Allegations of Research Misconduct

Journal CERITA (Creative Education of Research in Information Technology and Artificial Informatics) is strongly committed to preventing and handling any forms of research misconduct to preserve the integrity of scholarly publishing. The journal adopts a zero-tolerance policy toward research misconduct and strictly adheres to the guidelines established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

1. Definition of Research Misconduct

Research misconduct includes, but is not limited to, the following unethical practices:

  • Plagiarism: Appropriating someone else’s ideas, processes, results, or words without giving appropriate credit or citation.
  • Fabrication and Falsification: Making up data or results and recording or reporting them (fabrication); or manipulating research materials, equipment, or processes, or changing/omitting data or results such that the research is not accurately represented in the research record (falsification).
  • Citation Manipulation: Excessive self-citations, honorary citations, or coordinated group citations designed purely to artificially inflate citation metrics.
  • Redundant/Duplicate Publication: Submitting or publishing the same manuscript, data, or significant parts of a study to multiple journals concurrently without proper cross-referencing or justification.
  • Authorship Misconduct: Including individuals who did not significantly contribute to the study (gift/guest authorship) or excluding genuine contributors (ghost authorship).

2. Reporting Procedures

  • Who Can Report: Anyone (readers, reviewers, editors, or external parties) who suspects research misconduct in a submitted manuscript or a published article in Journal CERITA is encouraged to report it.
  • How to Report: Whistleblowers must submit a formal complaint via email to the Editor-in-Chief at [email protected].
  • Required Evidence: The report must include clear evidence, such as comparative text for plagiarism, source data discrepancies for fabrication, or specific details of the alleged misconduct. Anonymous reports will be considered only if they provide verifiable and compelling evidence.

3. Investigation Process

The Editorial Board of Journal CERITA follows a structured, fair, and unbiased process to investigate all allegations:

  1. Initial Assessment: The Editor-in-Chief and the editorial team will conduct a preliminary review to determine whether the allegation has merit and substance.
  2. Contacting the Authors: If substance is found, the editors will formally contact the corresponding author, presenting the evidence and requesting a detailed explanation within a specified timeframe (usually 14–30 days).
  3. Expert Consultation: If necessary, the editorial board may form an independent ad-hoc committee or consult external subject matter experts to evaluate the technical aspects of the alleged misconduct.
  4. Final Resolution: Based on the findings and the authors' response, the Editorial Board will make a final decision regarding the validity of the allegation.

4. Sanctions and Corrective Actions

If the investigation confirms that research misconduct has occurred, Journal CERITA will implement appropriate measures depending on the severity of the offense:

  • For Pre-publication Manuscripts: the manuscript will be immediately rejected, and the authors may face a temporary ban (1–3 years) from submitting to the journal.
  • For Post-publication Articles:
    • Correction/Errata: If the error is minor or accidental and does not compromise the core scientific findings, a formal correction note will be published.
    • Retraction: If the misconduct is severe (e.g., extensive plagiarism, data fabrication, or invalid results), the article will be formally retracted in accordance with COPE Retraction Guidelines. A retraction notice detailing the reasons will be publicly appended to the article page.
  • Institutional Notification: The journal reserves the right to formally report the proven misconduct to the authors' home institution, university, or funding agency.