Publication Ethics and Malpractice

The publication of a paper in IJSRCSE is an essential building block in the development of a sound and respected network of knowledge. It is a direct reflection of the quality of the work of the author/authors and the corresponding institution. Peer-reviewed articles published in IJSRCSE support and embody the scientific methods. It is therefore important to agree upon standards of expected ethical behavior for all parties involved in the act of publishing JPCM: the author, the journal editor, the peer reviewers, the publisher and the society sponsoring the journal.

The IJSRCSE journal is committed to following best practices on publication ethics. The following policies is based mainly on the Core Practices from the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). This policy should be read in conjunction with the IJSRCSE’s Author and Reviewer Guides which can be found through the website homepage.

• All submitted papers are subject to strict peer-review process by at least two international reviewers that are experts in the area of the particular paper. Reviewers are being selected by Associate Editors and Editor in Chief. Author also can propose reviewers for some journals and article types.
• The factors that are taken into account in review are originality, relevance, readability, statistical validity and language.
• The possible decisions include rejection, major revision, minor revisions or acceptance.
• Rejected articles will not be re-reviewed.
• If authors are encouraged to revise and resubmit a submission, there is no guarantee that the revised submission will be accepted.
• No paper can be included in more than one publication, whether within the same journal, in another journal or conference.
• The paper acceptance is constrained by such legal requirements as shall then be in force regarding libel, copyright infringement and plagiarism.

• Authors must guarantee that their manuscript is their original work.
• Authors must guarantee that the manuscript has not previously been published elsewhere, or even submitted and been in reviewed in another journal or conference.
• All Authors mentioned in the paper must have significantly contributed to the research. Level of their contribution also must be determined in the “Authors’ Contributions” section of the article.
• Authors are forced to provide retractions or corrections of mistakes.
• Authors must notify the Editors of any conflicts of interest.
• Authors must guarantee that all data in the paper are real and authentic.
• Authors must participate in the peer review.
• Authors must not use irrelevant sources that may help other researches/journals.
• Authors must identify all sources used in the creation of their manuscript.
• Authors must report any errors they discover in their published paper to the Editors.
• Authors cannot withdraw their articles after acceptance or publishing.

• Reviewers should keep all information regarding papers confidential and treat them as privileged information.
• Reviewers should express their views clearly with supporting arguments in minimum 500 words.
• Reviews should be conducted objectively, with no personal criticism of the author. No self-knowledge of the author(s) must affect their comments and decision.
• Reviewers may identify relevant published work that has not been cited by the authors.
• Reviewers should not review manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships or connections with any of the authors, companies, or institutions connected to the papers.
• Reviewers should also call to the Editor in Chief's attention any substantial similarity or overlap between the manuscript under consideration and any other published paper of which they have personal knowledge.

• Associate Editors and Editor in Chief have complete responsibility and authority to reject/accept an article.
• Editors are responsible for the contents and overall quality of the publication.
• Editors publish errata pages or make corrections when needed.
• Editors do not reject papers based on suspicions; they should have proof of misconduct.
• Editors guarantee the quality of the papers and the integrity of the academic record.
• Editors guarantee that all research material they publish conforms to international accepted ethical guidelines.
• Editors have a clear picture of a research's funding sources.
• Editors base their decisions solely one the papers' importance, clarity, relevance and originality to publication's scope.
• Editors do not reverse their decisions nor overturn the ones of previous editors without serious reason.
• Editors always consider the needs of the authors and the readers when attempting to improve the publication.
• Editors do not allow any conflicts of interest between staff, authors, reviewers and board members.
• Editors act if they suspect misconduct, whether a paper is published or unpublished, and make all reasonable attempts to persist in obtaining a resolution to the problem.
• Editors only accept a paper when reasonably certain.
• Editors do not change their decision after submitting a decision (especially after reject or accept) unless they have an important reason.

• All editorial members and authors must publish any kind of correction honestly and completely.
• Authors cannot make major changes in the article after acceptance without a serious reason.
• Corresponding author is the main owner of the article so she/he can withdraw the article before acceptance or publishing.