Psychonomic Society

What Psychonomic Society does

The Psychonomic Society is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit professional membership organization founded in 1959 and incorporated in Wisconsin, dedicated to advancing the science of cognition through communication of basic research in experimental and allied cognitive psychology. It serves a global community of more than 4,300 researchers across 60+ countries, with members including students, practicing researchers, and distinguished Fellows. The society operates with a very lean staff of four full-time employees and a 12-member elected Governing Board supported by 13 standing committees.

The society's core product surface consists of eight peer-reviewed journals (Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics; Behavior Research Methods; Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience; Cognitive Research: Principles & Implications; Individual Differences in Cognition; Learning & Behavior; Memory & Cognition; and Psychonomic Bulletin & Review) published in partnership with Springer Nature, an Annual Scientific Meeting drawing 2,200-2,650 attendees, and a portfolio of community programs including the One World Seminar Series, Featured Content Blog, Collaborative Symposia, EMBRACE diversity grants, and the Career Center. Underlying technology is standard membership-management and content-delivery infrastructure; the society does not develop proprietary technology stacks.

Revenue is generated through three primary streams: recurring membership dues (undergraduate $15, graduate $25, member $85, fellow $120, with emeritus members paying nothing), journal publishing income routed through the Springer Nature partnership, and Annual Meeting registration fees. Donations and planned giving supplement these. Membership tiers are priced on a calendar-year basis with multi-year discounts of 5% (two-year) and 10% (three-year). The society has no external investors, no parent company, and no subsidiaries; governance is member-led.

Name

Psychonomic Society

Legal name

The Psychonomic Society, Inc.

Website

https://psychonomic.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1959

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Psychonomic Society is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit professional membership organization serving 4,300+ cognitive and experimental psychology researchers across 60+ countries, operating eight peer-reviewed journals via Springer Nature and an annual scientific meeting.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Association / Scientific Journal Publishing

NAICS

Professional Organizations (813920), Business Associations (813910), Business, Professional, Labor, Political, and Similar Organizations (8139)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Association & Society Conference Management (Nonprofit, Professional Bodies) (THAHACAA)

Keywords

• Academic publishing services
• Professional membership association
• Scientific journal publishing
• Annual scientific meetings
• Cognitive psychology research

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership dues from undergraduate students ($15), graduate students ($25), members ($85), and fellows ($120). Emeritus members pay no dues. Revenue from approximately 4,300+ members worldwide.
2. Journal Publishing: Publishing seven highly respected peer-reviewed journals through partnership with Springer Nature: Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics; Behavior Research Methods; Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience; Cognitive Research: Principles & Implications; Individual Differences in Cognition; Learning & Behavior; Memory & Cognition; and Psychonomic Bulletin & Review.
3. Annual Meeting Revenue: Registration fees for the Annual Meeting, which attracts 2,200-2,650 attendees annually. The meeting is a primary venue for scientific exchange and member engagement.
4. Donations and Planned Giving: Accepts gifts of cash, stock, retirement funds, and planned giving (bequests, life insurance, charitable remainder trusts). The society is a 501(c)(3) organization.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Psychonomic Society is a nonprofit professional membership organization that serves cognitive and experimental psychologists through tiered annual membership, a portfolio of peer-reviewed scientific journals published with Springer Nature, and an Annual Scientific Meeting. It also runs targeted programs including the EMBRACE diversity initiative, the One World Seminar Series, Collaborative Symposia, awards and fellowships, and a Career Center job board.

Product overview

The Psychonomic Society operates a portfolio of eight peer-reviewed journals in cognitive and experimental psychology, published in partnership with Springer Nature. The journal portfolio spans core cognitive domains including memory, perception, learning, neuroscience, research methods, and individual differences. Beyond publishing, the society offers an annual scientific meeting (2,200-2,650 attendees), the Featured Content Blog for digital educational content, virtual programs including the One World Seminar Series and Collaborative Symposia, a Career Center for job postings, the EMBRACE diversity initiative providing grants, and a Fellowship program recognizing outstanding researchers. The society also publishes a newsletter and podcast for member engagement.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• EMBRACE Initiative: Engaging Marginalized and Broader Representative Audiences in Cognitive Exploration - Diversity & Inclusion initiative providing up to $5,000 in funding for activities that expand participation among marginalized and underrepresented groups

Products and services

• Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics (APP)

Quantifiable outcome

• Seven highly respected peer-reviewed journals
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Springer NaturecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Springer Nature for publishing seven peer-reviewed journals: Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics; Behavior Research Methods; Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience; Cognitive Research: Principles & Implications; Individual Differences in Cognition; Learning & Behavior; Memory & Cognition; and Psychonomic Bulletin & Review. This is a core revenue stream for the society.
• FABBS (Federation of Associations in Behavioral & Brain Sciences)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for US-based advocacy for research funding. FABBS represents PS interests in educating federal representatives about the importance of behavioral and brain science research, advocating for legislation that enhances training and research, and providing expertise to federal agencies. PS participates in 12 broad coalitions through FABBS including NIH advocacy.
• Association for Psychological Science (APS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint venture with APS to support activities honoring William K. and Katherine W. Estes Fund for mathematical psychology. PS and APS jointly manage the steering committee for this initiative. The fund supports activities related to mathematical psychology research.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• Springer Nature: Core publishing partner that distributes PS's seven peer-reviewed journals. Not a competitor but a strategic infra provider whose terms and open-access strategy directly shape PS's largest revenue stream.
• Federation of Associations in Behavioral & Brain Sciences: Umbrella federation of which PS is a member. FABBS coordinates federal advocacy across member societies, making it an enabling ecosystem partner rather than a competitor.

Direct peers

• Association for Psychological Science: Direct peer professional society for psychological science with similar membership, journals (Psychological Science, Current Directions), and annual convention model. Already collaborates with PS on the Estes Fund for mathematical psychology.
• European Society for Cognitive Psychology: Direct peer European counterpart society focused on cognitive psychology, hosting EuroCogSci conferences. Already partners with PS on Collaborative Symposia, making it a structural peer in format and audience.
• Cognitive Science Society: Direct peer society for cognitive scientists with overlapping membership, peer-reviewed journals (Cognitive Science, Topics in Cognitive Science), and an annual conference that competes for the same researcher audience.
• Society for Neuroscience: Large peer professional society using the same membership-dues, journal-subscription, and annual-meeting model in adjacent neuroscience. SfN's Journal of Neuroscience and annual meeting are comparable in scale and structure to PS operations.

Broad incumbents

• American Psychological Association: Much larger broad incumbent psychology organization with 40+ journals and 120,000+ members. Overlaps with PS on cognitive and experimental psychology content but operates as a full-discipline association rather than a focused subfield society.

Regional players

• Experimental Psychology Society: UK-based experimental psychology society serving a similar membership niche but in a different geography. PS has hosted joint Collaborative Symposia with EPS, indicating direct peer overlap in community.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/watch?v=cDdtJI9cFmM
• Xx.com/Psychonomic_Soc
• Facebookfacebook.com/psychonomicsociety

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Psychonomic Society