Publication Ethics
IRMEA is committed to upholding the highest standards of publication ethics and academic integrity. All parties involved in the publication process—editors, reviewers, authors, and the publisher—are expected to adhere to ethical principles and good practice in scholarly publishing. The journal follows international best practices and aligns with guidelines issued by recognised ethics bodies (e.g. COPE).
- Duties of Authors
- Originality and plagiarism
Manuscripts submitted to IRMEA must be the authors’ original work and must not have been published previously or be under consideration elsewhere. All sources must be properly cited. The journal uses similarity-checking tools to detect plagiarism, including self-plagiarism and unacknowledged reuse of text, data, or figures.
- Data accuracy and integrity
Authors must ensure that data and results are reported accurately and transparently. Fabrication, falsification, and selective reporting of data are serious ethical violations. Authors may be asked to provide raw data for editorial or peer review purposes.
- Multiple, redundant, or concurrent publication
Submitting the same or substantially similar manuscript to more than one journal at the same time is considered unethical. Overlapping publications must be clearly disclosed and justified.
- Authorship and acknowledgment
Authorship should be limited to individuals who have made a significant contribution to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the study. All contributors who do not meet the criteria for authorship must be acknowledged appropriately. The corresponding author is responsible for ensuring that all co-authors approve the final version of the manuscript and its submission to IRMEA.
- Conflicts of interest
Authors must disclose any financial or non-financial conflicts of interest that could be perceived to influence the results or interpretation of the manuscript (e.g. funding, consultancy, ownership, professional or personal relationships).
- Ethical approval and research involving humans/animals
For research involving human participants, animals, or sensitive data, authors must state that the study obtained approval from an appropriate ethics committee and that relevant ethical standards were followed (e.g. informed consent, confidentiality).
- Corrections and retractions
If authors discover a significant error or inaccuracy in their published work, they are obliged to promptly notify the editor and cooperate to issue a correction, erratum, or retraction where necessary.
- Duties of Editors
- Editorial independence and fairness
Editors evaluate manuscripts solely on the basis of their academic merit, relevance to the journal’s scope, and clarity, regardless of authors’ race, gender, institutional affiliation, country of origin, or political or religious beliefs.
- Confidentiality
Editors and editorial staff must treat submitted manuscripts as confidential documents and must not disclose any information to anyone other than the corresponding author, reviewers, and the publisher as appropriate. - Conflicts of interest
Editors must recuse themselves from handling manuscripts in which they have a conflict of interest (e.g. competitive, collaborative, or close personal relationship with the authors). Such manuscripts will be assigned to another editor.
- Decision-making and misconduct handling
Editors are responsible for the final decision on whether a manuscript is accepted, revised, or rejected. Suspected cases of plagiarism, data manipulation, or other misconduct will be investigated following due process. If ethical breaches are confirmed, the journal may reject the manuscript, retract published articles, or take other appropriate actions.
- Duties of Reviewers
- Contribution to editorial decisions
Peer reviewers assist the editors in making editorial decisions and may also help authors improve their manuscripts through constructive feedback.
- Promptness and competence
Reviewers who feel unqualified to review a manuscript, or who cannot complete the review within the agreed timeframe, should notify the editor and decline the invitation.
- Confidentiality
All manuscripts received for review must be treated as confidential. Reviewers may not share or discuss the manuscript with others without prior permission from the editor. - Objectivity and quality of review
Reviews should be conducted objectively, with clear, evidence-based comments. Personal criticism of the authors is inappropriate. Reviewers should identify relevant published work that has not been cited, and alert the editor to any substantial similarity between the manuscript under review and other published works.
- Conflicts of interest
Reviewers must disclose any potential conflicts of interest and decline to review a manuscript where such conflicts exist.
- Duties of the Publisher
The publisher works closely with the editorial team to support academic freedom and ethical publishing. The publisher ensures that:
- The editorial independence of the journal is respected.
- Allegations of research or publication misconduct are investigated and addressed.
- Corrections, retractions, and clarifications are issued where necessary to maintain the integrity of the scholarly record.