified quartiles, Web of Science categories, or publications after particular dates. Confirm those rules before investing time in a chapter submission.

Is Your Manuscript a Good Match?

A practical fit assessment should happen at two levels: series fit and volume fit. The paper should clearly advance entrepreneurship or small-business scholarship, and it should also answer the specific intellectual problem the edited volume is designed to explore.

As a publication-readiness step, review several chapters from the same or closely related volumes. Look at how authors frame the contribution, how much contextual explanation is provided, how theory and evidence are integrated, and how chapter conclusions connect to the volume theme.

How Contributions Reach the Series

A conventional journal submission portal was not identified for Contemporary Issues in Entrepreneurship Research. The official series description points instead to two routes: selected papers submitted to the ISBE annual conference and invited contributions from external experts. This suggests that opportunities are coordinated around specific volumes rather than accepted continuously.

Prospective authors should monitor ISBE for conference and call-for-paper information and review the current Emerald volume listing. If a themed volume is relevant, use the contact or submission instructions provided for that volume. Do not send an unsolicited manuscript to a generic Emerald address unless the publisher or series editor instructs you to do so.

Before sending material

• confirm the exact volume title and editor(s)
• check whether the contribution route is open, invited or conference-linked
• verify chapter length, abstract requirements and deadlines
• identify required file format, permissions and declarations
• check whether prior conference-paper dissemination is permitted and how it should be disclosed
• confirm copyright and open-access choices

Peer Review and Editorial Assessment

An official series preface states that contributions are peer reviewed by experts in their respective fields. Emerald’s general book-publishing guidance also says that book proposals undergo rigorous single-anonymous peer review, with reviewers aware of author identity while authors do not know reviewer identity. The exact chapter-level workflow for a particular volume may differ, so the volume editor’s instructions remain authoritative.

For authors, the likely editorial priorities include thematic coherence, originality, research quality, relevance to entrepreneurship scholarship, contribution to the volume, clarity and ethical compliance. This is an interpretation based on the series model and Emerald’s book-review guidance—not a published rejection checklist for every volume.

No official series-wide acceptance rate or average chapter review duration was found. Do not rely on estimates from third-party sites. Timelines can depend on the edited volume schedule, reviewer availability, revision cycles and production planning.

Open Access, Charges and Reader Access

The series is distributed through Emerald as books and individual chapters, and ISBE notes that institutional subscribers to the Emerald Business, Management and Economics eBook collection may access subscribed content through their institution. Individual books and chapters can also be sold separately.

Emerald additionally offers optional open-access publishing for full books and individual book chapters. Its current generic OA guidance lists book and chapter processing charges and states that OA content can be published under a CC BY 4.0 licence. Those figures are publisher-wide options, not proof that every contribution to Contemporary Issues in Entrepreneurship Research must pay a charge.

Therefore, the safe interpretation is: no series-specific mandatory APC was verified. If an author wants or is required to publish a chapter open access, confirm the applicable charge, funding route, waiver or institutional agreement directly with Emerald for the specific volume before signing an agreement.

Publication Ethics and AI Use

Emerald states that submissions must be original, ethically conducted, properly attributed and not simultaneously under consideration elsewhere except where an explicit policy permits it. Authors must disclose conflicts of interest, obtain permissions for third-party material, document ethics approval and consent where applicable, and avoid fabricated data, plagiarism, redundant publication and citation manipulation. Emerald says it acts in accordance with COPE principles.

Its current generative-AI policy is particularly important. Emerald does not permit generative AI to copywrite or create new submission content such as an abstract or literature review. It does permit AI-assisted copy-editing of an author’s own existing text for language and readability, subject to human responsibility and transparent use requirements. AI tools cannot be credited as authors, and manuscript files under review should not be uploaded to generative AI tools for evaluation because of confidentiality concerns.

Authors should read the current Emerald ethics policy immediately before submission because AI and research-integrity policies can change.

How to Prepare a Stronger Chapter Manuscript

Because this is a themed book series, a strong chapter should do more than present a competent study. It should show why the study belongs in the volume and how it contributes to the larger conversation the editors are assembling.

1. Start with the volume problem. Use the call or editor description to identify the exact intellectual question the book is designed to address.
2. State the entrepreneurship contribution early. Explain what the chapter adds to theory, evidence, methodology, policy or practice.
3. Adapt journal-style material into chapter form. Book chapters often allow more context and synthesis, but the controlling editor instructions should determine structure and length.
4. Use relevant literature rather than target-series citation padding. Cite the strongest scholarship needed to support the argument; do not add citations merely to appear aligned.
5. Check conference-paper overlap. If the chapter develops prior conference material, disclose and transform it according to Emerald and editor requirements.
6. Make tables and figures self-explanatory. Secure permissions for reused material and use original, accurately labelled visuals.
7. Complete an ethics and authorship check. Confirm author contributions, conflicts, permissions, consent, data statements and AI disclosures where applicable.
8. Proofread the final chapter against editor instructions. Consistency in headings, references, terminology and citation style helps reviewers focus on the research rather than avoidable presentation problems.

Practical Fit Examples

Strong scope match

A doctoral researcher studies how rural entrepreneurial ecosystems adapt to climate-related economic shocks. If a current volume is specifically focused on rural entrepreneurship or resilience, the manuscript has both series-level and volume-level fit. The author should still confirm the call, chapter type and deadline.

Strong entrepreneurship paper, weak volume match

An empirical paper on venture-capital syndication may fit the series broadly but not a volume on entrepreneurship education. The better strategy is to wait for a relevant theme or select another outlet rather than forcing the paper into an unrelated edited collection.

Conference paper becoming a chapter

An ISBE conference paper selected for development can be strengthened by expanding the literature positioning, clarifying the contribution, addressing feedback and ensuring the chapter version is sufficiently developed and transparently linked to the earlier conference work.

ESL manuscript with sound research

If the analysis is strong but language obscures the argument, academic editing can improve clarity, cohesion and consistency. Editing should preserve the author’s research and comply with Emerald’s AI and authorship policies.

Pre-Submission Checklist

• □ Confirm that a relevant themed volume or invitation currently exists.
• □ Verify the series and volume editor details.
• □ Check current Scopus source status if institutional recognition matters.
• □ Confirm whether your institution accepts a book-series chapter for the intended purpose.
• □ Read the exact volume call and author instructions.
• □ Confirm chapter type, length, deadline and file requirements.
• □ Ensure the entrepreneurship contribution is explicit.
• □ Check originality and any overlap with conference papers or preprints.
• □ Confirm authorship, conflicts, ethics approvals and permissions.
• □ Verify every citation and reference.
• □ Review Emerald’s current AI policy and disclose permitted AI use where required.
• □ Confirm open-access choice and any genuine fees before signing.
• □ Ensure all co-authors approve the final version.

How Researchers Should Evaluate This Series

Whether Contemporary Issues in Entrepreneurship Research is “good” for a particular researcher depends on the publication objective. Its official ISBE relationship, Emerald publication platform and themed entrepreneurship focus are relevant evidence of identity and scholarly context. But the deciding factors should be fit, current database recognition, audience, contribution route and institutional rules.

For a researcher who wants a chapter in a specialised edited volume connected to the entrepreneurship community, the series may be an appropriate opportunity. For someone who must produce a journal article in a specific JCR quartile, the source type alone may make it unsuitable. The same publication can therefore be a strong choice for one objective and the wrong choice for another.

How Contentxprtz Can Support Publication Readiness

Preparing a chapter for Contemporary Issues in Entrepreneurship Research may involve aligning the manuscript with a volume theme, refining the abstract and contribution statement, improving academic English, checking structure, standardising references, reviewing tables and figures, and preparing a clean response to editorial or reviewer comments.

Contentxprtz publication-readiness support can assist with ethical manuscript assessment, academic editing, proofreading, reference and citation consistency, formatting, cover-letter or proposal language, and revision-stage polishing. The research ideas, analysis, evidence and scholarly claims must remain the authors’ own.

Contentxprtz does not control editorial decisions and does not guarantee acceptance or publication. Selection and publication decisions remain solely with the series editors and Emerald.

Summary: Contemporary Issues in Entrepreneurship Research

Contemporary Issues in Entrepreneurship Research is an Emerald Publishing book series produced in collaboration with ISBE and focused on contemporary entrepreneurship and small-business research. Its ISSN is 2040-7246, and the supplied source record identifies Scopus Source ID 21100417364. Volumes are organised around specific themes and include selected ISBE conference papers as well as invited expert contributions.

Researchers should evaluate the series as a book-series opportunity rather than as a journal. Verify the current Scopus profile, identify an active volume or invitation, check institution-specific recognition, and follow the exact editor instructions. Journal-only metrics such as Impact Factor should not be assumed, and current Scopus metrics should be checked by reporting year rather than copied from third-party sites.