ETHICAL PRINCIPLES
Our journal adheres to the guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) regarding publishing ethics and academic integrity. Within this framework, all academic works published in our journal are expected to comply with high ethical standards.
Actions Contrary to Scientific Research and Publication Ethics
• Plagiarism: Presenting the original ideas, methods, data, or works of others as one's own, either partially or entirely, without proper citation in accordance with scientific rules,
• Fabrication: Using data that does not actually exist or has been altered in scientific research,
• Distortion: Altering research records or obtained data, presenting devices or materials that were not used in the research as if they were used, or altering or shaping research results in line with the interests of the individuals and organizations that provided support,
• Re-publication: Presenting duplicate publications as separate publications in academic appointments and promotions,
• Salami slicing: Dividing the results of a research study into parts in an inappropriate manner that disrupts the integrity of the research and publishing them in multiple publications, presenting these publications as separate publications in academic appointments and promotions,
• Unfair authorship: Including individuals who have not made an active contribution among the authors or excluding those who have, changing the order of authors without justification or in an inappropriate manner, removing the names of those who have made an active contribution from subsequent editions, or including one's name among the authors by using one's influence despite not having made an active contribution,
For information on other types of ethical violations outlined in the Higher Education Institutions Scientific Research and Publication Ethics Guidelines, please click here.
ETHICS COMMITTEE APPROVAL
Our journal requires that all studies in scientific fields requiring ethics committee approval have obtained the relevant ethics committee decision. In this context, authors must include the ethics committee approval date and number in the “Sample and Method/Materials and Methods” section.
In line with the regulations implemented by Ulakbim TR Index since 2020, studies without ethics committee approval are not considered for publication in our journal.
Studies Requiring Ethics Committee Approval
Studies requiring ethics committee approval in our journal include the following:
• All research conducted using qualitative or quantitative approaches that involve collecting data from participants through methods such as surveys, interviews, focus group studies, observations, experiments, and interviews,
• Studies in which humans and animals (including materials or data) are used for experimental or other scientific purposes,
• Clinical studies conducted on humans,
• Scientific studies conducted on animals,
• Retrospective studies within the framework of the Personal Data Protection Law.
For such studies to be considered for evaluation, the relevant ethical committee approvals must have been obtained and these approvals must be clearly stated in the article text.
NOTE: Scientific research conducted on humans and animals must be conducted in accordance with the Helsinki Declaration and ARRIVE guidelines and must be approved by the relevant ethics committee. Studies without ethics committee approval will not be considered for publication in our journal.
Plagiarism Check
Manuscripts submitted to our journal for publication are scanned using the İntihal.net program to prevent plagiarism. The acceptable similarity rate for manuscripts submitted to our journal is a maximum of 20%. Manuscripts exceeding this rate are returned to the authors during the preliminary review stage.
If plagiarism is detected in a manuscript submitted to or published in our journal, our journal acts in accordance with COPE principles (Plagiarism in a submitted manuscript - Plagiarism in a published article).
Relationships with the Journal Owner and Publisher
The relationship between the editor and the publisher is based on the principle of editorial independence. According to the written agreement between the editor and the publisher, all decisions made by the editor are independent of the publisher and journal owner.
Corrections, Retractions, and Expressions of Concern
Editors may consider publishing a correction if minor errors are identified in a published article that do not affect the findings, interpretations, or conclusions. Editors should consider retracting an article if major errors/violations that invalidate the findings and conclusions are identified. COPE principles are taken into account regarding corrections, retractions, or expressions of concern.
Protection of Intellectual Property Rights
Our journal is responsible for protecting the intellectual property rights of all published articles and defending the rights of the journal and authors in case of possible infringements.
Protection of Participants' Personal Data
All personal data submitted to our journal is protected in accordance with legal regulations and ethical rules.
Use of Artificial Intelligence
The use of artificial intelligence in studies submitted to our journal is acceptable in processes that do not affect the originality of the article, such as literature review or language control. However, the use of artificial intelligence must be carried out within the framework of ethical rules and must not be used for unethical purposes such as fabricating data or manipulation.
For studies involving the use of artificial intelligence, it is mandatory to inform our journal of this situation during the article submission process. All responsibility related to the use of artificial intelligence lies with the authors themselves.
Complaints
If an unethical situation is detected in our journal, it should be reported to stad.etik@gmail.com. Complaints are evaluated in accordance with COPE flowcharts.
Responsibilities of Stakeholders
1. Publisher's Ethical Responsibilities
The journal adheres to impartiality and academic integrity in the publishing process.
All articles are evaluated based on scientific content and academic quality, without discrimination.
The journal takes necessary steps in accordance with COPE guidelines against ethical violations and retracts articles when necessary.
2. Ethical Responsibilities of Editors
Evaluates submitted articles based on scientific content, originality, and academic contribution.
Avoids conflicts of interest and adheres to the principle of impartiality.
Ensures that the peer review process is conducted with double-blind peer review.
Maintains confidentiality during the publication process and accepts or rejects articles solely on the basis of scientific criteria.
Uses plagiarism detection systems to identify ethical violations and collaborates with supporting institutions when necessary.
3. Ethical Responsibilities of Authors
Commits that submitted articles are original and have not been published elsewhere.
They act in accordance with academic integrity in their research and avoid plagiarism.
They cite the sources used in full and in accordance with citation rules.
They declare that ethical committee approval has been obtained for research involving humans or animals and that ethical rules have been followed.
All authors of the work must be acknowledged in accordance with their academic contributions. Ethical violations such as ghost authorship or exclusion of authors should not be committed in the author list.
4. Ethical Responsibilities of Reviewers
They act impartially, independently, and in accordance with the principles of confidentiality during the evaluation process.
They should decline to review an article if there is a conflict of interest.
They should review articles without knowing the authors' identities and provide objective feedback.
They should not review articles outside their area of expertise.
They should keep the information obtained during the review process confidential and not use it for personal gain.
PUBLICATION POLICIES
Article Evaluation Process
• Submitted works are first evaluated for compliance with the journal's publication policies, academic writing principles, and the Chicago Citation System. At this stage, a similarity scan is performed using the İntihal.net software. A similarity rate below 20% is expected; manuscripts exceeding this limit are returned to the author with an explanation.
• For manuscripts that meet the preliminary review criteria, a field editor is assigned, and a double-blind peer review process is initiated. The manuscript is sent to two independent reviewers who are experts in the field. Reviewers are given 21 days to evaluate the manuscript. This period may be extended by the editor. In the event of delays or prolongation of the process, new reviewers may be assigned.
• Throughout the evaluation process, the identities of both the author and the reviewers are kept confidential; the process is conducted in accordance with ethical principles and confidentiality guidelines. The work is accepted for publication based on the positive reports of both reviewers. If one of the reviewers submits a negative opinion, the article is referred to a third reviewer for a final decision.
• If reviewers request revisions, authors must submit the suggested corrections marked in a different color (e.g., red) in the work. The changes made are first reviewed by the editor and then by the relevant reviewers.
Studies that have completed the review process are also reviewed by the journal's language editors. If necessary, authors are asked to make additional corrections in terms of language and spelling. The linguistic revisions made are checked again and approved.
• Articles that have completed all scientific, technical, and linguistic processes are prepared for publication after typesetting and layout. Approved works are published in the next issue.
Open Access and Copyright Policy
The copyright of published works belongs to the authors. Authors grant permission for the intellectual property they submit to be published by our journal under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) license as open access.
The Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) license allows the work to be shared, copied, reproduced, and adapted in any format and medium, including commercial use, provided that the original work is properly attributed.
Archiving Policy
Works published in our journal are archived on our journal website. Our journal also allows authors to archive their own versions of their works on their own websites, institutional websites, and other repositories. Since our journal is an open-access journal, there is no embargo period.