Policy on Research Ethics, Scientific Integrity, and Procedures for Handling Violations

The Journal of Engineering Research (Libya) is committed to upholding the highest standards of research ethics and scientific integrity. This policy defines ethical principles, good research practices, and standardized procedures for dealing with violations. It aligns with the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidelines and the requirements of major international indexing databases, including Scopus.

1. General Principles
  • Honesty & Integrity: Conduct and report research without fabrication or falsification.
  • Transparency: Disclose author contributions, funding, and conflicts of interest.
  • Fairness & Objectivity: Decisions must be based solely on scholarly merit.
  • Accountability & Confidentiality: All parties must fulfill roles and keep manuscripts secure.
  • Privacy: Protect personal data and obtain informed consent.
  • Compliance: Screened via Turnitin/iThenticate; similarity must be < 20%.
2. Definitions of Misconduct
  • Plagiarism: Use of others' work without proper attribution.
  • Double Submission: Concurrent submission of the same manuscript to more than one journal.
  • Data Fabrication: Falsifying or inventing data/results.
  • Editorial/Reviewer Bias: Unethical manipulation of the peer review process.

3. Ethical Conduct Guidelines

For Authors
  • Authorship must reflect actual contributions.
  • Plagiarism, fabrication, or double submission is strictly prohibited.
  • Conflicts of interest must be declared.
  • Data presented must be accurate and verifiable.
For Reviewers
  • Maintain confidentiality in reviews.
  • Provide objective, constructive feedback.
  • Decline requests when a conflict of interest exists.
For Editors
  • Make unbiased editorial decisions.
  • Investigate ethical issues transparently.
  • Refrain from using position for personal advantage.

4. Investigation and Handling of Violations

4.1 Reporting & Committee

Anyone may report misconduct. A formal committee is formed (by the Editor-in-Chief for authors/reviewers, or by the VP for Academic Affairs for editors).

4.2 Responsibilities & Procedures

The committee gathers evidence, interviews parties, reviews plagiarism reports, ensures confidentiality, and submits a final report with recommendations.

4.3 Sanctions
For Authors:
  • Plagiarism/Fabrication: Rejection, temporary ban, notify institution.
  • Double Submission: Rejection, formal warning, suspension.
  • Data Fabrication: Retraction and public statement.
For Reviewers & Editors:
  • Reviewer: Permanent removal from DB, notify institution.
  • Editor: Formal warning, internal investigation, or removal.
For Published Articles:
  • Retraction of the article.
  • Public retraction notice on the website.
  • Notification of indexing bodies.
5. Appeals & Review

Appeals must be submitted within 30 days. An independent appeal committee will reassess and provide a final, binding decision.

6. Transparency

All policies and sanctions are available on the website. Public retraction notices will clearly explain the reasons and processes followed.

7. Education & Prevention

The university conducts training on ethics and scientific integrity for authors, editors, and reviewers. Guidelines are publicly available.

8. Implementation

Effective upon publication. Submission indicates agreement to these rules. The policy is regularly reviewed to meet global standards.

 
Journal Contact: jer.editorinchief@uot.edu.ly
e-ISSN: 2521-9219 p-ISSN: 3078-6541
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