Publication Ethics and Misconduct
The Journal of Indonesian and Malay World Studies is committed to upholding the highest standards of publication ethics, academic integrity, and scholarly responsibility. This policy outlines the ethical principles and responsibilities that govern all parties involved in the publication process, including authors, editors, peer reviewers, and the publisher. It applies to all stages of submission, peer review, publication, and post-publication.
This policy has been developed in accordance with the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing.
1. Duties and Responsibilities of Authors
Reporting Standards
Authors are required to present accurate, original, and complete accounts of their research. Manuscripts must include sufficient methodological detail, clear research objectives, and appropriate references to enable other researchers to replicate or verify the study. Any form of fabrication, falsification, selective reporting, or inappropriate manipulation of data constitutes unethical behavior and will not be tolerated.
Originality and Plagiarism
Authors must ensure that submitted manuscripts are entirely original works. Proper acknowledgment of others’ work through accurate citation and quotation is mandatory. Plagiarism in any form—including direct plagiarism, self-plagiarism, duplicate publication, and improper paraphrasing—is strictly prohibited and will result in appropriate editorial action.
Multiple, Redundant, or Concurrent Publication
Authors must not submit the same manuscript to more than one journal simultaneously. Submitting redundant or substantially similar manuscripts to multiple publications without full disclosure to the editor is considered unethical and unacceptable.
Authorship and Contributorship
Authorship should be limited to individuals who have made substantial intellectual contributions to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the study. All listed authors must approve the final version of the manuscript and agree to its submission. Individuals who contributed to the work but do not meet the criteria for authorship should be appropriately acknowledged.
Data Sharing and Reproducibility
Authors are encouraged to make relevant research data available to promote transparency, verification, and reproducibility. A Data Availability Statement should be included in the manuscript. If data sharing is restricted due to ethical, legal, or confidentiality considerations, authors must clearly explain the reasons for these restrictions.
Ethical Oversight
Research involving human participants, personal data, or animals must comply with all applicable ethical standards and regulations. Authors are required to obtain approval from an appropriate ethics committee or institutional review board and to secure informed consent when applicable. Statements of ethical approval must be clearly included in the manuscript.
Conflicts of Interest
Authors must disclose any financial, professional, institutional, or personal relationships that could be perceived as influencing the research or its interpretation. All sources of funding and potential conflicts of interest must be transparently declared.
Fundamental Errors in Published Works
If authors identify significant errors or inaccuracies in their published work, they are obligated to promptly notify the editor and cooperate fully in issuing corrections, clarifications, retractions, or other appropriate actions.
Author Declaration
To uphold publication ethics, all authors of accepted manuscripts are required to complete and sign a Publication Declaration Form. This declaration confirms the originality of the manuscript, compliance with ethical standards, disclosure of conflicts of interest, and that the work has not been published or submitted elsewhere. The signed form must be submitted prior to final publication.
2. Duties and Responsibilities of Editors
Publication Decisions
Editors are responsible for deciding which manuscripts are accepted for publication. Editorial decisions are based solely on scholarly merit, originality, relevance to the journal’s scope, and the outcomes of the peer-review process, without discrimination or influence from commercial, financial, or institutional interests.
Review of Manuscripts
Editors must ensure that all submissions undergo an initial evaluation for originality, relevance, and ethical compliance. The peer-review process must be conducted fairly, transparently, and efficiently. Editors are responsible for selecting qualified reviewers with appropriate expertise and for avoiding conflicts of interest.
Fair Play
Manuscripts are evaluated exclusively on their intellectual content, without regard to authors’ race, gender, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, ethnic origin, citizenship, or political views.
Confidentiality
Editors and editorial staff must maintain the confidentiality of all submitted manuscripts and must not disclose information about a submission beyond those directly involved in the editorial process.
Conflicts of Interest
Editors must recuse themselves from handling manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest. Unpublished material disclosed in submitted manuscripts must not be used for editors’ own research without explicit written consent from the author.
Complaints and Appeals
The journal maintains a transparent and fair mechanism for handling complaints and appeals. Appeals against editorial decisions are reviewed by the Editor-in-Chief and, when necessary, by an independent member of the Editorial Board. All complaints and appeals are handled objectively and confidentially, in accordance with COPE guidelines. Decisions following appeals are final.
3. Duties and Responsibilities of Reviewers
Confidentiality
Reviewers must treat all manuscripts as confidential documents and must not share or discuss them with others without authorization from the editor.
Objectivity and Constructive Review
Peer review must be conducted objectively and professionally. Reviewers are expected to provide clear, reasoned, and constructive feedback that assists authors in improving the quality, clarity, and scholarly contribution of their manuscripts.
Acknowledgement of Sources
Reviewers should identify relevant published work that has not been cited and inform the editor of any suspected plagiarism, redundancy, or ethical concerns.
Conflicts of Interest
Reviewers must disclose any conflicts of interest and decline review assignments where such conflicts could compromise objectivity.
Promptness
Reviewers should complete their reviews within the agreed timeframe. If they are unable to do so, they must promptly inform the editor to allow for alternative arrangements.
4. Duties and Responsibilities of the Publisher
Elkuator Research and Publication, as the publisher of the Journal of Indonesian and Malay World Studies, supports editorial independence, ensures ethical oversight throughout the publication process, prevents commercial or financial considerations from influencing editorial decisions, and guarantees long-term access to published content through reliable digital preservation systems.
5. Research Misconduct Policy
Definition of Research Misconduct
Research misconduct includes, but is not limited to, plagiarism, citation manipulation, data fabrication or falsification, undisclosed conflicts of interest, and violations of accepted ethical research standards.
Identification and Prevention
The journal takes reasonable and proactive steps to identify and prevent research misconduct, including similarity checks, editorial screening, and ethical evaluation. At no point will the journal or its editors encourage, facilitate, or knowingly allow misconduct.
Handling Allegations of Misconduct
When allegations of research misconduct arise before or after publication, the journal conducts investigations in a fair, objective, confidential, and timely manner. Appropriate actions may include manuscript rejection, publication of corrections, retractions, expressions of concern, or notification of relevant institutions, depending on the severity of the case.
6. Intellectual Property and Licensing
Authors retain the copyright of their work and grant the journal the right of first publication. All published articles are distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution–NonCommercial 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC 4.0), which permits non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided that proper attribution is given to the original authors and the source. Commercial use of the published material requires prior written permission. Detailed licensing terms are outlined in the Copyright and Licensing section.
7. Post-Publication Discussions and Corrections
The journal is committed to preserving the integrity of the scholarly record. Corrections, retractions, or expressions of concern will be issued when necessary. Authors and readers are encouraged to engage in post-publication discussions, submit comments, or report concerns through formal correspondence with the Editorial Office.
