This Code of Ethics/Malpractice Statement is binding for all authors, reviewers, and members of the E-JournALL team (Editors, Editorial Board, proofreaders, and translators).
Authors
1) Manuscripts submitted to E-JournALL for publication must be original and unpublished works, written by the authors who submit them. By submitting a manuscript to this journal, authors accept that the manuscript will be screened for plagiarism against previously published works, including their own (“self-plagiarism”).
2) References to works by other authors must always be adequately cited, both in cases of paraphrase and direct quotation. It is the author’s responsibility to secure permission to reprint tables or figures that are reproduced or adapted from another source.
3) Parallel submission is not permitted. Once a paper is under review with E-JournALL, it cannot be under review anywhere else at the same time.
4) The name(s) indicated on the manuscript and on the submission form as those of the author(s) must correspond to the actual author(s) of the manuscript. All those who have made significant contributions to the manuscript should be listed as authors. The corresponding author should ensure that all the co-authors are included as author(s) of the manuscript, that all co-authors have seen and approved the final version of the paper, and that they have agreed to its submission and publication with E-JournALL.
5) If an author notices a significant error or inaccuracy in his/her own published work, it is the author’s obligation to promptly notify the journal’s editors and to cooperate with them to either retract the paper or to publish an appropriate erratum.
6) Authors whose research involves human participants agree to certify that they have:
- Obtained approval from a relevant review board (such as an institutional IRB or university ethics committee) to conduct their study
OR
- Explained the purpose and procedures of the study to all participants
- Disclosed to participants how results would be used (e.g., in publications)
- Obtained written or recorded informed consent from all participants (and from their parents/guardians in the case of minors under 18 y/o)
When a submission involves data collected from students (surveys, quotes, samples of student work), participant permission is still required. Permission can be retroactive (e.g., in the case of data collected as part of coursework, permission may be requested after the data have been collected), but permission must be obtained before submission to E-JournALL. Authors using student work certify that they have informed students that their work would be used in research and have given students the opportunity to decline to have their work used.
7) E-JournALL takes instances of research malpractice seriously. In cases where an author is found to have breached this code of ethics (e.g., plagiarized other work, failed to obtain informed consent from participants), E-JournALL reserves the right to take action such as, but not limited to: retracting an article, publishing a correction (erratum/corrigendum), and contacting the author’s institution.
8) E-JournALL operates under the Creative Commons BY 4.0 license, which grants authors the right to share their work, including the final, published version, provided that its original publication in E-JournALL is acknowledged.
Editors
1) The Editors-in-Chief, Associate Editors, and, in the case of special issues, Guest Editors (henceforth “The Editors”) of the journal hold the final responsibility for deciding whether to publish manuscripts submitted to E-JournALL. The Editors make this decision taking into account the reports of the anonymous reviewers.
2) Submitted manuscripts are evaluated for their intellectual content without regard to the race, gender, sexual orientation, religious belief, ethnic origin, disability, carrier or social status, citizenship, or political and/or scientific philosophy of the authors.
3) The Editors, the Editorial Board, and the Editorial team will not share any information about the content of submitted manuscripts with anyone other than the authors, the reviewers, and potential reviewers.
4) The Editors guarantee the anonymity of the authors and reviewers.
5) If the Editors become aware of or are informed about errors, inaccuracies, conflicts of interest, or plagiarism concerning a published article, they will promptly inform the author(s) and take action to clarify the matter; if necessary, the article will be retracted or a clarification will be published.
6) The Editors will perform an initial quality check of every manuscript submitted for publication in order to determine whether the article is of sufficient quality and appropriate content, whether the manuscript is consistent with the scope of E-JournALL, and whether the language follows the standards required for academic publications. If the manuscript does not demonstrate these basic characteristics, it will be rejected and will not undergo the double-blind peer-review process.
Reviewers
1) All submitted manuscripts that pass the initial quality check are double-blind peer reviewed.
2) Authors’ names, biographical information, and any other identifying information are eliminated from papers to be sent to the reviewers. However, if reviewers are able to identify the authors from the content of the paper, they must decide whether they are able to nonetheless provide an objective review or whether they should return the paper to the editors.
3) Manuscripts sent for review must be considered confidential by peer reviewers. They must not be shared or discussed with anyone who has not been previously authorized by the Editors.
4) Any invited reviewer who feels unqualified to review the manuscript or knows that its timely review will not be possible should notify the Editors as soon as possible so that alternative reviewers can be contacted.
5) Reviews should be conducted objectively. Personal criticism of the author is not acceptable. Referees should express their views clearly with appropriate supporting arguments.
6) The aim of reviews is for the reviewers to evaluate the quality of the assigned manuscripts and indicate if these are suitable for publication in E-JournALL. Reviewers can help the authors to improve the manuscripts by suggesting changes, providing further references, and signaling mistakes and inaccuracies.
7) Any reference to someone else’s work should be accompanied by the relevant citation. If the reviewers notice, in the manuscript, substantial similarities or plagiarism of another published work of which they have personal knowledge, they must notify the Editors. The information and ideas that reviewers obtain by means of evaluating the manuscripts should be kept confidential and must never be used for the reviewer’s benefit.
