The journal adheres to the recommendations of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and the principles set out in the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA). These standards form the basis of the editorial policy and are used as a practical framework in the process of making editorial decisions, addressing ethical issues, and resolving potential conflict situations. 

Ethical Obligations of Journal Editors

The editor must evaluate all submitted manuscripts impartially, without discrimination based on race, religion, nationality, or the position or institutional affiliation of the author(s). Each submission must be assessed fairly and objectively.

Publication of any material is not permitted if there are sufficient grounds to believe that it contains plagiarism.

All submitted manuscripts undergo a rigorous selection process and peer review. The editorial board reserves the right to reject a manuscript or return it to the author for revision. Authors are required to revise their manuscripts in accordance with the comments of reviewers and/or the editorial board.

The editor’s decision to accept a manuscript for publication is based on its scientific significance, originality, quality of presentation, and relevance to the journal’s scope. Manuscripts may be rejected without peer review if the editor determines that they do not fit the journal’s profile. In making such decisions, the editor may consult members of the editorial board or external reviewers. 

Ethical Obligations of Authors

Authors must ensure that they have written entirely original manuscripts, and that any use of other authors’ work or words is appropriately cited or presented in quotation marks.

Submitting the same manuscript to more than one journal simultaneously is considered unethical and is unacceptable.

Manuscripts must be properly structured, contain sufficient references, and be prepared in accordance with the journal’s requirements.

False or knowingly inaccurate statements in a manuscript constitute unethical behavior and are not permitted.

The corresponding author must ensure that all co-authors have reviewed and approved the final version of the manuscript and agree to its submission and publication.

Authors bear full responsibility for the content of their articles and for the fact of their publication. The journal’s editorial office assumes no responsibility for any potential damages resulting from publication. The editorial board reserves the right to retract an article if it is found that rights have been violated or generally accepted standards of research ethics have not been followed during the publication process. In such cases, the author will be notified of the retraction. 

Ethical Obligations of Reviewers

To ensure the objectivity of manuscript evaluation, the journal applies a double-blind peer review process.

Since peer review is an essential stage in the publication process and, consequently, in the implementation of the scientific method, every scholar is expected to contribute a fair share of reviewing work.

If a selected reviewer feels unqualified to assess the research presented in a manuscript, they must immediately decline and return the manuscript to the editorial office.

The reviewer must provide an objective assessment of the manuscript’s quality, including the experimental and theoretical work, its interpretation and presentation, and the extent to which it meets high scientific and literary standards. Reviewers must respect the intellectual independence of the authors.

Reviewers are required to provide clear and well-argued feedback so that editors and authors can understand the basis of their comments. Any claim that an observation, conclusion, or argument has been previously published must be accompanied by an appropriate citation.

The reviewer must alert the editor to any substantial similarity between the manuscript under review and any published article or any manuscript simultaneously submitted to another journal.

Reviewers must not use or disclose any unpublished information, arguments, or interpretations contained in the manuscript without the author’s consent.

Adherence to DORA Principles

The editorial board of the scientific journal supports the principles of the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA) and follows modern approaches to evaluating research outputs. The journal recognizes that the quality of scientific research should not be assessed solely on the basis of formal metrics, such as impact factors or other bibliometric indicators.

The evaluation of submitted manuscripts is based on their scientific originality, methodological rigor, significance of results, and contribution to the development of the relevant field of knowledge. The editorial board encourages a comprehensive and content-oriented approach to research assessment, taking into account its impact on science, practice, and society.

The journal also supports the responsible use of scientometric indicators, transparency in editorial processes, and equal opportunities for authors regardless of institutional affiliation or geographical origin. Adherence to DORA principles is an integral part of the journal’s policy aimed at ensuring quality, objectivity, and academic integrity.

Ethical Requirements for Research Involving Humans, Animals, Biological Materials, and Personal Data

The editorial board of the scientific journal requires strict adherence to high ethical standards in research involving humans, animals, biological materials, and personal data, in accordance with international norms, including the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki and the recommendations of the Committee on Publication Ethics.

Research involving human participants must be conducted with full respect for their rights, dignity, and safety. Authors are required to confirm that informed consent was obtained from all participants for their involvement in the study and the processing of their data, and to indicate approval by an appropriate ethics committee or institutional review board. No information that could identify participants may be published without their explicit written consent.

Research involving animals must comply with the principles of humane treatment, minimization of suffering, and applicable legal and international bioethical standards. Authors must confirm that all necessary permissions have been obtained from the relevant authorities and that approved procedures for the care and use of animals in research have been followed.

The use of biological materials (human or animal origin) must comply with ethical and legal requirements, including proper documentation of their source and conditions of use. When personal data are used, authors must ensure their protection, confidentiality, and compliance with applicable data protection regulations.

The editorial board reserves the right to request additional evidence of compliance with ethical standards and to reject manuscripts in cases of violation.

Procedure for Handling Complaints Regarding Violations of Academic Integrity and Publication Ethics

The editorial board of the scientific journal adheres to the principles of academic integrity and publication ethics in accordance with international standards and the recommendations of authoritative organizations, including the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). All complaints regarding potential violations are considered impartially, confidentially, and within a reasonable timeframe.

Complaints may concern, in particular, cases of plagiarism, self-plagiarism, data fabrication or falsification, authorship disputes, conflicts of interest, unethical peer review practices, or editorial misconduct. A complaint may be submitted by any interested party to the journal’s editorial office, accompanied by substantiated information and, where possible, supporting evidence.

Upon receipt of a complaint, the editorial board conducts a preliminary assessment to evaluate its validity and determine further actions. If necessary, independent experts or members of the editorial board with no conflict of interest in relation to the complaint may be involved in the review process.

During the review period, the editorial office may suspend the peer review or publication process for the manuscript in question. All parties involved in the complaint are entitled to provide explanations and additional materials.

Based on the results of the investigation, the editorial board makes a decision appropriate to the nature of the violation. This may include rejection of the manuscript, retraction of a published article, publication of a correction or retraction notice, notification of the authors’ affiliated institutions, as well as other measures provided for by publication ethics standards.

The editorial board ensures transparency in the complaint-handling process while maintaining the confidentiality of all parties involved. All decisions are made in accordance with the principles of objectivity, fairness, and international publication ethics standards.

Retraction of Published Articles

The editorial board of the scientific journal carries out the retraction of published articles in cases where significant violations of academic integrity or publication ethics are identified. The purpose of retraction is to correct the scholarly record and ensure the reliability of published information.

Grounds for retraction may include plagiarism, self-plagiarism, data fabrication or falsification, substantial errors affecting research results, duplicate publication, authorship disputes, or other forms of unethical academic conduct. A retraction decision may be initiated by the editorial board, authors, or third parties based on a substantiated request.

The procedure involves an editorial investigation, with the involvement of independent experts if necessary. Authors are given the opportunity to provide explanations regarding the identified issues. During the review process, the editorial office may temporarily restrict access to the material or mark it as under investigation.

If a decision to retract an article is made, the article is not removed from the journal’s website but is clearly marked as retracted, with an explanation of the reasons for retraction. A corresponding notice is published on the article’s webpage and, if necessary, in a separate issue of the journal. The editorial board may also inform the institutions with which the authors are affiliated.

The editorial board ensures transparency in the retraction process while adhering to the principles of objectivity, fairness, and confidentiality.

Artificial Intelligence Use Policy

The editorial board of the scientific journal supports the responsible and ethical use of artificial intelligence technologies in academic work in accordance with international publication ethics standards, including the recommendations of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). AI tools may be used solely as an auxiliary aid in the preparation of scholarly materials (e.g., for text editing, translation, or data analysis). However, authors bear full responsibility for the content of the manuscript, the accuracy of the results, and compliance with the principles of academic integrity.

Authors are required to disclose the use of artificial intelligence, specifying the particular tool and the nature of its application in the relevant section of the manuscript. Artificial intelligence cannot be listed as a co-author of a scientific publication. The use of such technologies for generating or falsifying data, creating fabricated references, manipulating research results, or engaging in any other forms of unethical conduct is strictly prohibited.

Reviewers are not permitted to upload manuscripts or any part thereof to external artificial intelligence systems without the permission of the editorial board, as this may violate confidentiality principles. The editorial board reserves the right to examine submitted materials and take appropriate measures in case of detected violations of publication ethics.