Ethics of Scientific Publications

Key Responsibilities of the Publisher

(1) Preservation of the Scientific Archive: еhe publisher plays a crucial role in supporting the work of editors and reviewers to maintain the integrity of the journal’s scientific archive. This includes providing resources, ensuring adherence to best practices in publishing, and upholding editorial standards.

(2) Protection of Editorial Independence: the publisher commits to preventing any external influence (financial or otherwise) on editorial decisions.

Key Responsibilities of Editors

(1) Decision-Making on Publication: the editor-in-chief holds full responsibility for deciding on the publication of articles, based on their significance and scientific value to researchers and readers.

(2) Peer Review Process: editors ensure a fair, objective, and timely review process, selecting reviewers with appropriate expertise and promoting inclusivity and diversity.

(3) Fairness and Transparency: manuscripts are evaluated solely on their scientific merit, with editorial policies transparently communicated.

(4) Confidentiality: Editors protect the confidentiality of all materials submitted to the journal and communications with reviewers.

(5) Conflict of Interest: any potential conflicts of interest must be disclosed and considered when making editorial decisions

Key Responsibilities of Reviewers

(1) Assisting Editorial Decisions: reviewers provide constructive feedback to help editors make decisions and assist authors in improving their manuscripts.

(2) Confidentiality: manuscripts under review are treated as confidential and must not be shared with third parties.

(3) Ethical Standards and Independence: reviewers must evaluate submissions objectively, avoiding personal bias or conflicts of interest.

Key Responsibilities of Authors

(1) Accountability and Standards: authors must accurately present their research, providing detailed and reliable data that can be reproduced.

(2) Data Access and Retention: authors should provide data upon request and ensure it is securely stored for verification.

(3) Originality and Source Attribution: authors are responsible for ensuring the originality of their work, properly citing prior research, and avoiding plagiarism. Manuscripts must not duplicate previous publications, except for conference abstracts or theses.

(4) Authorship Criteria: authorship is limited to individuals who have made significant contributions to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the study.

(5) Conflict of Interest Disclosure: manuscripts must include disclosures of any relationships that could be perceived as potential conflicts of interest.

(6) Notification of Errors: if a significant error or inaccuracy is found in a published work, authors must promptly notify the editor and cooperate to correct or retract the article.

Editorial Independence

The journal ensures editorial decisions are based solely on scientific criteria, free from commercial or external influences. This includes decisions on peer review, acceptance, rejection, and publication.

Appeal Policy

Authors may appeal editorial decisions by submitting a written request within one month of receiving the decision. Appeals are considered only for manuscripts that underwent peer review. Appeals must include detailed responses to editorial and reviewer comments, supported by evidence.

Author Identification

Authors are required to provide an ORCID identifier to enhance transparency in the publication process.

Grounds for Retraction

Articles may be retracted due to violations of scientific publishing ethics, including:

Incorrect and/or unattributed borrowing (plagiarism);
Duplicate publication in multiple outlets;
Falsification or fabrication of data (e.g., manipulation of experimental results);
Identification of significant errors in the publication (e.g., incorrect interpretation of research findings), undermining its scientific value;
Misrepresentation of authorship (including individuals who do not meet authorship criteria);
Undisclosedconflictsofinterest;
Republishing an article without the author’s consent;
Other violations of publication ethics.

A retraction confirms that the article contains violations. While authors may disagree with the decision, the journal retains the right to proceed with the retraction process. Articles may be retracted by the authors or by the journal’s editorial board. Retraction is not intended as a tool to discredit authors but as a mechanism to ensure the transparency and integrity of scientific communication and knowledge dissemination.

When a retraction decision is made based on an expert review, triggered by third-party information or an author’s request, the authors are formally notified. Authors (or the corresponding author in case of collective authorship) must review and acknowledge the reasoning for retraction. If authors refuse to retract, the editorial board reserves the right to proceed without their consent, as it bears responsibility for the journal’s content and data accuracy.

Retraction information is also published as a separate file on the journal’s website.