To ensure that the research published in the Research Journal of Pharmacology and Pharmacodynamics (RJPPD) is honest, high quality and reliable. It is very essential to maintain publication ethics. These ethics outlines the responsibilities of editors, writers and reviewers which makes sure everyone involved in the publication process follows high ethical standards. RJPPD continuously tries to improve its guidelines by adopting measures mentioned by organization’s like
- International Committee of Medical Journals Editors (ICMJE)
- World Association of Medical Editors (WAME)
- Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT)
Editors have the responsibility of choosing ideal research paper to publish in the journal. They must act fair and unbiased in making their decisions and their decisions must be based solely on the quality of the work and its relevance to the institution. They should not be influenced by personal relationships or financial consideration. Additionally, editor must keep all the information confidential and should not use any part of the submitted papers for their own profit.
Writers and authors are responsible for submitting original and significant articles. They must ensure that their work is free from plagiarism and they properly mentioned all sources of their work. Writers are not allowed to submit the same research to more than one journal at a time. They must also disclose all potential conflicts of interests that can influence the outcome of their research.
Reviewers play an important role in evaluating the quality and validity of submitted research articles. The evaluation done by reviewers must be honest, unbiased and free from all possible conflict of interests. It is their task to bring good articles and manuscript in the scientific world so that the whole scientific community can be benefitted.
The ethical standards for RJPPD are based on the guidelines published by “Committee on Publishing Ethics,2011” which lays foundation for publishing ethics and malpractice elimination.
Role of the Editor
Publishing Decision:
- Editors hold the decision-making power to publish an article or not.
- Editor has the responsibility to approve only those articles that are not violating the guidelines of the institute.
- Editors must ensure that the article is free from all possible conflict of interests before approving.
Confidentiality:
- Editors must maintain the privacy of the articles and must not disclose the identity of authors and reviewers who are involved in the work.
- They must not be involved in any activity which can give them financial or personal gain.
Editorial Independence:
- Editors have the independence to work freely without any peer pressure, political agenda, business interests.
- Editors must openly state available conflicts of interest and should reject the articles if found any.
Fair and Impartial Review:
- Editors must stick with a fair and impartial set of rules and should not get influenced by the author’s nationality, name or the institutional connection he has.
- Editors must assign the articles to reviewers who have sufficient knowledge about the subject in which the article is written.
Ethical Oversight:
- With addition to above guidelines the editors must ensure that the article is free from data manipulation, plagiarism and ethical lapses and should take strict actions if any of these mistakes is found.
- If an editor finds any suspicion or misbehavior, he should contact writers and reviewers to address the issue immediately. Editors when encountering any mistakes or ethical issues must correct those mistakes before publishing or can conduct a review meeting to rectify this issue.
Role of the Author
Research Ethics:
- Authors must ensure that their research does not breach any moral ethics.
- Authors must obtain informed consent from individuals involved in the study or research.
- Authors must ensure that their studies adhere to the Helsinki Declaration for human research and do not violate rules for conducting animal research.
- For research involving animals and other living beings, authors must obtain ethical clearance.
Originality and Plagiarism:
- Authors must wisely use others' ideas or plans
- The study/research must belong to author only and it should be distinct.
- Authors should avoid plagiarism and self-plagiarism.
- Proper credit must be given to all material, data, and previously published work.
Transparency and Data Sharing:
- Authors should share important data and details to allow others to use their studies.
- If possible, authors should share datasets and make them accessible to all.
- Authors must ensure transparency by disclosing personal, financial, or professional conflicts of interest.
Ethical Reporting:
- Authors must honestly state their findings irrespective of favorable and unfavorable outcomes.
- Author must not manipulate statistics and reports to obtain certain information.
Authorship and Contributorship:
- Author must provide acknowledgement for all the contributors who are involved in the contribution.
- Author must meet the criteria for authorship by making a significant contribution to study and the paper.
- Authors must not hire someone for completion of their own studies and honorary authorship should not be done.
Timeliness and Cooperation:
- Authors should complete their work on time and make any requested changes within the given timeframe.
- Authors must collaborate with editors and editorial boards to publish articles on time.
Role of the Reviewer
Ethical Consideration:
- Reviewers must inform the editor of any violations such as data manipulation and plagiarism.
- Reviewers must not use the author's article for their own study without the author's consent.
Conflict of Interest:
- Reviewers must inform the editor of any conflicts of interest.
- Reviewers must also notify the editor of any personal or financial gain they may have.
Confidentiality:
- To keep the review process anonymous, reviewers must keep all information about the papers private from those not involved in the review.
Objectivity and Constructiveness:
- Reviewers must provide fair, useful, and unbiased feedback on the manuscript's advantages and disadvantages.
- Reviewers must be honest with the editor about any personal biases and conflicts of interest.
Timeliness:
- Reviewers must complete the review within the given time limit.
- If reviewers cannot finish the task on time, they should inform the editor.
Suggestion for the Editor:
- Reviewers must assess the articles properly to identify mistakes and confusion.
- Reviewers should provide suggestions to the editor to improve the content and state whether the manuscript should be accepted, revised, or rejected.
- Reviewers must refrain from making biased remarks about the articles.
The Research Journal of Pharmacology and Pharmacodynamics (RJPPD) relies heavily on these ethical guidelines to stay trustworthy and respected. Following these rules helps makes sure that research and publishing articles in the field of pharmacology are done with honesty. Authors, reviewers and editors must follow these guidelines to maintain the institute’s benchmark.
If these rules and regulations are violated, strict actions can be taken to rectify the problems and mistakes. This actions include rejection of submitted articles, articles being retracted, or reports being made to the head of the institution and authorities.
Allegation and Research Misconduct
Research misconduct includes fabricating data, altering data, unfairly manipulating citations, and copying others' work without proper credit. These actions can occur at any stage of research, from conducting studies to writing and reviewing papers.
When authors commit such misconduct, it undermines the trustworthiness of the institute. Editors are responsible for maintaining the accuracy of the scientific record. If an author is found guilty of misconduct, editors must correct the record by rejecting the paper, retracting published articles, or reporting the issue to relevant authorities. This helps protect the integrity of scientific research.
If there is a suspicion of misconduct, the Editors and Editorial Board will follow COPE's guidelines to address the issue. They will investigate the claim to determine its validity, and if it qualifies as research misconduct, a meeting may be appointed. This initial stage involves checking for potential conflicts of interest among those involved in the alleged misconduct.
If a submitted paper is found to have manipulation or other misconduct, it will be disregarded. If a published study is found to have ethical misconduct, the institution will retract the article. This helps ensure the scientific record is accurate and trustworthy. The goal is to resolve the issue fairly and maintain the integrity of research published in the journal. By following these steps, the Editors and Editorial Board work to uphold high ethical standards and protect the credibility of scientific research.
Following Guidelines if Malpractice is Confirmed:
- A notice will be sent to the corresponding author (author on behalf of all co-authors) for clarification.
- The response of the corresponding author is recorded and sent for further scrutiny.
- The assessment of the response is based on COPE’s guidelines and institute regulations.
- After assessment if the studies of the author are found to be faulty in cases like plagiarism, manipulation etc. then it is proceeded to authorities to take action.
- The response of the corresponding author is recorded and sent for further scrutiny.
- Authorities can take action which includes debarring the author for 6 months or immediately rejecting the articles
Institutes must thoroughly investigate claims of scientific misconduct. Ensuring the accuracy of the scientific record is a responsibility of authors, editors, and organization itself. The research Journal of Pharmacology and Pharmacodynamics (RJPPD) always tries to maintain the validity and integrity of scientific records. If found any mistakes they take actions like making correction, issuing restriction or replacement or entirely retracting the articles. This helps the institution in keeping the scientific research accurate and trustworthy.
Grievances and Appeals
RJPPD has a transparent process for handling complaints about the publication, editorial staff, editorial board, or author who is publishing the article. If any complaint is received regarding any of these, then it will be transferred to the person who is authorized for addressing the complaints. RJPPD strictly adheres to the COPE’s guidelines to address the complaints which are related to editorial process, citation manipulation, unfair editors/reviewers, peer review manipulation etc.
Ethical Lapse
To follow rules and ethical guidelines for research involving humans and animals, authors must mention any substances, techniques, or equipment that are dangerous to use in the study. If requested, authors must show legal and ethical approval from the relevant organization. Additionally, authors should specifically mention information obtained during the study and provide clarification to authorities about the use of this information. However, authors are restricted from using other people's information.