Ethical Guidelines for the Editors

Editors play a critical role in maintaining the integrity, quality, and fairness of the publication process. The following ethical guidelines must be adhered to by all editorial board members.

Section-wise Guidelines

Section Guidelines
1. Fairness and Impartiality • Treat all manuscripts objectively, without bias based on authors’ nationality, gender, race, religious beliefs, or institutional affiliation.• Ensure that editorial decisions are based solely on the manuscript’s academic merit and relevance.
2. Confidentiality • Manuscripts under consideration must be treated as confidential.• Editors must not disclose or use information in the manuscripts for personal gain before publication.
3. Conflicts of Interest • Disclose any potential conflicts of interest, including personal, financial, or professional relationships with authors.• Recuse themselves from handling manuscripts where a conflict exists.
4. Ethical Oversight • Identify and address ethical issues such as plagiarism, duplicate publication, or misconduct.• Ensure that studies involving human or animal subjects comply with ethical standards.
5. Timeliness • Ensure timely handling of manuscripts to maintain efficient publication processes.• Avoid unnecessary delays in the review and decision-making process.
6. Editorial Decisions • Make decisions transparently and communicate them clearly to authors.• Provide constructive feedback from reviewers to support manuscript improvement.
7. Accountability • Maintain responsibility for the integrity of the publication process.• Uphold the journal’s policies and international best practices in scholarly publishing.
8. Promotion of Best Practices • Encourage high ethical standards among authors and reviewers.• Stay updated on ethical guidelines, peer review practices, and scholarly publishing norms.
9. Confidential Communications • Editors must handle communications with authors, reviewers, and staff professionally and confidentially.

Note: Adherence to these ethical guidelines ensures the integrity, credibility, and scholarly standards of IJCIC. Violations may result in removal from the editorial board or other appropriate actions.