Publication Policies

Publication Policies 

The publication policies follow Elsevier recommendations and the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Core Practices. These policies define the responsibilities of editors, reviewers, and authors to maintain integrity, transparency, and accountability across all stages of scholarly publishing.

Publication Ethics

The organization enforces strict ethical standards. All submissions must be original. Plagiarism, fabrication, falsification, and any form of unethical conduct are prohibited. Editors, reviewers, and authors must follow ethical guidelines and contribute to preventing publication malpractice.

Editors’ Responsibilities

Editors make publication decisions based on scholarly merit and ethical standards. They ensure confidential handling of submitted manuscripts, evaluate work without discrimination, follow legal and ethical requirements, and avoid conflicts of interest. Unpublished material cannot be used in editors’ own research.

Reviewers’ Responsibilities

Reviewers support editorial decisions through objective and timely evaluations. They maintain confidentiality, avoid conflicts of interest, identify missing citations, and provide clear, evidence-based feedback. Reviewers must not upload manuscripts to generative AI tools because this violates confidentiality.

Authors’ Responsibilities

Authors must present accurate results, provide sufficient detail for reproducibility, cite all sources, and ensure originality. They must not submit the same work to multiple journals. Conflicts of interest, funding sources, hazards, and use of generative AI tools must be disclosed. Authors must report errors in published work and cooperate in corrections or retractions.

Authorship and Contributorship

Authorship is limited to those who made significant contributions to the research. Contributors must be acknowledged. All co-authors must approve the final manuscript. Changes in authorship are not allowed after acceptance.

Complaints and Appeals

Complaints must be submitted within 30 days. The editorial office investigates each case and responds with a decision. Appeals are reviewed by a senior editor not involved in the original decision. COPE guidance supports the resolution of complex ethical issues.

Conflicts of Interest

All participants must disclose conflicts of interest before and after publication. Undisclosed conflicts are handled according to COPE procedures.

Funding Declaration

Authors must provide complete and transparent funding information, including funding bodies, grant numbers, and beneficiaries.

Data and Reproducibility

Authors are encouraged to share supporting data and methods. Manuscripts must include enough detail for reproducibility. Data availability statements are recommended.

Ethical Oversight

Research must comply with ethical standards. Studies involving humans or animals require documented approval. Any ethical breach must be reported.

Post-Publication Corrections

Errors reported by authors or readers are investigated. Corrections may be issued as a Corrigendum or Erratum. Articles with serious issues may be retracted following COPE guidance.

Intellectual Property

Publications follow the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License. Authors retain copyright. Originality is required, and all sources must be properly cited. Plagiarism results in sanctions, including retraction.

Research Misconduct

Misconduct includes plagiarism, fabrication, falsification, self-plagiarism, authorship manipulation, conflicts of interest, citation manipulation, and ethical violations. Each case is investigated using COPE procedures. Proven misconduct leads to sanctions such as blacklisting, retraction, and notification of institutions.

AI-Assisted Tools

Generative AI cannot replace the intellectual role of authors and cannot be listed as an author. Use of AI beyond minor editing must be disclosed. Reviewers may not use AI to evaluate manuscripts. Editors may use automated tools under human oversight.

Repository Policy and Preservation

The policy regulates the versions of a manuscript that may be deposited in repositories. The organization ensures long-term digital preservation of all published materials.

Sanctions

Violations of these policies may lead to rejection, retraction, author blacklisting, or notification of affiliated institutions. All actions follow COPE recommendations.