The Editorial Board of the journal adheres to high standards of academic integrity and publication ethics, following the recommendations of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). All complaints are reviewed in a transparent, fair, and timely manner.

 

1. Grounds for Complaints

Complaints may concern, but are not limited to:

• plagiarism (partial or complete);
• data fabrication or falsification;
• duplicate or redundant publication;
• authorship misconduct (gift, ghost, or excluded authorship);
• undisclosed conflicts of interest;
• breaches of peer-review ethics (bias, inappropriate comments, misuse of material);
• other cases of academic misconduct.

2. Submission of Complaints

Complaints must be submitted in written form to the official editorial e-mail address.

The complaint should include: name of the complainant (individual or organization), a clear description of the alleged violation, and any supporting evidence.

Anonymous complaints may be considered if they contain sufficient evidence.

3. Review Process

All complaints are registered and initially screened by the Editorial Board.

If deemed valid, the complaint is forwarded to an ad hoc Ethics Committee (composed of editors, reviewers, and, if necessary, external experts).

Authors or other parties concerned are given the opportunity to provide explanations.

All cases are handled confidentially and objectively.

4. Possible Outcomes

Depending on the findings, the Editorial Board may decide to:

dismiss the complaint as unfounded;

issue a correction or editorial note;

publish an official statement of correction or retraction;

retract the article with an explanation;

impose a temporary ban on submissions from authors who committed the violation;

inform relevant institutions, funders, or employers about the misconduct.

5. Appeals

Authors or other parties have the right to appeal decisions by submitting additional evidence. Final decisions are made by the Editor-in-Chief in consultation with the Editorial Board.

6. Principles

The Editorial Board ensures:

• objectivity and fairness in all cases;
• confidentiality for all parties involved;
• transparency in publishing corrections, retractions, or editorial statements.