CITRAKARA permits the responsible use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Generative AI (GenAI) tools in research, design practice, and manuscript preparation, provided that academic integrity, transparency, originality, and human accountability are preserved. Using AI does not transfer responsibility for the manuscript or research findings from the authors to the technology provider.

1. General Principles

Authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, integrity, interpretation, and ethical compliance of their manuscripts, regardless of any AI assistance used. AI tools cannot be listed as authors or co-authors, cannot approve a manuscript, and cannot be held accountable for its content.

AI use must never be used to fabricate or falsify findings, generate fictitious references, conceal plagiarism, manipulate peer review, infringe copyright, or compromise participant confidentiality.

2. Acceptable Use

Authors may use AI-assisted tools for limited, verifiable purposes, including:

• grammar, spelling, and language editing, and translation;
• formatting assistance and preliminary organisation of ideas;
• verified coding or transcription assistance.

All AI-assisted output must be reviewed and verified by the authors before submission — including facts, quotations, references, citations, and statistical claims, since AI systems can produce fabricated or inaccurate information (“hallucinations”).

3. AI as a Research or Creative Method

Where AI (e.g., machine learning, generative image analysis, computational or generative design) forms part of the research methodology or creative process rather than mere editorial support, authors must describe: the tool/model used, its purpose, the input data, relevant parameters, how outputs were evaluated or validated, and the researcher's role in interpreting results. In such cases AI should be treated as a research instrument, not an invisible production tool, and its use must be reported in the Methodology section.

4. Disclosure Requirements

Disclosure is scaled to the extent of AI involvement:

Category	Examples	Disclosure
1 — Minor editorial assistance	Spelling/grammar check, basic language polishing	Recommended
2 — Substantial manuscript assistance	Generating/restructuring substantial text, summaries, drafts	Required
3 — Research method or creative tool	AI-generated visuals, generative design, ML-based analysis	Required, with detail

Suggested disclosure statement (to be placed in the Methodology or Acknowledgements section):

“During the preparation of this manuscript, the authors used [name of AI tool/model] for [purpose]. The authors reviewed, verified, and take full responsibility for the accuracy, originality, and integrity of the published work.”

5. Copyright, Cultural Sensitivity, and Confidentiality

Authors are responsible for verifying that AI-assisted or AI-generated materials comply with copyright and intellectual-property requirements; CITRAKARA does not guarantee that AI output is free of third-party claims.

Special care is required when AI is used to generate, reconstruct, or reinterpret cultural heritage, traditional motifs, sacred symbols, or indigenous knowledge: such content must not be presented as an authentic historical or traditional artifact, and appropriate cultural context and attribution must be provided.

Confidential or unpublished material — including manuscripts under review, participant data, and reviewer reports — must not be entered into public or third-party AI systems without explicit authorisation.

6. Peer Review and Editorial Use

Reviewers and editors may use AI only for administrative or technical support, never to replace independent scholarly judgment, and never in a way that compromises manuscript confidentiality. AI systems must not make or substitute for substantive editorial decisions; final decisions remain the responsibility of the journal's editors.

7. Evaluating Misconduct

AI-detection software alone is not treated as sufficient evidence of misconduct, given its known rate of false positives and negatives. Concerns about undisclosed or inappropriate AI use are assessed holistically — considering disclosure, methodology, source verification, similarity screening, and the author's explanation — consistent with Section 20 of the Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement.

8. Policy Review

This policy may be updated periodically as AI technology and international scholarly-publishing norms evolve. Authors, reviewers, and editors are expected to follow the version of the policy in force at the time of their participation in the publication process.