Policies
Publication Ethics
Trust in a published article depends on more than the peer review score it received – it depends on the integrity of the process behind it. We expect authors, reviewers, and editors to uphold the following standards throughout submission, review, and after publication.
Ethical standards
Our editorial practices are informed by internationally recognized best practices for scholarly publishing, including guidance from organizations such as the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). Editors, reviewers, and authors are all expected to uphold them.
Plagiarism
Authors must confirm their submission is original work and properly cite any prior work it builds on. See our dedicated Plagiarism Policy for how we define and handle plagiarism, including self-plagiarism.
Conflicts of interest
Peer review is double-blind. Authors, reviewers, and editors are all expected to disclose any potential conflicts of interest – financial, institutional, or personal – at submission or during review, so they can be managed appropriately.
Confidentiality
Editors and reviewers treat unpublished manuscripts as confidential material. They must not share a submission's content with anyone outside the review process, or use information from it for their own research or advantage before it's published.
Human & animal research
Studies involving people, their personal data or animals must include an ethics statement naming the approving committee and the approval number, or explaining why no approval was needed; the editor may ask for the approval or exemption letter. Studies involving people must also state how informed consent was obtained and, if anyone could be identified, their consent to publication.
AI tools
AI tools can't be authors or be cited as sources. If you used generative AI beyond language editing – for example to draft text, analyse data or make figures – describe the tool and how you used it in an AI-Use Statement at the end of the manuscript. You remain responsible for everything in it.
Author consent & authorship
All listed authors and any acknowledged contributors must consent to the submission and to how their contribution is described. Authorship should reflect a genuine, substantial contribution to the work – not honorary or ghost authorship.
Corrections & retractions
If a significant error is identified after publication, we issue a correction. If the integrity of the findings is compromised – through misconduct, major error, or duplicate publication – the article is retracted, with a public notice explaining why. The original article remains accessible, marked as retracted, rather than being removed from the record.
Reporting a concern
If you believe a published article or a manuscript under review raises an ethical concern – suspected plagiarism, data fabrication, undisclosed conflicts of interest, or anything else – contact the editorial office directly. Reports are reviewed by the editor independent of the original decision, following established publication-ethics guidance.
See also our Plagiarism Policy and Peer Review Process.
Last reviewed: November 6, 2026