Publication Ethics & Malpractice Policy

Journal of Education and Development Lab (JEDL) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of publication ethics, academic integrity, transparency, and responsible scholarly communication. JEDL expects all participants in the publication process—including authors, editors, reviewers, editorial board members, and the journal management—to uphold these principles.

This policy applies to all manuscripts submitted to JEDL, including research articles, review articles, theoretical papers, case studies, methodological papers, short communications, and other scholarly contributions published by the journal.

JEDL considers publication ethics a shared responsibility and follows internationally recognized principles of responsible scholarly publishing.

1. Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to:

  • promote integrity and transparency throughout the publication process;

  • protect the reliability and credibility of the scholarly record;

  • establish clear standards of ethical conduct for authors, editors, and reviewers;

  • prevent and address plagiarism, fabrication, falsification, duplicate publication, authorship misconduct, peer-review manipulation, citation manipulation, and other forms of malpractice;

  • ensure that allegations of misconduct are handled fairly, confidentially, and consistently;

  • provide appropriate mechanisms for corrections, retractions, withdrawals, and expressions of concern when necessary.

JEDL does not tolerate intentional or serious breaches of publication ethics.

2. Fundamental Ethical Principles

JEDL is committed to the following principles:

  1. Integrity — Research and publication must be conducted honestly and responsibly.

  2. Transparency — Editorial and publication processes should be clearly communicated.

  3. Independence — Editorial decisions must be based on scholarly merit and relevance rather than commercial, personal, political, or other inappropriate considerations.

  4. Confidentiality — Confidential information obtained during peer review and editorial assessment must be protected.

  5. Fairness — Authors and reviewers must be treated fairly and without discrimination.

  6. Accountability — All participants are responsible for maintaining the integrity of the publication process.

  7. Correction of the scholarly record — JEDL will take appropriate action when published material is found to be substantially inaccurate, misleading, unethical, or unreliable.

3. Responsibilities of Authors

Authors submitting manuscripts to JEDL are responsible for ensuring that:

  • the submitted work is original;

  • the research has been conducted honestly and responsibly;

  • the manuscript accurately represents the research performed;

  • all relevant sources are appropriately cited;

  • all individuals who qualify for authorship are properly credited;

  • individuals who do not qualify for authorship are not listed as authors;

  • all authors have approved the submitted manuscript;

  • the manuscript is not simultaneously submitted to another journal;

  • conflicts of interest are disclosed;

  • relevant ethical approvals and informed consent are obtained where applicable;

  • data, methods, figures, tables, and other research materials are reported accurately;

  • any use of artificial intelligence or generative AI tools is disclosed where required by JEDL's AI policy;

  • suspected errors in a submitted or published article are promptly communicated to the journal.

Authors must cooperate reasonably with editorial investigations concerning suspected misconduct.

4. Editorial Responsibilities

Editors and members of the editorial team must:

  • evaluate manuscripts objectively and fairly;

  • maintain confidentiality during the editorial and peer-review process;

  • avoid discrimination based on nationality, ethnicity, gender, religion, institutional affiliation, political views, or other irrelevant characteristics;

  • make editorial decisions based on scholarly quality, originality, relevance, methodological rigor, and ethical standards;

  • disclose and appropriately manage conflicts of interest;

  • select qualified and independent reviewers;

  • protect the identity and confidentiality of reviewers where applicable;

  • investigate credible allegations of publication misconduct;

  • correct the scholarly record when errors or misconduct are confirmed;

  • avoid using unpublished information from submitted manuscripts for personal research or advantage.

Editors must not interfere with the independent judgment of reviewers or manipulate the peer-review process for personal, institutional, or commercial purposes.

5. Responsibilities of Peer Reviewers

Reviewers are expected to:

  • conduct reviews objectively and constructively;

  • maintain confidentiality regarding manuscripts under review;

  • identify potential conflicts of interest before accepting a review;

  • decline reviews when they cannot provide an impartial assessment;

  • identify relevant published work that has not been appropriately cited;

  • alert the editor to suspected plagiarism, duplicate publication, fabricated data, or other ethical concerns;

  • avoid using unpublished information obtained through peer review for personal or professional advantage;

  • submit reviews within the agreed timeframe whenever possible;

  • provide evidence-based comments rather than personal criticism.

JEDL's detailed reviewer requirements are established in its Peer Review Policy and reviewer guidelines.

6. Plagiarism

Plagiarism is considered a serious violation of publication ethics.

Plagiarism includes, but is not limited to:

  • copying text without appropriate quotation and citation;

  • presenting another person's ideas, theories, methods, or findings as one's own;

  • substantial unattributed paraphrasing;

  • copying figures, tables, images, diagrams, or other materials without proper attribution or permission where required;

  • submitting another person's work under one's own name;

  • inappropriate reuse of previously published material without disclosure.

JEDL may use plagiarism-detection or similarity-checking tools as part of editorial screening.

A similarity score alone does not automatically establish plagiarism. Editors will consider the nature, extent, location, context, and source of the overlap.

Detailed procedures are provided in JEDL's Plagiarism & Research Misconduct Policy.

7. Fabrication and Falsification

JEDL considers fabrication and falsification serious forms of research misconduct.

Fabrication

Fabrication is the invention of data, results, participants, experiments, observations, sources, or other research information that did not actually exist.

Falsification

Falsification includes manipulating research materials, procedures, data, results, images, or reporting in a manner that misrepresents the research.

Examples include:

  • manipulating datasets;

  • selectively removing observations without legitimate methodological justification;

  • altering research results;

  • manipulating images or figures in a misleading manner;

  • inventing experimental or survey results;

  • misrepresenting research methods;

  • falsely reporting ethical approval or research procedures.

Confirmed fabrication or falsification may result in rejection, withdrawal, retraction, notification of relevant institutions, or other appropriate action.

8. Duplicate, Redundant, and Concurrent Publication

Authors must not submit substantially the same manuscript to more than one journal simultaneously.

JEDL considers the following potentially unethical:

  • duplicate publication;

  • redundant publication;

  • substantial republication of previously published work without appropriate disclosure;

  • submitting the same manuscript to multiple journals simultaneously;

  • dividing one study into multiple publications solely to increase publication counts without legitimate scholarly justification.

Legitimate reuse of previously published material may be acceptable in limited circumstances when appropriately disclosed, cited, and permitted.

Authors must disclose relevant related manuscripts, publications, conference papers, preprints, datasets, or reports that may overlap substantially with the submitted manuscript.

9. Authorship and Contributorship

JEDL expects authorship to reflect genuine and substantial scholarly contribution.

The following forms of authorship misconduct are prohibited:

  • Guest or honorary authorship — listing individuals who did not make a qualifying contribution;

  • Gift authorship — granting authorship as a favor;

  • Ghost authorship — excluding individuals who made substantial contributions;

  • Purchased authorship — assigning or obtaining authorship through payment or other improper arrangements;

  • falsely claiming contribution or responsibility.

All listed authors should have:

  • made a meaningful contribution to the work;

  • participated appropriately in drafting or critically revising the manuscript;

  • approved the final version;

  • agreed to submission and publication;

  • accepted responsibility for their contribution and the integrity of the work.

Detailed requirements are established in JEDL's Authorship & Contributorship Policy.

10. Changes in Authorship

Requests to add, remove, or reorder authors after submission must be supported by a clear explanation and the agreement of all affected authors.

JEDL may request:

  • written confirmation from all authors;

  • an explanation of the reason for the proposed change;

  • documentation of author contributions;

  • institutional clarification where an authorship dispute exists.

Where authorship disputes cannot be resolved by the authors, JEDL may refer the matter to the relevant institution or research organization.

JEDL will not normally determine institutional authorship disputes itself.

11. Conflicts of Interest

Authors, reviewers, editors, and editorial board members must disclose relationships or circumstances that could reasonably influence—or appear to influence—their judgment.

Potential conflicts may include:

  • financial interests;

  • employment relationships;

  • research funding;

  • consultancy;

  • personal relationships;

  • academic competition;

  • institutional affiliations;

  • intellectual property interests;

  • professional or other relationships that could affect objectivity.

A conflict of interest does not necessarily prevent publication or participation in peer review. However, relevant conflicts must be disclosed and appropriately managed.

12. Research Ethics

Research involving human participants, personal data, animals, or other ethically sensitive subjects must comply with applicable ethical and legal requirements.

Where applicable, authors should provide information concerning:

  • institutional or independent ethical approval;

  • ethics committee or institutional review board approval;

  • informed consent;

  • participant confidentiality;

  • protection of personal information;

  • consent for publication of identifiable information or images;

  • relevant legal or regulatory requirements.

JEDL may request evidence of ethical approval or other supporting documentation.

Where research does not require formal ethical approval, authors should provide an appropriate statement explaining the basis for that determination where relevant.

13. Informed Consent and Privacy

Authors must protect the privacy and dignity of research participants.

Where identifiable information, photographs, case details, interviews, recordings, or other personally identifiable materials are included, appropriate consent must be obtained where required.

Authors must not disclose unnecessary personal information.

JEDL may require removal or anonymization of information that could unnecessarily identify participants.

14. Data Integrity and Research Transparency

Authors are expected to maintain accurate research records and report their methods and findings honestly.

Where appropriate, authors should provide sufficient methodological information to allow readers to understand and evaluate the research.

JEDL may request clarification, supporting documentation, datasets, research instruments, or other materials when necessary to investigate questions concerning research integrity.

Data must not be fabricated, falsified, selectively manipulated, or presented in a misleading manner.

15. Image and Figure Manipulation

Images, figures, photographs, charts, and graphical materials must accurately represent the underlying research.

Unacceptable practices include:

  • fabricating images;

  • selectively manipulating images to create a misleading result;

  • removing or adding material in a deceptive manner;

  • duplicating an image to represent different results;

  • altering figures in ways that materially misrepresent the findings.

Legitimate technical adjustments may be acceptable when they do not distort the scientific or scholarly meaning of the material and are appropriately disclosed where necessary.

16. Citation and Reference Manipulation

JEDL prohibits citation practices intended primarily to manipulate citation metrics or improperly influence editorial decisions.

Examples include:

  • coercive citation;

  • excessive self-citation without scholarly justification;

  • excessive citation of articles from a particular journal without legitimate relevance;

  • coordinated citation arrangements;

  • adding irrelevant references to increase citation counts;

  • requesting citations solely to improve journal or author metrics.

References should be selected because they are relevant and academically appropriate.

17. Peer-Review Manipulation

JEDL considers manipulation of the peer-review process a serious ethical violation.

Examples include:

  • providing fabricated reviewer identities;

  • creating false reviewer accounts;

  • submitting fake or manipulated reviewer reports;

  • attempting to influence reviewers improperly;

  • using third parties to impersonate reviewers or authors;

  • manipulating reviewer recommendations;

  • interfering with editorial systems;

  • attempting to circumvent independent peer review.

Where peer-review integrity is compromised, JEDL may reject or withdraw the affected manuscript and may investigate related publications.

18. Artificial Intelligence and Generative AI

JEDL recognizes that AI-assisted technologies may be used in scholarly work but requires responsible and transparent use.

AI tools must not be listed as authors.

Authors remain fully responsible for:

  • the accuracy of submitted content;

  • originality;

  • citations;

  • research integrity;

  • ethical compliance;

  • confidentiality;

  • any material generated or assisted by AI.

AI tools must not be used to fabricate data, references, results, citations, reviewer identities, research participants, or evidence.

Where disclosure is required, authors should identify the AI tool used and explain its role in preparing the manuscript.

Editors and reviewers must also protect confidential manuscript information and must not upload confidential manuscript content into AI systems that are not authorized for such use.

JEDL's detailed requirements are provided in its AI & Generative AI Policy.

19. Misconduct During Peer Review

Reviewers and editors must not:

  • disclose confidential manuscript information;

  • use unpublished research for personal benefit;

  • contact authors improperly regarding the manuscript;

  • intentionally delay publication for competitive reasons;

  • manipulate review recommendations;

  • request irrelevant citations;

  • use peer review to obtain intellectual property or research ideas improperly.

Any suspected misconduct should be reported confidentially to the Editor-in-Chief or designated editorial contact.

20. Editorial Decision-Making and Independence

Editorial decisions should be based primarily on:

  • scholarly quality;

  • originality;

  • methodological rigor;

  • relevance to JEDL's scope;

  • clarity and validity of presentation;

  • ethical compliance;

  • contribution to the scholarly literature.

Editorial decisions must not be improperly influenced by:

  • commercial interests;

  • advertising;

  • sponsorship;

  • personal relationships;

  • institutional pressure;

  • political considerations;

  • author nationality or affiliation;

  • the perceived status of an author.

Editors must maintain appropriate separation between editorial decision-making and commercial or promotional interests.

21. Allegations of Misconduct

Anyone may raise a credible concern regarding possible publication misconduct.

Concerns may relate to:

  • plagiarism;

  • fabrication or falsification;

  • duplicate publication;

  • authorship misconduct;

  • undeclared conflicts of interest;

  • unethical research;

  • peer-review manipulation;

  • citation manipulation;

  • inappropriate image manipulation;

  • AI-related misconduct;

  • other violations of publication ethics.

Concerns should be supported by relevant evidence whenever possible.

JEDL does not require an individual to prove misconduct before raising a concern. However, deliberately false or malicious allegations are themselves inappropriate.

22. Investigation Procedure

When a credible allegation is received, JEDL may undertake an initial assessment.

Depending on the circumstances, the process may include:

Step 1 — Preliminary Assessment

The Editor-in-Chief or designated editor evaluates whether the concern is credible and falls within the journal's responsibility.

Step 2 — Confidential Inquiry

The journal may contact the relevant author or other parties to request clarification or supporting information.

Step 3 — Evidence Assessment

Relevant documents, manuscript versions, data, correspondence, reviewer reports, similarity reports, or other evidence may be examined.

Step 4 — Author Response

The concerned author(s) will normally be given an appropriate opportunity to respond.

Step 5 — Institutional Referral

Where the matter involves research conduct that is primarily the responsibility of an institution, JEDL may refer the matter to the author's institution, employer, funder, ethics committee, or other appropriate authority.

Step 6 — Editorial Action

Depending on the findings, JEDL may:

  • take no further action;

  • request corrections;

  • require clarification;

  • reject the manuscript;

  • suspend editorial processing;

  • withdraw an accepted article;

  • issue an expression of concern;

  • correct or retract a published article;

  • restrict future submissions where justified;

  • notify relevant institutions or organizations.

The action taken will depend on the seriousness and circumstances of the matter.

23. Confidentiality During Investigations

JEDL will make reasonable efforts to maintain confidentiality during investigations.

Information concerning an allegation will normally be shared only with individuals who need the information to evaluate or resolve the matter.

However, confidentiality may be limited where disclosure is necessary to:

  • protect the integrity of the scholarly record;

  • comply with legal or regulatory requirements;

  • communicate with an author's institution;

  • investigate serious research misconduct;

  • protect participants or other affected individuals.

24. Institutional Cooperation

Where allegations involve research misconduct that cannot reasonably be resolved through editorial procedures, JEDL may contact the relevant institution or organization.

Institutions may be asked to investigate matters involving:

  • research data;

  • ethical approval;

  • participant conduct;

  • fabrication or falsification;

  • authorship disputes;

  • research funding;

  • institutional responsibilities.

JEDL may rely on the findings of a competent institutional investigation when determining appropriate editorial action.

25. Corrections

JEDL is committed to correcting significant errors in the published record.

A correction may be appropriate when an article contains an error that does not invalidate the overall scholarly contribution but requires amendment for accuracy or clarity.

Corrections should clearly identify:

  • the affected article;

  • the nature of the correction;

  • the corrected information where appropriate;

  • the date of correction.

The original scholarly record should remain traceable.

26. Retractions

JEDL may retract a published article when the article is found to be substantially unreliable or seriously compromised.

Potential grounds include:

  • fabricated or falsified data;

  • substantial plagiarism;

  • duplicate publication;

  • serious ethical violations;

  • compromised peer review;

  • major undisclosed conflicts of interest;

  • serious methodological or factual problems that invalidate the findings;

  • other circumstances that materially undermine the integrity of the publication.

A retraction notice should clearly identify the affected article and explain the reason for retraction.

The original article will normally remain accessible with an appropriate retraction notice so that the scholarly record remains transparent.

27. Expressions of Concern

Where serious concerns exist but an investigation has not yet reached a definitive conclusion, JEDL may publish an Expression of Concern.

This may be appropriate when:

  • credible allegations are under investigation;

  • an institutional investigation is pending;

  • important evidence cannot yet be verified;

  • there is a significant unresolved concern regarding the reliability or integrity of an article.

An Expression of Concern does not itself establish misconduct.

JEDL may subsequently issue a correction, retraction, or other notice when the investigation is resolved.

28. Article Withdrawal Before Publication

An article may be withdrawn before publication in circumstances such as:

  • serious ethical concerns;

  • confirmed plagiarism;

  • major authorship disputes;

  • fabricated or falsified information;

  • duplicate submission;

  • legal or ethical restrictions;

  • compromised peer review;

  • other circumstances that make publication inappropriate.

Withdrawal decisions will be documented internally and communicated to the relevant authors.

29. Post-Publication Concerns

JEDL welcomes legitimate scholarly concerns regarding published articles.

Concerns may be raised regarding:

  • factual errors;

  • methodological problems;

  • ethical issues;

  • plagiarism;

  • data integrity;

  • authorship;

  • duplicate publication;

  • conflicts of interest;

  • other publication-ethics concerns.

Where appropriate, JEDL may investigate and publish a correction, clarification, Expression of Concern, retraction, or other editorial notice.

30. Appeals

Authors may appeal an editorial decision when they believe that:

  • a significant error occurred in the editorial process;

  • relevant information was overlooked;

  • the decision was based on a demonstrable misunderstanding;

  • there is evidence of inappropriate bias or procedural irregularity.

An appeal should provide a clear explanation and relevant supporting evidence.

Appeals will be considered by an appropriate editor or designated member of the editorial team who was not directly responsible for the original decision whenever reasonably possible.

Editorial decisions based solely on scholarly disagreement or disagreement with reviewer opinion may not necessarily be overturned.

31. Protection Against Retaliation

JEDL will not tolerate retaliation against individuals who raise good-faith concerns about publication ethics.

Authors, reviewers, editors, research participants, or other individuals who report legitimate concerns should not be disadvantaged merely for raising those concerns.

Reports will be handled as confidentially as reasonably possible.

32. Malicious or Deliberately False Allegations

JEDL encourages good-faith reporting of genuine concerns.

However, deliberately fabricated, malicious, or knowingly false allegations intended to damage an author, reviewer, editor, or institution may be treated as inappropriate conduct.

JEDL may take appropriate action where credible evidence demonstrates intentional misuse of the complaints or ethics process.

33. Responsibilities of the Journal

JEDL is responsible for maintaining an ethical and transparent publication environment.

The journal will:

  • maintain clear publication-ethics policies;

  • apply its policies consistently;

  • protect confidential information;

  • investigate credible allegations;

  • provide appropriate opportunities for response;

  • correct the scholarly record when necessary;

  • cooperate with legitimate institutional investigations;

  • maintain appropriate records of editorial and ethical decisions;

  • periodically review its publication-ethics policies.

34. Editorial Board and Journal Staff

Editorial board members and journal staff must:

  • act in the best interests of the journal and scholarly community;

  • disclose conflicts of interest;

  • maintain confidentiality;

  • avoid misuse of unpublished information;

  • support ethical editorial practices;

  • report suspected misconduct appropriately;

  • avoid using their position to obtain personal or professional advantage.

Editorial board membership does not provide preferential treatment for an individual's manuscripts.

35. Special Issues and Guest Editors

Special issues and guest-edited collections must follow the same ethical and peer-review standards as regular JEDL publications.

Guest editors must:

  • disclose conflicts of interest;

  • maintain appropriate confidentiality;

  • ensure fair peer review;

  • avoid preferential treatment;

  • follow JEDL's authorship, plagiarism, research ethics, and misconduct policies.

Where a guest editor has a conflict with a submitted manuscript, an independent editor should manage the manuscript whenever reasonably possible.

36. Commercial Interests, Advertising, and Sponsorship

Commercial relationships must not influence editorial decisions.

Where JEDL accepts advertising, sponsorship, grants, or other financial support, such support must be managed separately from editorial decision-making.

Advertisers and sponsors must not be permitted to influence:

  • peer-review outcomes;

  • acceptance or rejection decisions;

  • editorial content;

  • reviewer selection;

  • publication priority.

Any commercial relationship should be transparently disclosed in accordance with JEDL's relevant policies.

37. Ethical Use of Journal Resources

Authors, reviewers, editors, and journal staff must not misuse:

  • editorial systems;

  • confidential manuscripts;

  • reviewer identities;

  • unpublished data;

  • journal correspondence;

  • editorial privileges;

  • publication information.

Unauthorized access, manipulation, or disclosure of journal systems or confidential information may be treated as serious misconduct.

38. Record Keeping

JEDL will maintain appropriate records concerning:

  • manuscript submissions;

  • editorial decisions;

  • peer-review reports;

  • ethical investigations;

  • corrections;

  • retractions;

  • expressions of concern;

  • authorship changes;

  • relevant correspondence.

Records will be handled in accordance with applicable privacy and confidentiality requirements.

39. Relationship With Other JEDL Policies

This policy should be read together with JEDL's other publication policies, including:

  • Aims & Scope;

  • Editorial Policy;

  • Peer Review Policy;

  • Authorship & Contributorship Policy;

  • Plagiarism & Research Misconduct Policy;

  • Conflict of Interest Policy;

  • Research Ethics & Ethical Approval Policy;

  • AI & Generative AI Policy;

  • Copyright & Licensing Policy;

  • Open Access Policy;

  • Data Availability & Reproducibility Policy;

  • Complaints & Appeals Policy;

  • Correction, Retraction & Withdrawal Policy;

  • Privacy Policy;

  • Digital Archiving & Preservation Policy;

  • Preprint & Self-Archiving Policy.

Where a specific policy provides more detailed procedures for a particular issue, that policy should be consulted alongside this general Publication Ethics & Malpractice Policy.

40. Commitment to Ethical Publishing

JEDL recognizes that maintaining publication integrity is an ongoing responsibility shared by the entire scholarly community.

The journal is committed to:

  • protecting the integrity of the academic record;

  • promoting responsible research and publication;

  • treating authors and reviewers fairly;

  • investigating credible concerns responsibly;

  • correcting errors transparently;

  • taking proportionate action when misconduct is established;

  • maintaining editorial independence;

  • continuously improving its ethical and publication practices.

JEDL reserves the right to update this policy when necessary to reflect developments in scholarly publishing, research ethics, publishing technology, and best practices in publication integrity.

Effective Date: June 2026
Journal: Journal of Education and Development Lab (JEDL)
Website: https://jedl.us/