asr-topic-selection
Use when deciding whether a sociology project fits the American Sociological Review (ASR) and whether to write a full Article or a Comment/Reply. ASR is sociology's general flagship, so the test is broad significance and theoretical payoff across subfields, not novelty within one. Frames the question; it does not collect data.
Profile →npx skills add brycewang-stanford/Awesome-Journal-Skills --skill asr-topic-selection --agent claude-code
Same command for any agent — swap --agent for codex, cursor, copilot.
Weekly change comes from our own snapshots, not the repository page — it measures attention, not adoption.
# Topic Selection & Fit (asr-topic-selection) ASR is the discipline's **general** journal. The bar is not "new to my subfield" — it is **"advances how sociology understands something important."** Use this skill to pressure-test fit before investing. ## When to trigger - Choosing among possible projects or framings for ASR - A reader said the paper feels "too narrow," "merely descriptive," or "subfield-only" - Deciding between a full **Article** and a **Comment/Reply** ## The ASR fit test A strong ASR paper usually clears all four: 1. **Broad significance.** A sociologist in another subfield should see why it matters — for inequality, institutions, culture, social structure, mechanisms of social life. State the stakes. 2. **A theoretical payoff that travels.** It changes how the field explains something, not just what we know about one case. A finding tied only to its setting is a fit risk (see `asr-theory-building`). 3. **Credible on its own methodological terms.** Quantitative, demographic, comparative-historical, ethnographic, network, or computational — each is welcome, each must be rigorous. 4. **Answerable within scope.** Sharp enough to convince within ~15,000 words (an Arti
- When to trigger
- The ASR fit test
- Subfield framing (write past your home subfield)
- Article vs. Comment/Reply
- Fit-screening signals (will an ASR editor send it out?)
- Worked micro-example (illustrative)
- Referee/editor pushback → ASR-specific fix
- Calibration anchors
- Anti-patterns
- Output format
- Supplementary resources
What does the asr-topic-selection skill do?
Use when deciding whether a sociology project fits the American Sociological Review (ASR) and whether to write a full Article or a Comment/Reply. ASR is sociology's general flagship, so the test is broad significance and theoretical payoff across subfields, not novelty within one. Frames the question; it does not collect data.
How do I install it?
Run `npx skills add brycewang-stanford/Awesome-Journal-Skills --skill asr-topic-selection --agent claude-code` — it drops the skill into your project so the agent can pick it up. Swap the --agent value for codex, cursor or copilot if you use one of those.
Where does this skill come from?
From brycewang-stanford/Awesome-Journal-Skills, a repository with 909 stars. We read it straight from the repository tree rather than a submitted listing, so what you see here is what is actually published.
Is a popular skill a good skill?
Not necessarily. Stars measure attention, not adoption — a repository can trend for a week and be abandoned. That is why we show the weekly change from our own snapshots next to the total, instead of a single flattering number.