Publication Ethics & Malpractice Statement

Ethical Responsibilities

For Editors

• To ensure that evaluation of manuscripts is solely based on the intellectual content without regard to race, gender, origin or belief of the authors and to ensure unbiased review.
• Strive to ensure the integrity and confidentiality of the manuscript.
• Adopting processes that encourage accuracy, completeness and clarity of research reporting including technical editing and the use of appropriate guidelines and checklists.
• To have a process in place to assure the quality of the manuscript they publish and monitor the performance of peer reviewers to ensure good quality.
• Ensure people involved in the Editorial process receive adequate training and are up-to-date with the latest guidelines about peer review and Journal management.
• To actively seek the views of authors, and publish guidance and have a mechanism for authors to appeal against editorial decisions.

For Peer-Reviewers

• To respect the confidentiality and integrity of peer review and not reveal any details during or after the peer-review process.
• To assist the Editors and Editorial Board in making Editorial decisions and be objective and constructive in their reviews and provide feedback that will help the authors to improve their manuscript.
• Notify the Editor immediately about any ethical aspects of the work and alert the editors regarding any concurrent submission to other Journals.
• Declare if they do not have the subject expertise, and only agree to review if they are fairly confident to return a review within the proposed time frame.
• Contact the Editor if anything relevant comes to light after they have submitted their review that might affect their original feedback and recommendations.

For Authors

• The Authors should not publish the same content in more than one journal, submitting such contents for multiple publications is unethical publication behavior and is unacceptable.
• Authors should ensure they have written and submitted original works and the content should be free from plagiarism.
• Those who have made a contribution in the design, execution and interpretation of the study should be listed as coauthors, others who have participated should be acknowledged.
• Authors should acknowledge the work of others, that has been used or that has provided support/inspiration in their research and this must be appropriately cited/quoted.
• Authors should provide an accurate account of their work done and source the material of experiments and research results accurately.
• Authors/contributors must be honest in making claims for the results and conclusions of their research. The manuscript is free from copyright infringement.
• Manuscripts depicting studies in which animals trials have been conducted must document that an ethical review board approved the study before it was done.
• Sources of funding should be duly acknowledged, and disclose any conflict of interest to influence the results or interpretation of their manuscripts.
• Any inaccuracy or significant error in his/her published work should be notified to the Journal Editor and the author should cooperate with the Editor to correct the manuscript.

Publishing Ethics

• Ensure that research material published conforms to internationally accepted ethical guidelines.
• Duplication of any published work is unacceptable.
• If a paper is identified as fraudulent, it should be retracted, and the retraction should be clearly identifiable to readers and indexing systems.
• Preclude business needs from compromising intellectual standards.

Unethical Behavior/Misconduct

• Any Misconduct should be provided with sufficient information and evidence.
• We believe that employers (research organizations/institutions) have the prime responsibility for ensuring their researchers conduct. Publication houses do not have the resources or legal legitimacy to investigate scientific misconduct.
• However, Publication Management Team of the Journal may seek advice/information from a concerned referee or editorial board member, in case it is brought to its notice, with evidence that trust has been significantly compromised by authors or referees actions.