Publication Ethics and Publication Malpractice Statement
Studies in Contemporary Art Ageing Journal (SAGE) is a peer-reviewed journal committed to ensuring the highest standards of publication ethics. All parties involved in the act of publishing (editors, authors, reviewers and the publisher) have to agree upon standards of ethical behavior. We state the following principles of Publication Ethics and Publication Malpractice Statement based on the Code of Conduct and Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors of the Committee on Publication Ethics – COPE (available at http://publicationethics.org/).
Editorial Board members’ Responsibilities
All members of the editorial staff of SAGE are responsible for:
• Following the policies of the journal regarding the publication process (http://sage.inoe.ro/index.php/manuscript-submission/) and deciding which manuscripts should be published, according to these guidelines and to legal requirements concerning plagiarism, copyright infringement and denigration;
• Guiding the authors and reviewers on what is expected of them and the description of the reviewing process;
• Ensuring a fair, unbiased peer-review process of the manuscripts and protecting the confidentiality of all received information, and also the identities of both authors and reviewers;
• Guiding new editorial board members with guidelines on their attributions;
• Evaluating received manuscripts solely on the basis of their academic and intellectual merit, without taking into account aspects related to race, gender, age, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, ethnicity, disability, citizenship, political orientation, social class;
• Ensuring that appropriate reviewers are selected;
• Reasonable and timely action towards all ethical complaints that are presented concerning a submitted/published manuscript.
• Following the COPE flowcharts in case of suspected misconduct
• Ensuring that the proper corrections, clarifications, retractions and apologies are published, if case be.
Authors’ Responsibilities
• Authors should present accurate accounts of the work performed;
• The submitted manuscript should accurately represent underlying data;
• Fraudulent or knowingly inaccurate statements are not accepted and should be avoided;
• Authors declare that the manuscript has not been simultaneously submitted to other publications;
• Authors declare that the data presented is original and should appropriately credit and reference work or words of others authors, contributors or sources;
• Authors must confirm that the submitted manuscript represents their own contributions and that they have not been copied or plagiarized in whole or in part from other works without clearly citing the source.
• Plagiarism in any forms constitutes unethical publishing behavior and is unacceptable;
• Authors must ensure that the manuscript has not been published elsewhere;
• Authorship should be limited to those who have made a significant contribution to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the reported study. All those who have made significant contributions should be listed as co-authors. Others who have participated in certain substantive aspects of the research project should be acknowledged or listed as contributors;
• The corresponding author with the journal should ensure that all appropriate co-authors are included in the author list of the manuscript, and that there is a full consensus of all co-authors in approving the final version of the paper and its submission for publication;
• All sources of financial support must be disclosed. Authors must also disclose any financial or other type of conflict of interest that can influence the results or interpretation of their manuscript.
Reviewers’ Responsibilities
• The peer review process is essential for the editorial decisions of SAGE board members and for improving the received manuscripts;
• Invited reviewers who feel unqualified or do not have the necessary time to review the manuscript assigned should notify the editor so that alternative reviewers can be contacted;
• Reviewers should decline manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships or connections with any of the authors, companies, or institutions connected to the papers;
• Manuscripts received for publication are regarded as confidential documents; information obtained from the manuscripts should not be used for personal advantage;
• Reviewers must report to the editor of SAGE if they are aware of copyright infringement and plagiarism;
• Reviews should be conducted objectively, and clearly formulated observations should be provided, with supporting arguments, so that authors can use them for improving the paper;
• Manuscripts should be evaluated by reviewers based on content, disregarding authors’ race, age, gender, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, disability, religious belief, citizenship, political orientation or social class.
Publisher’s Responsibilities
As publisher of SAGE, the National Institute of Research and Development for Optoelectronics INOE 2000 will:
• provide practical support to the editors and executive editorial board of SAGE so that they can follow the COPE Code of Conduct for Journal;
• ensure the autonomy of editorial decisions;
• protect intellectual property and copyright;
• ensure that good practice is maintained to the standards defined above.