Publication Ethics

Publication Ethics and Misconduct Management: Journal of Health Literacy and Qualitative Research

The Journal of Health Literacy and Qualitative Research adheres to the guidelines provided by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) for all aspects related to publication ethics, particularly in addressing research and publication misconduct. The journal mandates adherence to the principles of research ethics outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki for all studies involving human participants. Similarly, research involving animal subjects must comply with the International Guidelines for Biomedical Research as defined by the International Council for Organisations of Medical Sciences (CIOMS).

For manuscripts detailing experiments on live vertebrates and/or higher invertebrates, authors must verify that all procedures were performed in line with applicable guidelines and regulations. A statement must be included in the manuscript specifying the institute and/or licensing committee that approved the experiments, alongside any pertinent details. Manuscripts failing to demonstrate adequate ethical considerations for human or animal subjects will be rejected.

When human subjects are involved, authors are required to disclose the approving committee and include a declaration confirming that informed consent was obtained from all participants. Authors conducting phase II and phase III randomized controlled trials should consult the CONSORT Statement for guidelines to ensure transparent and complete reporting of trial outcomes.

All animal research must adhere to both institutional and national guidelines for animal care and use, which should be explicitly stated in the manuscript. There should be a clear declaration in the manuscript that all possible measures were taken to minimize animal suffering and to reduce the number of animals used, including efforts to use alternative methods to in vivo techniques.

Maintaining ethical standards in publication is crucial for enhancing research quality. The Journal of Health Literacy and Qualitative Research aligns with ethical standards for publishers, editors, authors, and reviewers, ensuring content integrity without publisher interference, aside from supporting timely publication.

Below are the ethical standards for editors, authors, and reviewers:

Editors:

Responsible for every article published.
Assist authors in adhering to the author guidelines.
Can consult with other editors or reviewers for decision-making.
Evaluate manuscripts objectively, without bias towards the author's background.
Ensure anonymity between reviewers and authors.
Communicate decisions to authors along with reviewers' comments, barring offensive or defamatory remarks.
Honor author requests for reviewer exclusions under valid conditions.
Maintain manuscript confidentiality.

Reviewers:

Identify potential ethical issues in research and publication.
Complete reviews promptly and communicate any delays to the Editor.
Keep manuscript details confidential.
Decline review invitations when conflicts of interest exist.

Authors:

Confirm unpublished and non-simultaneous submission elsewhere.
Authenticate research work and appropriately cite others' work.
Avoid plagiarism and "salami" publishing.
Adhere to submission guidelines.
Refrain from publishing identifiable patient details without consent.
Ensure compliance with ethical standards in human and animal research.
Be prepared to provide data and details if data manipulation is suspected.
Disclose potential conflicts of interest.