Publication ethical standards are in place to uphold the quality of scientific publications, public trust in scientific findings, and ensure proper recognition of individuals' intellectual contributions. For more guidance and information, visit; https://publicationethics.org/

 

Authors in IJESS must fulfil the criteria for definition of authorship. Specifically;
• Authorship should be limited to those who have made a substantial contribution to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the study;
• OR the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data;
• OR have drafted the work or substantially revised it;
• AND has approved the submitted version (and any substantially modified version that involves the author’s contribution to the study;
• AND agrees to be accountable for the work submitted both the research and cited material.
Exclusion from authorship of individuals who have made author-level contributions is not permitted for papers published in IJESS, nor is guest or honorary authorship.
Other individuals who have participated in the generation of the research paper, but who do not meet the criteria for authorship should be listed in the acknowledgments section with a brief indication of the nature of their contribution.

The corresponding author(s) are responsible for several key tasks:
• Ensuring all listed authors have reviewed and approved the manuscript before submission.
• Handling all significant correspondence with editors and full reviews.
• Verifying that all data, materials, and code, even those from other authors, meet transparency and reproducibility standards.
• Preserving and making accessible the original data, materials, and code for potential re-analysis.
• Ensuring the accuracy of data/materials/code presentation in the paper.
• Anticipating and reducing barriers to data/materials/code sharing.
• Ensuring the entire author group understands and complies with best practices.
• Reviewing galley proofs and ensuring completion of Conflict of Interest declarations and license forms by all authors.

 

Authorship changes post-submission are permitted only under exceptional circumstances and must align with the journal's authorship criteria. Authors seeking changes must contact the Journal Editorial Office or Editorial team through a letter outlining the reasons for the change, signed by all affected authors. The Editor (and possibly the publisher) will review the request, and any changes are at the Editor's discretion. If the corresponding author changes before publication, authors must inform the journal editor and production editor, confirming mutual agreement. Changes to co-authors or corresponding authors after publication may be considered in accordance with authorship guidelines from COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics).

 

Any assistance provided by scientific, medical, or technical writers, translators, or others aiding in manuscript development must be acknowledged. Their role and funding source should be disclosed in the 'Acknowledgments' section or included in the author list if appropriate.

Authors are responsible for notifying and obtaining permission from those they wish to acknowledge, including sharing the article for verification of context. Additionally, significant contributions to experiments and data analysis must be appropriately credited according to authorship criteria. If professional laboratories or data analysts were involved, this should be transparently stated in the manuscript, along with their role. Authors must retain all original data and be ready to share it with the journal editorial office upon request.
Further, any utilization of AI tools for content generation, like large language models, or ChatGPT must be transparently acknowledged within the article. Authors bear the responsibility of ensuring the validity, originality, and integrity of their article content, using such tools responsibly and in accordance with editorial policies on authorship and publishing ethics.

 

Authors are invited to provide brief biographies to be included in the publication. Please submit a concise biography of no more than 100 words per author, detailing their qualifications, expertise, and relevant affiliations. Biographies should highlight each author's contributions to the field and any significant achievements. Please ensure accuracy and relevance to the manuscript's subject matter.

 

IJESS journal upholds a strong commitment to safeguarding intellectual property, condemning all forms of unethical copying or plagiarism. Authors submitting to IJESS are expected to adhere to ethical standards, ensuring their work is entirely original and appropriately citing any external sources used. All manuscripts undergo plagiarism checks using suitable software, and those found to be plagiarized are immediately rejected during the initial review stages. If plagiarism is detected post-publication, the Editor-in-Chief will conduct an investigation, potentially leading to retraction of the paper if deemed necessary.

 

Duplicate or redundant publication, as per COPE guidelines, refers to the re-publication of work, or substantial parts thereof, by the author(s) without appropriate cross-referencing or justification for the overlap, whether in the same or different languages. We discourage significant overlap between publications, except in cases where it enhances academic discourse editorially, with clear approval from the original publication, and proper citation of the source material. Readers, reviewers, and editors can report suspicions of plagiarism or duplication by contacting the relevant editor or via email. Additionally, works pending submission or publication should not be concurrently under consideration elsewhere, whether in journals, books, or other forms of press.

 

Freedom of expression is a cornerstone of our efforts as academic publishers, and as such we will never support the publication of false statements or any works that seek to harm the reputation of individuals, groups, or organizations. Any allegations of libel made against our publication are dealt with by our legal team, and our contributors can seek their advice on any pre-publication libel reviews.

 

Our journal editors will consider retractions, corrections, or expressions of concern in line with COPE’s Retraction Guidelines. If an author is found to have made an error, the journal will issue a corrigendum. If the journal is found to have made an error, they will issue an erratum. Retractions are usually reserved for particular articles with such egregious flaws or misalignment with the editorial principles of IJESS that their findings and/or conclusions should not be relied upon. Accepted manuscripts may have minor changes that address superficial issues such as typesetting or proofreading, however, any substantive corrections will be carried out in line with COPE’s Retraction Guidelines.

 

Maintaining the integrity of scientific research is essential for the advancement of knowledge and the betterment of society. Manipulation, falsification, and fabrication not only tarnish the credibility of science but also have wide-reaching negative consequences.
• Manipulation refers to the alteration of data or research processes to achieve desired results. This can include selective reporting, modifying experimental conditions, or statistical manipulations.
• Falsification involves altering, changing, or omitting data and results such that the research is not accurately represented in the research record. For instance, misrepresenting the methods used or the findings obtained.
• Fabrication is the outright invention of data or results. This is perhaps the most egregious form of scientific misconduct, where researchers make up data points or experiments that were never conducted.

 

Where we are made aware of misconduct of any kind by our authors, our primary concern is the integrity of the content we have published. Working with the editors and contributors to the work, COPE, and any necessary third-party organisations, any publication conclusively found to be fraudulent in any instance will be either retracted or corrected where appropriate

 

Citations to unpublished data and personal communications cannot be used to support significant claims in the paper. Papers will be held for publication until all “in press” citations are either published or posted in full on a preprint server.

 

All data, program code and other methods must be appropriately cited using Digital Object Identifier System (DOIs), journal citations, or other persistent identifiers. Truly exceptional circumstances requiring special treatment, such as proprietary information requiring nondisclosure agreements, should be discussed with the editor no later than at the manuscript revision stage and spelled out explicitly in the acknowledgments.