The publication of manuscripts in the International Journal of Agricultural Economics, Management and Development (IJAEMD) is guided with internationally recognized standard. Hence, it is necessary to agree upon standards of expected ethical behaviour for all parties involved in the act of publishing. In view of this, IJAEMD’s ethic statements are based on the 2010 Committee on Publication Ethics’ (COPE) Best Practice Guidelines for Journal editors and authors.
- Duties of Authors
- The research being reported should have been conducted in an ethical and responsible manner and follow all relevant legislation
- The research being reported should be sound and carefully executed
- Authors should take collective responsibility for their work and for the content of their publications. Researchers should check their publications carefully at all stages to ensure methods and findings are reported accurately. Authors should carefully check calculations, data presentations, typescripts/submissions and proofs.
- Researchers should present their results honestly and without fabrication, falsification or inappropriate data manipulation.
- The authors should ensure that they have written entirely original works, and if the authors have used the work and/or words of other authors, it should be appropriately referenced or acknowledged.
- Authorship should be limited to those who have made a significant contribution to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the reported study.
- All authors should disclose in their manuscript any financial or other substantive conflict of interest.
- Authors should inform editors if findings have been published previously or if multiple reports or multiple analyses of a single data set are under consideration for publication elsewhere. Authors should provide copies of related publications or work submitted to other journals
- When an author discovers a significant error or inaccuracy in his/her own published work, it is the author’s obligation to promptly notify the journal editor or publisher and cooperate with the editor to retract or correct the paper.
- Duties and responsibilities of editors
- Editors should be accountable for everything published in their journals.
- Editors’ decisions to accept or reject a paper for publication should be based on the paper’s importance, originality and clarity, and the study’s validity and its relevance to the remit of the journal.
- Editors should not reverse decisions to accept submissions unless serious problems are identified with the submission.
- New editors should not overturn decisions to publish submissions made by the previous editor unless serious problems are identified.
- Editors should publish guidance to authors on everything that is expected of them. This guidance should be regularly updated and should refer or link to this code.
- Editors should provide guidance about criteria for authorship and/or who should be listed as a contributor following the standards within the relevant field.
- Editors should provide guidance to reviewers on everything that is expected of them including the need to handle submitted material in confidence. This guidance should be regularly updated and should refer or link to this code.
- Editors should require reviewers to disclose any potential competing interests before agreeing to review a submission.
- Editors should have systems to ensure that peer reviewers’ identities are protected unless they use an open review system that is declared to authors and reviewers
- Editors should strive to ensure that peer review at their journal is fair, unbiased and timely.
- Editors should have systems to ensure that material submitted to their journal remains confidential while under review.
- Editors should take all reasonable steps to ensure the quality of the material they publish, recognising that journals and sections within journals will have different aims and standards.
- Editors must obey laws on confidentiality in their own jurisdiction.
- Duties of Reviewers
- Peer review assists the editor in making editorial decisions and through the editorial communications with the author may also assist the author in improving the paper.
- Any selected reviewer who feels unqualified to review the research reported in a manuscript or knows that its prompt review will be impossible should notify the editor and excuse himself from the review process.
- Any manuscripts received for review must be treated as confidential documents. They must not be shown to or discussed with others except as authorized by the editor.
- Reviews should be conducted objectively. Personal criticism of the author is inappropriate. Reviewers should express their views clearly with supporting arguments.
- Reviewers should identify relevant published work that has not been cited by the authors. Any statement or observation, derivation, or argument that has been previously reported should be accompanied by the relevant citation. A reviewer should also call the editor’s attention to any substantial similarity or overlap between the manuscript under consideration and any other published paper of which they have personal knowledge.
- Privileged information or ideas obtained through peer review must be kept confidential and not used for personal advantage. 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, companies, or institutions connected to the papers.
References / further reading
Wager E & Kleinert S (2011) Responsible research publication: international standards for authors. A position statement developed at the 2nd World Conference on Research Integrity, Singapore, July 22-24, 2010. Chapter 50 in: Mayer T & Steneck N (eds) Promoting Research Integrity in a Global Environment. Imperial College Press / World Scientific Publishing, Singapore (pp 309-16). (ISBN 978-981-4340-97-7)
Kleinert S & Wager E (2011) Responsible research publication: international standards for editors. A position statement developed at the 2nd World Conference on Research Integrity, Singapore, July 22-24, 2010. Chapter 51 in: Mayer T & Steneck N (eds) Promoting Research Integrity in a Global Environment. Imperial College Press / World Scientific Publishing, Singapore (pp 317-28). (ISBN 978-981-4340-97-7)