Publication Ethics

Publication Ethics and Handling of Misconduct

Jurnal MESIL is committed to preserving the integrity of the scholarly record. Everyone involved in publication—authors, editors, reviewers, and the publisher—is expected to act honestly, objectively, transparently, fairly, and responsibly. This policy draws on general scholarly publication ethics principles, including guidance from the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

Duties of Authors

  • Authors must report their research accurately, completely, and objectively. Data, images, methods, analyses, and findings must not be fabricated, falsified, or presented in a misleading manner.
  • Submissions must be original. Ideas, data, images, tables, or wording taken from others must be properly attributed, and permission must be obtained when required.
  • The same manuscript must not be submitted to more than one journal at the same time and must not have been published previously as the same publication, unless a specific exception is expressly permitted by journal policy and approved by the editor.
  • All individuals who meet the criteria for scholarly authorship must be listed as authors. All authors must approve the final version and its submission. Contributions that do not meet authorship criteria should be acknowledged appropriately.
  • Authors must disclose relevant funding sources and conflicts of interest.
  • Research involving human participants, animals, personal data, hazardous materials, or confidential information must comply with applicable legal and ethical requirements. Ethics approval, participant consent, or other permissions must be stated and supplied when required.
  • Authors must respond honestly to editorial requests for clarification and notify the editor if they discover a material error in a published article.

Duties of Editors and the Editorial Board

  • Editors make decisions based on scientific quality, relevance to the journal’s focus and scope, novelty or contribution, methodological validity, clarity, and peer-review reports.
  • Manuscripts are assessed fairly and without discrimination based on an author’s identity or background.
  • Editors and editorial staff must preserve manuscript confidentiality and must not use unpublished material for personal research without written permission.
  • Editors must manage conflicts of interest, including assigning a submission to another editor when necessary.
  • Editorial decisions must not be influenced by commercial interests, advertising, or pressure unrelated to scholarly merit.

Duties of Reviewers

  • Reviewers must provide objective, respectful, timely, and evidence-based assessments.
  • Reviewers should decline an invitation if they lack appropriate expertise, have a conflict of interest, or cannot complete the review within the stated period.
  • Manuscripts received for review must be treated as confidential and must not be shared or used without the editor’s permission.
  • Reviewers should identify relevant work that has not been cited and alert the editor to suspected substantial overlap, citation manipulation, or ethical concerns.

Peer Review and Similarity Screening

MESIL uses double-blind peer review: authors’ identities are not disclosed to reviewers, and reviewers’ identities are not disclosed to authors. The editor conducts an initial screening for scope, completeness, formatting compliance, and textual similarity before deciding whether a manuscript should proceed to external review.

The maximum similarity score used in initial screening is 20%. This score is a screening indicator, not conclusive proof that a manuscript is or is not plagiarised. Editors also assess the locations, sources, context, and nature of matching text. A score below 20% does not automatically establish originality, while a score above the threshold may result in a request for revision or rejection, depending on the assessment.

MESIL targets completion of the first external-review round within no more than 30 calendar days from the date the manuscript is sent to reviewers. Reviewers are generally allocated up to 10 working days to submit their reports. Time taken by authors to revise a manuscript and any additional review rounds are not included in the first-round target and may extend the overall editorial process. The editor will inform authors if particular circumstances cause a material delay.

Allegations of Misconduct and Their Handling

Misconduct may include plagiarism, duplicate publication, simultaneous submission, fabrication or falsification of data, citation manipulation, inappropriate authorship, peer-review manipulation, and breaches of research ethics. When concerns arise, the editor will conduct a fair preliminary assessment, request a response from relevant parties when appropriate, and may seek advice from experts or relevant institutions. A submission may be rejected; a published article may be corrected, retracted, or accompanied by an editorial notice when the evidence and seriousness of the issue warrant such action.

Conflicts of Interest

Authors, reviewers, and editors must disclose financial, professional, personal, or other relationships that could influence—or reasonably appear to influence—scholarly judgment. A person with a relevant conflict must not review or make decisions on the affected manuscript.

Complaints, Appeals, Corrections, and Retractions

Complaints about editorial processes or suspected misconduct may be submitted through the journal’s official contact channel. Appeals against editorial decisions must provide clear grounds and relevant evidence or explanations. Complaints and appeals will be assessed by an editor or other person without a conflict of interest. MESIL may publish corrections or retract articles when necessary to maintain the accuracy and integrity of the scholarly record. Actions should be proportionate, documented, and consistent with relevant publication-ethics principles.