Publication Ethic

These ethical guidelines are based on best practices in academic publishing and aim to ensure high standards of scientific integrity, transparency, and ethical conduct for all parties involved in the publication process, including authors, reviewers, and editors.

1. Duties of Authors

• Originality and Plagiarism: Authors must ensure that their submitted work is original and has not been previously published elsewhere in any language, unless clearly and explicitly acknowledged and permitted by copyright agreements. Any use of others' work must be properly cited and referenced. Plagiarism in all its forms constitutes unethical publishing behavior and is unacceptable. This includes verbatim copying, paraphrasing without attribution, and self-plagiarism (submitting substantially similar work to multiple publications).  
• Data Access and Retention: Authors may be asked to provide the raw data supporting their research for editorial review and should be prepared to make it publicly available if practicable, provided confidentiality can be protected. Authors should retain such data for a reasonable period after publication.
• Multiple, Redundant, or Concurrent Publication: Submitting the same manuscript to more than one journal concurrently is unethical and unacceptable. Authors should also not submit previously published work (in whole or in part) for consideration in another journal without proper acknowledgment and permission from the copyright holders.  
• Acknowledgement of Sources: Authors must properly acknowledge the work of others used in their research. All sources cited in the manuscript should be listed in the references, and all references in the text should correspond to entries in the reference list.
• Authorship of the Paper: Authorship should be limited to those who have made a significant contribution to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the reported study. All those who have made significant contributions should be listed as co-authors. The corresponding author should ensure that all co-authors have approved the final version of the paper and have agreed to its submission for publication. Individuals who contributed to the research but do not meet the criteria for authorship should be acknowledged in the "Acknowledgments" section.  
• Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest: Authors must disclose any financial or other substantive conflict of interest that could be construed to influence the results or interpretation of their manuscript. All sources of funding for the research should also be disclosed.  
• Fundamental Errors in Published Works: When authors discover a significant error or inaccuracy in their own published work, they have an obligation to promptly notify the journal editor or publisher and cooperate with the editor to retract or correct the paper.  
• Image Integrity: Authors should ensure that images included in their manuscripts are not manipulated in a way that could mislead the interpretation of the data. Any necessary adjustments to images (e.g., brightness, contrast) should be applied uniformly across the entire image and should be clearly described in the methods section.

2. Duties of Editors

• Fair Play and Impartiality: Editors should evaluate manuscripts based on their academic merit without regard to the authors' race, gender, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, ethnic origin, citizenship, or political philosophy. Editorial decisions should be based solely on the manuscript's significance, originality, clarity, and relevance to the journal's scope.  
• Confidentiality: Editors and editorial staff must not disclose any information about a submitted manuscript to anyone other than the corresponding author, reviewers, potential reviewers, other editorial advisers, and the publisher, as appropriate.  
• Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest: Editors should not use unpublished information disclosed in a submitted manuscript for their own research without the explicit written consent of the author. Editors should recuse themselves from handling manuscripts in which they have a conflict of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships or connections with any of the authors, institutions, or companies connected to the papers.  
• Publication Decisions: Editors are responsible for making fair and unbiased decisions about which of the submitted manuscripts will be published in the journal. These decisions should be based on the reviewers' reports, the editorial board's discussions, and the journal's policies.  
• Handling Complaints and Appeals: Editors should establish a fair process for handling ethical complaints and appeals regarding submitted or published manuscripts. They should provide a mechanism for authors to respond to reviewer comments and editorial decisions.
• Promoting Ethical Conduct: Editors should actively promote ethical conduct in research and publication and should be prepared to take appropriate action when instances of misconduct are identified. This may include issuing corrections, retractions, or errata.
• Integrity of the Academic Record: Editors should strive to maintain the integrity of the academic record by promptly addressing any concerns about the validity or reliability of published work.

3. Duties of Reviewers

• Confidentiality: Reviewers must treat all manuscripts received for review as confidential documents. They should not disclose the content of the manuscript or their review to any third party without the permission of the editor.  
• Objectivity: Reviews should be conducted objectively. Personal criticism of the author is inappropriate. Reviewers should express their views clearly with supporting arguments.  
• Timeliness: Reviewers should strive to provide their reviews within the agreed-upon timeframe. If a reviewer feels unable to complete the review within the allocated time, they should promptly notify the editor.
• Acknowledgement of Sources: Reviewers should identify relevant published work that has not been cited by the authors. Any statement that an observation, derivation, or argument has been previously reported should be accompanied by the relevant citation. Reviewers should also alert the editor to any substantial similarity or overlap between the manuscript under consideration and any other published work of which they have personal knowledge.  
• Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest: Reviewers should not consider manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships or connections with any of the authors, institutions, or companies connected to the papers. They should promptly notify the editor if such conflicts exist and recuse themselves from the review process.  
• Constructive Feedback: Reviews should be constructive and provide specific, actionable feedback that can help authors improve their manuscript. General or unsubstantiated comments are not helpful.

4. Publishing Ethics Issues

• Allegations of Misconduct: The journal will follow a defined process for investigating allegations of research and publication misconduct. This may involve contacting the authors' institutions, seeking expert advice, and making a determination based on the evidence.
• Corrections, Retractions, and Expressions of Concern: The journal will consider issuing corrections, retractions, or expressions of concern as appropriate when significant errors, ethical violations, or doubts about the validity of published work arise. These will be published prominently and linked to the original article.
• Data Sharing and Reproducibility: The journal encourages authors to make their research data publicly available whenever possible to promote transparency and reproducibility. Policies on data sharing will be clearly stated.
• Open Access and Copyright: The journal's policies on open access and copyright will be clearly defined and readily accessible to authors and readers.

Implementation and Enforcement:

These publication ethics will be clearly stated on the journal's website and will be referenced in the author guidelines, reviewer guidelines, and editorial policies. The editorial team will be responsible for enforcing these guidelines and addressing any breaches of ethical conduct.

By implementing these comprehensive publication ethics, the Journal of Information Systems can foster a culture of integrity and contribute meaningfully to the advancement of knowledge in the field. Remember to regularly review and update these guidelines to align with evolving best practices in academic publishing.