The Stata Journal FAQ
1. Introduction1.1 What is the Stata Journal?The Stata Journal is a printed and electronic journal containing reviewed articles related to Stata together with user-written software additions to Stata. The Journal is included in scientific citation indexes. The Stata Journal is available by subscription. Accompanying each issue is software that can be installed into Stata. The software is available for free over the Internet to both subscribers and nonsubscribers.
1.2 What is the purpose of the Stata Journal?The Stata Journal is a publication for all Stata users, both novice and experienced, with various levels of expertise in statistics, research design, data management, graphics, reporting of results, and of Stata in particular. A portion of the article "The Stata Journal begins publication fourth quarter 2001", which appeared in STB-61, May 2001, states The numerous daily postings on Statalist illustrate very well the readership we have in mind, as those who follow it will appreciate. As with many listservers, the style and content of Statalist discussions have evolved into an expression of members' interests and expertise. Statalist is centered on, but in no sense limited to, Stata users. Members' questions and answers range back and forth through specifics on using Stata to general questions on data management; statistical data analysis and modeling; and what is and is not good practice, statistically, computationally and scientifically. Statalist is widely appreciated, not just as a relatively rapid and effective way of solving Stata problems, but also as a source of wisdom on statistical matters in the widest sense. It is this mix that we seek to emulate, although with more substantial and more durable contributions, in the Stata Journal.
1.3 What types of articles appear in the Stata Journal?
The Stata Journal publishes reviewed papers together with shorter notes or comments, regular columns, book reviews, and other material of interest to Stata users. Examples of the types of papers include Notes and comments Notes and comments are normally short (about one page or less). Notes may include, for example, explanation of a neat trick using a few lines of Stata, which appears to be worth publicizing. Comments refer to material previously published in the Journal or in the Stata Technical Bulletin. Columns Columns are solicited by the Editors. At present two columns run regularly. "Mata matters" by William Gould and other guest writers focuses on the new Mata programming language added in Stata 9. Mata offers users considerable flexibility and power and further extends the programming of Stata. For example, the first such column discusses translation of Fortran programs into Mata. "Speaking Stata" by Nicholas J. Cox concentrates on the effective and fluent use of Stata as a language. Advice and detailed examples cover the commands, devices, habits, tricks, tactics, and strategies that make problem-solving easier for the Stata user. Book reviews Book reviews are solicited by the Editors. Book reviews concentrate on books about Stata or that contain examples using Stata, but books that may be interesting or valuable to many readers may also be reviewed. Suggestions for book reviews are welcome. Tips Stata tips are very concise notes about Stata commands, features, or tricks that you may not have encountered. A tip will draw attention to useful details in Stata or Stata’s uses. Tips must be brief, usually two or three printed pages. We welcome submissions of tips from readers, or suggestions of tips, or of kinds of tips, you would like to see. Software updates Software updates flag updates (ranging from bug fixes through enhancements to rewrites) of programs previously published via the Stata Journal (or the Stata Technical Bulletin). Each update is usually very short (often a sentence or a paragraph). Further details may be given in the associated help files distributed electronically. Revisions of programs that need longer explanations may be submitted as another form of publication, as already mentioned; in case of doubt, please consult the Editors. We do not publish in the Stata Journal (1) any articles on statistics or statistical science, however broadly defined, that lack Stata content or specific application to Stata use, or (2) Stata programs that lack supporting discussion. 1.4 Who is responsible for the Stata Journal?The Editors of the Stata Journal are
Department of Statistics, Texas A&M University College Station, Texas 77843 USA 979-845-8817 979-845-6077 fax editors@stata-journal.com Nicholas J. Cox, Editor Geography Department Durham University South Road, Durham City DH1 3LE United Kingdom 44-191-3341863 editors@stata-journal.com The Associate Editors of the Stata Journal are
Nathaniel Beck, New York University, USA Rino Bellocco, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden, and University of Milano-Bicocca, Italy Maarten L. Buis, WZB, Berlin, Germany A. Colin Cameron, University of California–Davis, USA Mario A. Cleves, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, USA William D. Dupont, Vanderbilt University, USA Philip Ender, University of California–Los Angeles, USA David Epstein, Columbia University, USA Allan Gregory, Queen's University, Canada James Hardin, University of South Carolina, USA Ben Jann, University of Bern, Switzerland Stephen Jenkins, London School of Economics and Political Science, UK Ulrich Kohler, University of Potsdam, Germany Frauke Kreuter, University of Maryland–College Park, USA Peter A. Lachenbruch, Oregon State University, USA Jens Lauritsen, Odense University Hospital, Denmark Stanley Lemeshow, Ohio State University, USA J. Scott Long, Indiana University, USA Roger Newson, Imperial College, London, UK Austin Nichols, Urban Institute, Washington DC, USA Marcello Pagano, Harvard School of Public Health, USA Sophia Rabe-Hesketh, University of California–Berkeley, USA J. Patrick Royston, MRC Clinical Trials Unit, London, UK Philip Ryan, University of Adelaide, Australia Mark E. Schaffer, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, UK Jeroen Weesie, Utrecht University, Netherlands Ian White, MRC Biostatistics Unit, Cambridge, UK Nicholas J. G. Winter, University of Virginia, USA Jeffrey Wooldridge, Michigan State University, USA The Journal is published by Stata Press, a division of StataCorp LP. 1.5 What is a tag?Each article, column, note, or comment in the Stata Journal is assigned a letter-number code, such as st0042, an0034, or ds0012. A number such as st0042 indicates that this article is number 42 in the st category. A number such as st0042_1 indicates that this article, column, note, or comment is related to the original st0042 article and could have the same or different authors. The following category codes are used:
1.6 Suggested citation guidelinesThe appropriate citation for an article in the Stata Journal is
For example,
In some cases, it is necessary to abbreviate the name of the Stata Journal. The official abbreviation is SJ. 2. Stata Journal publication information2.1 Does the Stata Journal have an ISSN number?Yes. The ISSN number for the printed Journal is 1536-867X, and the ISSN number for the electronic Journal is 1536-8734.
2.2 When is the Journal published?The Journal is published quarterly:
Apr–Jun Jul–Sep Oct–Dec Volume 1 refers to the first year, Volume 2 the second, and so on. Issues are numbered 1, 2, 3, and 4 within each year. The first issue of the Journal was published Oct–Dec, 2001, and that issue is numbered Volume 1, Number 1:
Volume 2 Number 1: 2002 Jan–Mar
Volume 3 Number 1: 2003 Jan–Mar 2.3 How do I subscribe to the Journal?Subscriptions may be ordered from
1-800-782-8272 (USA) 1-800-248-8272 (Canada) 1-979-696-4600 (Worldwide) subscriptions@stata-journal.com Orders may be placed by emailing, calling, faxing, or writing. An online order form is also available for Journal subscriptions at stata.com/bookstore/subscribe-stata-journal. Subscription prices are U.S. and Canada
Elsewhere
Also see section 2.5 for library and institutional rates. 2.4 How do I obtain past issues?
Past issues may be ordered from Orders may be placed by emailing, calling, faxing, or writing. Past issues may also be ordered from the Stata Bookstore at stata.com/bookstore/order-individual-stata-journal-issues.
Electronic copies of individual articles are available at stata-journal.com/archives. Articles older than 3 years are free; more recent articles are $8.75.
2.5 Is there a special library or institutional subscription rate?University libraries and institutions may obtain a one-year printed and electronic subscription to the SJ at the following prices:
The Stata Journal should be made available to both faculty and students in accordance with the library's standard practice. Institutions should make the SJ available within the institution. Email subscriptions@stata-journal.com for additional details. 2.6 Copyright statementThe Stata Journal and the contents of the supporting files (programs, datasets, and help files) are copyright © by StataCorp LP. The contents of the supporting files (programs, datasets, and help files) may be copied or reproduced by any means whatsoever, in whole or in part, as long as any copy or reproduction includes attribution to both (1) the author and (2) the Stata Journal. The articles appearing in the Stata Journal may be copied or reproduced as printed copies, in whole or in part, as long as any copy or reproduction includes attribution to both (1) the author and (2) the Stata Journal. Written permission must be obtained from StataCorp if you wish to make electronic copies of the insertions. This precludes placing electronic copies of the Stata Journal, in whole or in part, on publicly accessible web sites, fileservers, or other locations where the copy may be accessed by anyone other than the subscriber. Users of any of the software, ideas, data, or other materials published in the Stata Journal or the supporting files understand that such use is made without warranty of any kind, by either the Stata Journal, the author, or StataCorp. In particular, there is no warranty of fitness of purpose or merchantability, nor for special, incidental, or consequential damages such as loss of profits. The purpose of the Stata Journal is to promote free communication among Stata users. The Stata Journal (ISSN 1536-867X) is a publication of Stata Press, and Stata is a registered trademark of StataCorp LP. 3. Accessing Journal software
If you wanted to install insert st0001 from Volume 1, Number 1, you could use the net command:
. net from http://www.stata-journal.com/software
. net cd sj1-1
. net describe st0001
. net install st0001
or you could See [U] 20.6 How do I install an addition? and [U] 32 Using the Internet to keep up to date. 4. The Stata Journal history4.1 What is the STB?The STB—the Stata Technical Bulletin—is the predecessor of the Stata Journal. It was published six times per year between May 1991 and May 2001. For ten years, the STB served as a means of distributing new commands and Stata updates, both user-written and "official". When the STB began, there was no Internet or, at least, no Internet that was used to distribute software and updates, and the STB fulfilled this need. Users back then subscribed to the STB with diskettes, and these diskettes contained the updates. More recently, the growth of the Internet along with the growth in both the number and the diversity of Stata users allowed the editors to gradually introduce changes in the STB. In particular, the Internet, Stata's website, and the Statalist listserver allowed instant communication among users, and moreover, improvements to Stata software actually allowed it to search the Internet for desired statistical capabilities—whether written by StataCorp or by users—and instantly install what it finds. Over its last five years, STB "inserts" became less announcements and short articles describing user-written programs and became more longer articles describing complicated programs as well as more general articles about how Stata can be used to analyze interesting datasets. When the STB began, timeliness was of primary importance. Nowadays, printed matter cannot compete with the Internet in that respect; however, printed material is more considered, more substantial, and more trustworthy. Thus the editors came to the conclusion that a new vehicle needed to be created, the Stata Journal. The editors decided that the Journal should be printed less often (4 times per year rather than 6), allowing them more time to review articles and making the articles even more considered, substantial, and trustworthy. They also knew that they wanted to change the emphasis of the articles. Programs with documentation will always be welcome, but we believe that users want and need more expository articles about statistics and using Stata, rather than about Stata as a program.
4.2 Past editors
Remember, the predecessor of the Stata Journal is the STB. The past editors of the STB were 4.3 STB/SJ issues and Stata releasesStata 12
Stata 11
Stata 10
Stata 9
Stata 8
Stata 7
STB-60 through STB-61, March 2001 through May 2001 Stata 6.0
Stata 5.0
Stata 4.0
Stata 3.0
Stata 2.1
Stata 2.05
Stata 2.0
5. Submission guidelines for authors
(last revised 01 February 2013) 
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