Call for Papers, Iowa Journal of Communication, 2026

Iowa Journal of Communication

Call for Submissions

General Issue: Open to any topic in communication (Volume 59, Issue 1)

Deadline: April 30, 2027

The Iowa Journal of Communication (IJC), an award-winning journal, invites submissions for our next volume. Manuscripts may be philosophical, theoretical, critical, applied, pedagogical, or empirical in nature. Manuscripts may focus on any type of communication, including group, face-to-face, family, health, mediated, intercultural, interpersonal, public address, etc. We are particularly interested in unique approaches and voices. All communication scholars and professionals are encouraged to consider submitting high-quality work for publication; one does not need to be a member of the Iowa Communication Association to submit.

Editor's Forum

Additionally, we invite submissions to the Editor's Forum. Over the past decade, public discourse surrounding higher education has increasingly shifted toward market utility, return on investment (ROI), and ideological polarization. While scholarship frequently examines how this rhetoric affects institutional policy, state funding, and enrollment, less attention is paid to its interpersonal fallout. This issue of the Iowa Journal of Communication seeks critical reflections exploring how rhetoric regarding the purpose and value of higher education fundamentally reshapes key academic relationships. We invite contributors to investigate how macro-level debates manifest in micro-level interactions across diverse campus contexts. Potential contributors might address, but are not limited to, the following core questions, though they may offer other questions within the context of the forum topic:

· Pedagogical & Student–Instructor Dynamics: How has rhetoric framing higher education primarily as consumerism, workforce preparation, or ideological training altered relational boundary-setting, trust, and communication between students and instructors?

· Collegial Relationships & Campus Climate: How do shifting narratives about the academy impact peer-to-peer relationships among faculty? Where do we see evidence of solidarity, hyper-competition, or withdrawal?

· Faculty–Administrator Relations: How does administrative rhetoric—and the critical rhetoric surrounding administration—shape structural power dynamics, shared governance, and interpersonal trust across institutional ranks?

· Affective Atmospheres (Apathy vs. Empathy): When stakeholders engage in conversations about higher education’s modern purpose, what communicative patterns cultivate systemic apathy, cynicism, or disillusionment versus genuine empathy and institutional care?

Submission Guidelines

· All documents must be submitted as a Microsoft Word file, Times New Roman or Arial font, 12-point, double-spaced, and must utilize the APA Style Guide, 7th edition.

· Include a cover letter that includes author names and affiliations, indicates the corresponding author, notes that the manuscript is not currently under consideration with another outlet, indicates conflicts of interest if any, establishes ethical approval, and notes the history of the manuscript if portions of the manuscript have been previously published.

· Graphs, charts, figures, tables, and other visuals must be static images inserted (not linked) into the document, numbered, and captioned appropriately. Images must be high resolution and cited; captioned if they are author-generated.

· Manuscript must be submitted with any author identifying information removed from the manuscript text and digital properties. Include a 150-200 word abstract on the title page, follow article structure conventions (intro, lit review, method, etc.), and do not exceed 9,000 words inclusive of references for standard submissions, 3,000 words for submissions to the Editor's Forum.

Address any questions or submissions to Dr. Joshua E. Young, Editor, at joyoung@dwci.edu, making sure to note IJC (Iowa Journal of Communication) in the subject line.