Peer Review Policy

Editorial Policies of the ARUMS PRESS

Submitting a manuscript to the ARUMS PRESS indicates that all listed authors have read and approved the content of the manuscript. The submission also confirms adherence to the journal’s policies. ARUMS PRESS follows the guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

Authorship Description:

The Authorship Description policy at ARUMS PRESS defines who qualifies as an author and outlines their expected contributions to ensure fairness, accountability, and proper recognition. ARUMS PRESS adheres to the guidelines of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), which state that authorship should be based on four substantial contributions:

1. Conception and design
2. Acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data
3. Drafting the work or revising it critically
4. Approval of the final version

Accountability and Responsibility

All authors share accountability for the entire work, including its methodology, results, conclusions, and ethical aspects. Manuscripts should not be submitted to more than one journal simultaneously and must be original, not previously published in any form or language. A commitment letter signed by all authors must be completed and uploaded during submission.

All authors agree to be responsible for all aspects of the work and ensure that any questions regarding the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved. The corresponding author acts on behalf of all co-authors and ensures that any issues related to the manuscript’s accuracy are properly addressed.

Authorship Order

The order of authorship should reflect the level of contribution, with the first author typically making the most significant contribution. The corresponding author is responsible for confirming that the author list and order have been agreed upon by all authors before submission. They also manage all communication between the journal and co-authors before and after publication. The primary affiliation for each author should be the organization where most of their work was completed. Affiliations cannot be changed after publication.

Transparency and Acknowledgements

Individuals who contribute significantly but do not meet authorship criteria can be acknowledged in the Acknowledgements section. This section may include collaborators who provided research assistance, funding sources, sponsors, software developers, or language editing services.

Authorship Changes

Authors are strongly encouraged to confirm the author group and order at submission. Any changes to the author list after submission, such as changes in order or the addition/removal of authors, must be approved by all authors, with the corresponding author responsible for this process. Changes requested after manuscript acceptance will delay publication.

If there is any suspicion of misconduct or suspected fraud, the journal and the Publisher will conduct an investigation following COPE guidelines. If significant concerns are identified after the examination, the authors will be contacted via their provided email addresses and given the opportunity to explain the issue.

Competing Interests (CI)

ARUMS PRESS enforces Competing Interests (CI) policies to ensure transparency and reduce potential bias in published research. These policies identify any financial or non-financial interests of the authors that could influence the research.

Types of Competing Interests:

• Financial: This includes funding sources (grants, industry sponsorships), employment, ownership of companies, or consultancies related to the research topic.
• Non-Financial: Personal relationships with co-authors or competing researchers, membership in relevant organizations, or any other potential conflicts of interest.

Authors are required to disclose any interests directly or indirectly associated with the submitted work.

Peer-Review Policy

All research articles and other types of submissions published by ARUMS PRESS journals undergo a rigorous peer review process to ensure their quality, validity, and originality before publication. Peer review involves independent researchers who are experts in the relevant field evaluating a submitted manuscript. At ARUMS PRESS journals, articles are reviewed in a double-blind manner, meaning the identities of both authors and reviewers are concealed from each other. Each article is reviewed by up to three peer reviewers. Reviewers may recommend acceptance, revision, or rejection. All submitted manuscripts are also checked for plagiarism. Revised manuscripts are sent to the Editors-in-Chief for further evaluation. The final decision is based on the reviewers’ comments and recommendations from the editorial board. The Editor-in-Chief assesses the reviewers’ comments and addresses any significant discrepancies. Detailed information about the journal’s peer review policy is available on the journal’s website.

Peer Review of Editorial Board Submissions

Submissions authored by Editors or Editorial Board Members are sent to Editors who are unaffiliated with the author or their institution to ensure unbiased peer review.

Once a manuscript is approved by the Editor-in-Chief for further review, it is sent to other editorial board members, who then forward it to up to three reviewers in a double-blind manner. Editors may request suggested reviewer names from an Editorial Board Member. The Editor-in-Chief and/or Associate Editors review the comments from the reviewers and make the final decisions.

Ethical Considerations

The ethics approval policy for scientific journals ensures that research adheres to ethical guidelines and protects the well-being of participants. ARUMS PRESS journals follows the guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) to maintain participants’ trust in research and enhance the credibility of the findings.

Open Access, Copyright, Permissions, and Charges

Copyright and Permissions

The content published in the ARUMS PRESS journals is typically copyrighted by the journal. Permission is generally required to reuse any part of the content, including figures, tables, text excerpts, or entire articles. As an open access journal, ARUMS PRESS advocates for unrestricted access and reuse of scientific research.

All articles in this journal are published as open access and will be immediately and permanently available for everyone to read and download. Under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution CC BY-NC license, users are permitted to distribute, copy, and create extracts, abstracts, and other revised forms or images from the published article, provided the source is acknowledged.

Data Sharing

Data sharing policies at ARUMS PRESS journals are increasingly implemented to enhance transparency, reproducibility, and the advancement of research. Sharing data allows for reanalysis using different methods or addressing new questions related to the original research.  At ARUMS PRESS journals, authors are required to submit both raw and processed data whenever the journal requests it.

Corrections and Retractions Policies

Occasionally, ARUMS PRESS may need to publish corrections or retractions to maintain the accuracy and integrity of the published record by rectifying errors and removing flawed research.

Corrections are used for:

• Mistakes in data, figures, tables, or methodological details.
• Corrections are typically published as soon as possible after the error is identified and are clearly linked to the original article. The correction specifies the nature of the error and its impact on the interpretation of the results.

Retractions are used for:

• Fabrication or falsification of data
• Plagiarism
• Ethical violations during research conduct
• Undisclosed conflicts of interest
• Authorship issues

ARUMS PRESS follows COPE guidelines in such cases. The retraction process usually begins with authors, editors, or readers identifying a significant issue with the published article. Editors thoroughly investigate the concerns and consult with the authors. If a retraction is deemed necessary, a retraction notice is published, clearly stating the reason for retraction. Links to the original article are usually deactivated to prevent further citation.

Plagiarism

Plagiarism is a serious offense in scientific publishing, as it compromises the integrity and credibility of research. To ensure the originality of published work, ARUMS PRESS strictly prohibits plagiarism.  Plagiarism encompasses the complete copying of text from other sources, replicating ideas, images, or data from other sources, reproducing text from one’s own previously published works, and presenting ideas with slightly altered language. The consequences of plagiarism include the rejection of the manuscript. If detected during the review process, the editor will likely reject the manuscript outright, or retract published articles as appropriate, following COPE guidelines. This can severely damage the author’s reputation and career.