Journal of Science and Engineering Papers (JoSEP)

Master Publication & Editorial Governance Policy

Executive Summary & Scope

1. Core Publication & Research Integrity Policies

1.1 Authorship & Contributorship

1. Substantial contributions to the conception, design, execution, or acquisition/analysis of data.
2. Drafting the work or revising it critically for important intellectual content.
3. Final approval of the version to be published.
4. Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to accuracy or integrity are appropriately investigated and resolved.

• CRediT Taxonomy: Submissions must explicitly state individual author roles using the Contributor Roles Taxonomy (CRediT).
• Non-Author Contributors: Financial, technical, or administrative contributors who do not meet all four authorship criteria must be acknowledged in the Acknowledgments section with their written consent.
• Authorship Modifications: Any addition, deletion, or rearrangement of author names after submission requires written consent from all listed authors. Inclusive, confidential name-change requests (e.g., due to gender transition or marriage) are handled respectfully without requiring legal documentation or public amendment logs.

1.2 Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) Policy

• No AI Authorship: Generative AI tools, Large Language Models (LLMs), or AI chatbots (e.g., ChatGPT, Claude) do not meet authorship criteria and cannot be listed as an author or co-author.
• Author Disclosure: If generative AI tools were used to assist in literature searches, language editing, formatting, or code generation, authors must explicitly disclose their usage in both the Methods or Acknowledgments section and an AI Disclosure Statement. The statement must outline the specific tool used, version number, and the precise scope of application. Authors remain fully accountable for the factual, statistical, and ethical integrity of all AI-assisted content.
• Image & Data Manipulation: Generative AI must not be used to create, alter, enhance, or manipulate research data, figures, scientific images, or diagnostic readouts, except where AI model architectures are the primary subject of research.
• Reviewer & Editor Restrictions: Reviewers and editors are strictly prohibited from uploading manuscripts, datasets, or peer-review reports into unvetted public AI systems to protect author confidentiality, intellectual property, and proprietary research.

1.3 Originality, Plagiarism & Prior Publication

• Plagiarism Screening: All manuscripts undergo automated similarity screening via Crossref's iThenticate upon submission and prior to publication. Submissions displaying unoriginal content, improper attribution, or self-plagiarism will be rejected or retracted.
• Preprints: JoSEP permits and encourages the posting of preprints on non-commercial servers (e.g., arXiv, bioRxiv, SSRN). Authors must disclose preprint URLs upon submission. Preprints are not considered prior publication and will not affect peer review.
• Redundant/Duplicate Publication: Manuscripts under evaluation at JoSEP must not be submitted simultaneously to another journal or conference proceedings.

1.4 Research Ethics & Compliance

• Human Subjects: Research involving human participants must comply with the Declaration of Helsinki. Authors must include an explicit statement confirming institutional review board (IRB) or ethics committee approval (including protocol registration numbers) and informed consent from participants.
• Animal Studies: Studies involving animals must adhere to national/international ethical guidelines for animal welfare (e.g., ARRIVE guidelines) and state the approving ethics body.
• Clinical Trials: Clinical trials must be registered in a publicly accessible registry (e.g., ClinicalTrials.gov) prior to patient recruitment, and the registration number must be stated in the abstract.

1.5 Competing Interests & Financial Transparency

• Financial Interests: Grants, employment, consultancies, honoraria, patent applications, or stock ownership within the past 36 months.
• Non-Financial Interests: Personal, professional, academic, or political relationships.
• If no competing interests exist, manuscripts must state: "The authors declare no competing interests."

1.6 Open Data, Code & Reproducibility

• Data Availability Statement (DAS): Every published paper must include a mandatory DAS detailing how to access underlying datasets, software code, and protocols.
• Data Repositories: Authors are expected to deposit raw data into recognized open-access repositories (e.g., Zenodo, OSF, Figshare, Dryad) under open licenses (e.g., CC0 or CC BY).
• Software & Source Code: Source code developed for the research must be deposited in open repositories (e.g., GitHub, Bitbucket) with an OSI-approved open-source license, explicit version identifiers, and environment setup instructions.

1.7 Peer Review Model & Editorial Independence

• Editorial Platform: JoSEP utilizes the Public Knowledge Project (PKP) Open Journal Systems (OJS) platform to manage workflow and peer review integrity.
• Review Framework: Submissions undergo rigorous peer review evaluated by domain experts for scientific validity, methodological soundness, and ethical compliance.
• Editorial Independence: Editorial decisions are made independently by qualified academic editors based purely on scholarly merit. Decisions are completely uninfluenced by commercial relationships, article processing charges (APCs), publisher revenue, or advertising presence.

1.8 Post-Publication Amendments, Corrections & Retractions

• Corrections (Erratum / Corrigendum): Minor errors (e.g., mathematical typos, missing acknowledgments) that do not invalidate the scientific conclusions are addressed via a published Correction notice linked directly to the original article.
• Retractions: Applied in cases of clear evidence of unreliable data, plagiarism, unethical research practices, severe duplicate publication, or legal violations. We will publish a formal Retraction Notice detailing the reasons and link it to the original document. The original PDF will be watermarked as "RETRACTED."
• Expressions of Concern: Issued by editors if an investigation into potential research misconduct or data invalidity is ongoing but inconclusive.

2. Crossmark Policy & Permanent Preservation

2.1 Purpose & Function of Crossmark

2.2 Operational Commitments

• Timeliness: We register all formal amendments and structural updates with Crossref within 14 calendar days of approval.
• Digital Archiving: Articles are permanently preserved across digital archiving repositories (such as PKP PN, CLOCKSS, or Portico) to ensure perpetual access.

3. Privacy Policy & Data Protection (GDPR Compliant)

3.1 Personal Data Collection

• Authors, co-authors, and submitting agents.
• Peer reviewers, editorial board members, and guest editors.
• Website users, account registrants, and newsletter subscribers.

3.2 Legal Basis & Data Usage

1. Contractual Necessity: To manage manuscript processing, peer review, and publishing services under user terms.
2. Legitimate Interests: To preserve scientific integrity, verify author identities, prevent peer review fraud, improve editorial systems, and disseminate research.
3. Legal Obligation & Consent: For tax/financial compliance and optional marketing/newsletters (revocable at any time).

3.3 Data Sharing & Disclosure

3.4 Data Subject Rights

• Access, rectify, or request deletion of personal information.
• Request data portability or object to processing activities.
• Address data protection queries to [email protected] or lodge a concern with relevant data protection supervisory authorities.

4. Advertising & Sponsorship Policy

1. Absolute Separation: Advertisers and sponsors have zero influence over editorial policies, reviewer selection, manuscript evaluations, or publication timing.
2. Prohibited Advertising Content: JoSEP does not accept advertisements for tobacco, illegal or controlled substances, deceptive/unverifiable medical/technological claims, or discriminatory content.
3. Allowed Content: Commercial announcements are limited to academic conferences, scientific equipment, specialized laboratory software, institutional recruitment, and academic publishing services.
4. Clear Labeling: All promotional content or sponsored placements must be distinctly labeled as "Advertisement" or "Sponsored" to prevent confusion with peer-reviewed scientific content.

5. Open Access Licensing & Copyright Framework